800 victims who are believed to have been killed by the authorities in Slovenia during the chaotic aftermath of the Second World War were recovered from a mass grave. The grave is located near Maribor, the second-largest city in Slovenia.
During World War Two, Maribor was occupied by the Nazis. The city was an industrial powerhouse, and was bombed extensively by the Allies. Almost half the town was flattened. Thousands were made homeless, and thousands died in Maribor over the course of the war.
After the war, a number of massacres took place. Civilians were killed, and fleeing members of the armed forces of the Nazi puppet state set up during the occupation were also killed. It was a chaotic and brutal time.
There have been several mass graves associated with World War Two have been found in the region. The identities of the victims often remain unknown.
The victims to be reburied are being laid to rest in a memorial park in Maribor, in northeastern Slovenia. They will be buried with other victims of post-WWII executions.
The president of Croatia, Kolinda Grabar Kitarovic, laid a wreath during a commemoration ceremony. She called for the lessons of this terrible time in her country’s history to be learned so that it can help us toward a foundation of a better future, Fox News reported.
The mass grave was known as the Huda Jama grave. It was found in 2009 in an abandoned mine east of Ljubljana. Experts believe that it contains the remains of as many as 5,000 victims.
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