1 Execution site(s)
Elvyra K., born in 1932: "In the summer of 1941, several Jewish families from Antalieptė were brought to the nearby village of Pašekšė and locked up in a house in the center. This house had belonged to a man named Juodvalkis, who was a communist and had fled to Russia before the German invasion. A few days later, the Jews were taken to the hilly area on the outskirts of the village, where they were murdered and buried in a pit previously used to store potatoes. The men were the first to be killed, followed by the women and children. I was awakened in the middle of the night by gunshots coming from that place. I still remember the screams of the women during the shooting." (Testimony N°YIU413LT, interviewed in Bajoriškai, on November 4, 2022)
Antalieptė, a small Lithuanian town surrounded by hills, is situated approximately 26 km (16 mi) northeast of Utena and about 15 km (9.3 mi) west of Degučiai. The town’s origins can be traced back to the 16th century. The first Jews began to settle in Antalieptė in the 19th century. According to the 1897 census conducted by the Russian Empire, there were 474 Jewish residents, comprising 85.5% of the total population. In 1898, many Jewish homes were destroyed in a fire that broke out in the town. Local Jews were primarily engaged in commerce and artisanal work, supplying the local Orthodox monastery with food and manufactured goods. Jewish skilled workers also repaired the monastery building. Jewish craftsmen offered their services as shoemakers, tailors, millers, engravers, blacksmiths, carpenters, and others.
During the period of Independent Lithuania (1918-1940), many Jews, facing a difficult economic situation, immigrated abroad. According to the 1923 census, Antalieptė was home to 367 Jewish inhabitants, comprising 63% of the total population. Antaliepté had a synagogue, two prayer houses, several Jewish shops, a Jewish flour mill, a fish factory, and a Hebrew school (established in 1937). During this period, Zionist organizations also emerged in the town. By 1940, when Lithuania was annexed by the Soviet Union, the number of Jewish residents had decreased to about 300 individuals. The economic situation deteriorated further as the nationalization of Jewish shops and enterprises led to a shortage of goods and rising prices.
Antalieptė was occupied by German troops on June 26, 1941. A new administration and a police unit, which included Lithuanian activists known as the white armbanders, were established in the town. Shortly afterward, anti-Jewish policies were implemented in the town. The Jewish population was subjected to theft, confiscation of provisions, humiliation, and was forbidden from having any contact with local non-Jewish inhabitants. Jews deemed fit for work were subjected to forced labor at surrounding farms. According to sources, several Jewish male workers never returned to Antalieptė after being tortured by a farm owner.
In the summer of 1941, a few weeks after the German arrival, several Jewish families from Antalieptė were transferred to the nearby village of Pašekšė, where they were confined in a house located in the village center. After several days of detention, the Jews were taken to the hilly area near the village of Daugailiai to be executed during the night. The Aktion was presumably conducted by local policemen, the white armbanders. The men were the first to be shot, followed by the women and children. The victims’ corpses were buried in a pit previously used to store potatoes. Today, the execution site is located in the forest near the village of Daugailiai. There is no memorial to commemorate the Jewish victims.
According to sources, the remaining Jews of Antalieptė were taken to the Krakynė forest, located several kilometers northwest of Degučiai, where they were murdered by Einsatzkommando 3 and Lithuanian policemen on August 26, 1941, alongside other Jews from the Zarasai area.
For more information about the killing of Jews in Degučiai please follow the corresponding profile.
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