The Chief of the Security Police and Security Service

Berlin,
February 4, 1942

65 copies
-----------------
(51st copy)

OPERATIONAL SITUATION REPORT USSR NO. 164

....................

Einsatzgruppe A

Location: Krasnogvardeisk

1) In Vilnius, 14 Poles were arrested because of extensive passport forgeries. They had sold passports at high prices, particularly to fleeing Jews. In agreement with the General Kommissar and the German Army Commander in Lithuania, a new agreement for the handling of passports and certificates will be set up in the near future.

....................

Einsatzgruppe C

Location: Kiev

...................

Contrary to expectations, the Christmas days passed quietly everywhere. One could note only increased Communist leaflet propaganda. In the course of the investigations, a raid was carried out in a suburb of Kramatorskya. With the assistance of 230 German soldiers, a part of the town was closed and 350 people were arrested without any outside help. Of these, 60 people were shot as active members or officials of the Communist Party, partisans, etc. The others were released after a sever warning. This action has deeply impressed the population. A noticeable deterioration of the mood in the population could be felt, not only with respect to the Communists but also in national Ukrainian organizations. The original East Ukrainian population is visibly united against the newly-arrived West Ukrainians who are seen as the main carriers of the idea of nationalism. Just like the Communists, the members of the national Ukrainian movement use various false documents, cover names, secret codes, etc. Lately, Communists hung up posters that falsified the original text in a Communist sense. They also hung next to the German posters so-called translations that had the same number of lines but was nothing but Communist propaganda.

Arrest of the Jews in Kharkov

The extensive preparations that became necessary in the matter of the arrest of the Kharkov Jews were speeded up within the framework of SK 4a responsibilities. First of all, it was necessary to find a suitable area for the evacuation of the Jews. This was accomplished with the closest understanding of the municipality's housing department. An area was chosen where the Jews could be housed in the barracks of a factory district. Then, on December 16, 1942, a summons was issued from the city commander to move to the area by December 16, 1941. The evacuation of the Jews went of without a hitch except for some robberies during the march of the Jews in the direction of their new quarters. Almost without exception, only Ukrainians participated in the robberies. So far, no report is available on the number of Jews that were arrested during the evacuation. At the same time, preparation for the shooting of the Jews is underway. 305 Jews who have spread rumors against the German Army were shot immediately.
(The Einsatzgruppen Reports by Yitzak Arad, Shmuel Krakowski and Shmuel Spector, editors. p. 288-9)