In Gorodok, the remains of political instructor Nikitin Ivan Afanasyevich, found in the Kaluga region of the Russian Federation, were reburied.

The reburial of senior political instructor Ivan Nikitin, whose remains were discovered during search operations in the Kaluga region of the Russian Federation, took place at the "Immortalitу" memorial complex in Horadok.

The remains of the front-line soldier with a posthumous medallion were found by representatives of the "Restless Hearts" search team in the Maloyaroslavetsky district of the Kaluga region, near the settlement of Detchino. This information was published in the district newspaper "Horadok Herald". Thus, 80 years later, the daughter of the deceased, Galina Nikitina from Vitebsk, learned from acquaintances from Horadok where the war had caught up with her father. On June 22, he was reburied with full military honors on Horadok land.

The event was attended by the Chairman of the Regional Council of Deputies Vladimir Terentyev, district leadership, representatives of law enforcement agencies, a military unit, the district military commissariat, activists of public organizations, labor collectives, and students. Representatives of the clergy of the Horadok deanery held a memorial service in the Church of the Holy Trinity, after which the coffin with the warrior's remains was carried to the "Immortalitу" memorial complex.

— 80 years ago, enemies crossed our borders. We honor the memory of the heroes of the Brest Fortress, who repelled the fascist onslaught for a month. We remember all the battles for our cities. Our ancestors defended the Motherland to the last drop of blood. During the occupation, they forged victory behind enemy lines in Siberia and the Urals, where factories and plants were relocated. Hundreds of thousands of Belarusians defended Moscow, Leningrad, and Stalingrad. Truly, the feat of the Soviet people is immortal, — said Vladimir Terentyev. — Special thanks to the searchers from Kaluga and those who are restoring the names and surnames of the fallen. This is necessary not only for us but also for our children and grandchildren. The Victory was won at the cost of the lives of every third Belarusian, and we must cherish it.

Searchers from Kaluga presented Galina Nikitina with a medallion and a memorial capsule with soil from the place where her father died. The reburial ceremony was held according to all Christian traditions.

Ivan Nikitin was born in 1904 in the village of Ostryane, Vitebsk district. He graduated from the Leningrad Agricultural Institute and received a qualification as an agronomist specializing in fiber crops (according to documents transferred by his daughter to the local history museum). Since 1933, he lived in Gorodok, where he worked as a senior agronomist at a flax seed station. It was from here that he went to the front. On August 30, 1944, his wife Ekaterina received a letter from her husband's comrade-in-arms, Timofey Gorenkov, stating that in the autumn of '41, the front-line soldiers parted ways while crossing the Ugra River in the Kaluga region. Since then, Ivan Nikitin had been considered missing in action by his family.

Elena KRAVTSOVA, photos by the author. "Haradotski vesnik"