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2 Execution site(s)
Nikolay S., born in 1931: “At the outbreak of the war our relatives evacuated from Rostov to our town. My uncle’s wife was Jewish. About a week after the Germans’ arrival she was arrested and taken outside the village where the silo pits were located. She was shot there along with other Jews.” (Witness n°757, interviewed in Temriuk, on September 23, 2017)
“According to incomplete data, the Germans shot more than 500 civilians from Temriuk near the prison, the silo pits and the kolkhoz “[illegible] Lenin”. Among the victims, there was a boy named Eduard who was “shot because his father was a Jew”. The excavations carried out by the commission lasted from October 15 to 19; eight pits were examined. There were the bodies of civilians, including women, men, children, and prisoners of war. Some bodies were disorganised; others were lying in rows. Many bodies had signs of violence. A number of victims had their belongings with them (also found in the pit), proving that the victims had been deceived and believed that they would be evacuated.” [Summary of the State extraordinary commission act drawn up on October 20, 1943. RG 22.002M:7021-16-465]
Temriuk is located on the right bank of the Kuban river, 130 km west of Krasnodar. According to the census in 1897 14,700 inhabitants lived in Temriuk. It was an industrial town with oilseed processing and soap-making factories. There were 17 windmills and one steam mill. By 1939 the local population had increased up to 23,200 people. There is no information about the prewar Jewish community, however at the outbreak of WWII many Jewish refugees arrived to Temriuk from Crimea, Odessa and Rostov-on-Don. Temriuk was occupied on August 24, 1942.
Soon after the occupation the Kommandant’s office, local police and gendarmerie were created. The shooting of Jews started one month and half after the occupation. According to the historical sources there were several executions, conducted at different places, for instance near the local prison and near the kolkhoz. During its investigation with the help of local witnesses Yahad was able to identify two executions sites of Jews. Besides the Jews, 800 prisoners of war and dozens of communists were murdered as well.
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Read Yahad-In Unum’s report of the research trip in this area