Katyn [ VERIFIED — 2026 ]
While Russia has provided many documents, it has resisted labeling the event as "genocide," and recent political tensions have led to renewed questioning of the official narrative within Russia. A Persistent Wound
Home to the Katyń Museum , which preserves the memory of those lost. While Russia has provided many documents, it has
The Katyn massacre stands as one of the most chilling and consequential atrocities of the 20th century. What began as a secret execution of the Polish elite by the Soviet Union evolved into a decades-long saga of propaganda, denial, and a search for historical justice. The Execution: Spring 1940 What began as a secret execution of the
The Soviet Union officially acknowledged that the NKVD had carried out the executions. Locations of other mass burial sites discovered later
The USSR immediately blamed the Nazis for the killings, claiming the Poles were executed during the German advance in 1941.
Locations of other mass burial sites discovered later.
In April 1943, Nazi German forces occupying the region discovered mass graves in the Katyn forest near Smolensk. They publicized the find to drive a wedge between the Western Allies and the Soviet Union.