Einsatzgruppen shooting of Jews, Latvia

An Einsatzgruppe execution between late July and mid-August 1941. Jewish men being shot by Germans, in dugout pit. Two brief shots of German Kriegsmarine standing along the bank near the bushes (screen left) washing himself. Footage includes executions of three groups of men. Soldiers and others, including Kriegsmarine personnel and civilians, stand around. Also visible are many people watching from an embankment above. Jews jump out of open truck and are herded, running, towards open pit. They wear "yellow badges" on their chests and backs. SS men, local Latvian militia, and German police units are visible. This amateur footage was shot by German Kriegsmarine Reinhard Wiener, out for a walk in Libau [Liepaja], Latvia with his 8mm Kodak camera. His description of the circumstances, camera, and how the film footage reached Germany, as detailed at the Bundesarchiv and at Yad Vashem, are in the Film and Video subject files and attached to this record online.