A stele in memory of the Tatars who liberated Belarus will be unveiled in the Vitebsk region

July 22, Vitebsk / Diana Kurilo - BELTA /. A delegation from the Republic of Tatarstan (Russian Federation) will take part in the opening of a stele in memory of Tatar soldiers who participated in the liberation of Belarus from the Nazi invaders and died on its territory. The solemn ceremony will take place on July 25 in the Vitebsk region, near the village of Zdravnevo, the head of the ideological work department of the Vitebsk District Executive Committee, Andrei Muravyov, told a BELTA correspondent. The delegation from Tatarstan includes more than 100 people: veterans of the Great Patriotic War, relatives of fallen soldiers, and officials. They will come to pay tribute to their countrymen who, in February 1943, went over to the side of the partisans and subsequently fought as part of the 1st Vitebsk Partisan Brigade. The initiative to perpetuate their memory belongs to the Tatar side. The history of the Great Patriotic War still holds many unknown pages. One of them is related to the Volga-Tatar Legion (Idel-Ural Legion) - a Wehrmacht unit composed of representatives of the Volga peoples of the USSR: Tatars, Bashkirs, Mari, Mordvins, Chuvash, and Udmurts. The legion's battalions did not show high combat effectiveness, as some of the soldiers recruited against their will deserted or went over to the side of the Red Army. The first successful attempt was made in February 1943 by the 825th Volga-Tatar Battalion, which was performing guard duty in the Vitebsk region. A clandestine group had been operating in this battalion since 1942, and the Vitebsk partisans established contact with it. As a result, on February 23, 1943, over 800 people with 6 anti-tank guns, 100 machine guns, and other weapons went over to the side of the partisan brigade. Historians have so far managed to establish the names of 100 patriots. -0-