Evening star., 1943-11-29
How &C, ,O0Oto &C, 900 Jews Were Mossocred
At Kiev Told by Who Helped Burn Bodies
BY EDDY GILMORE,

BY EDDY GILMORE,
| Associated Press War Correspondent
KIEV VIA MOSCOW, Nov. 90
About five miles outside Kiev to the
south, not far from the Dniepel
River, is one of the most horrible
places in the world today.
/ 1t is called "Babii Var (Wench's
Ravine).' There the Russians say
between $4,000 and 10000 Jews were
killed by the Nazis and their bodies
were later burned.
I have been there, but I'll let the
story tell itself.
We first were escorted there by
Prof. Pavel Aloshin, the chief archi-
tect for the reconstruction of the
Ukraine. He has a long, flowing
mustache, little blue eyes and a
merry smile despite the fact he hao
been here during the whole time oi
the German occupation.
Il want you to see Babii Var" he
said. Il can't explain it, and ]
can't explain why the Germans die
such thing"
We got out of our cars and walked
over a trench which the Germans
had thrown up to defend the high
way when the Red Army drove on
Kiev from the south. Beyond the
trench was a ravine about 40 feet
deep, about 100 feet wide and about
a half mile long where it ran into
a deeper, wider ravine.
He did not know why it was
called "Babii Var"
Moved Down by Gunners.
In September, 194l," Aloshin
said, thousands of Jews were
brought here Their clothes were
removed and in small groups they
were moved down by automatic
gunners. Then they were buried
Recently they were dug up and
burned by the Germans wanting to
destroy all the evidence
We asked him how he first heard
of the slayings, and he said he
heard about it from a German ar
chitect who Dragged about the mass
murders.
First the peoples clothes were
removed and then they were
marched naked to a sort of plat
form over there" said Aloshin
There they were shot down"
We asked him if there remained
any Russians in Kiev who wit
messed the slayings.
mo. I don't believe there were
any Russians who saw them" he
said. You can understand that the
Germans wouldn't want witnesses
for such crime
Parts of Bodies Found.
Pretty soon a crowd of peasant
women and small boys began to
gather. We asked them if they
saw the shootings. They said they
knew about them, but did not see
them.
We walked into the ravine with
the professor.
Il don't know what We'll find" he
said, because not long ago the
Germans came out here as the Red
Army was advancing and burned the
bodies on huge stoves
Aloshin said the digging up of the
bodies and the burning was done by
Russian war prisoners, some OF
whom went crazy after the grisly
business was completed.
One of these went about Kiev
screaming I can't live any more, the
earth is moving" he said.
We walked along the ditch, which
today seemed to be just sand.
Here and there were such things
as fingers without hands. A: an
other place there was a half burned
shoe with flesh inside. There were
several bones about.
We also uncovered lots of broken
burned spectacles. There were sew
eral pairs of broken false teeth.
We went back to the city Finally
the authorities took us back to the
ravine. A commission was holding
an investigation prior to making a
report to the central committee in
vestigating atrocities.
We were introduced to three men
all Jews, who reported that they
were formerly Red Army soldiers
who had been captured in Kiev and
later brought here to burn bodies.
Made to Dig Up Bodies.
They were Efimir Vilkis, 33, for
mer porter in Kiev railway station
Leonid Ostrovsky, 81, former hal
maker, and Vladimir Davidoy %, q
former carpenter.
They said they were captured
when Kiev fell to the Germans and
were put in concentration camr
which now, incidentally, is a prison
camp for the Germans Just across
the road from Babii Var.
Vilkis did most of the talking.
He said that on August IA he and
the other war prisoners were rounded
up and brought to huge dugout
near the ravine There were about
100 soldiers with him. including
Ostrovsky and Davidov.
On about August 10 of this year
the Germans marched him and the
others into Babii Var and, giving
them shovels, told them to dig in
the soft sand.
I'VE dug and began to come to
bodies Vilkis said. There were
hundreds Of them, They made us
take large tongs and drag these
bodies up here.
The Germans then made a LAYER
OF wood and then layer of bodies
and poured gasoline over them and
set them on fire"
Vilkis said hundreds of bodies
were burned in this manner.