On the 70th anniversary of Nazi Germany’s invasion of the Soviet Union, Russians commemorated the deaths of those who perished in the Great Patriotic War – candles were lit and flowers were laid at memorials in different Russian cities.
On the 70th anniversary of Nazi Germany’s invasion of the Soviet Union, Russians commemorated the deaths of those who perished in the Great Patriotic War – candles were lit and flowers were laid at memorials in different Russian cities. Photo: Muscovites light candles on Poklonnaya Hill.
Commemorative events, dedicated to the Day of Remembrance and Grief, began early on Wednesday across the entire country. Photo: Members of commemorative campaign “Memory Watch” in Moscow’s Alexander Garden.
Commemorative events took place in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Veliky Novgorod, Yekaterinburg, Krasnodar and Stavropol territories and others regions of Russia. Photo: A veteran of the Great Patriotic War participates in the patriotic campaign “Memory Watch” in Moscow’s Alexander Garden.
Citizens of Volgograd lit candles on Mamayev Kurgan.
In Veliky Novgorod candles were sent down the river as people mourned at the monument to the city’s heroes and liberators.
Representatives of Spiritual Administration of Muslims of Russian Tatarstan led by the republic’s Mufti, Ildus Faizov, gathered at 4 am in Kazan’s Victory Park to honor the victims of the Great Patriotic War.
Russian state flags are lowered across the country on June 22. Cultural venues, television channels and radio stations are recommended to refrain from entertainment events and programming.
The day on which the war began was not commemorated until 1992. Only in 1992 did the Russian Federation’s Supreme Soviet declare the day as the Day of Remembrance of Defenders of the Fatherland. Russian President Boris Yeltsin’s ruling on June 8, 1996, changed it to the Day of Remembrance and Grief. Photo: A man sends a candle down the river in Veliky Novgorod.
