Volksdeutscher Selbstschutz
The first killings of Polish intelligentsia took place soon after the German invasion, lasting from autumn 1939 until spring 1940. It was called Operation "Intelligenzaktion", a plan to eliminate Poland's intelligentsia and leadership in the western part of the country, realized by "Einsatzgruppen" and "Volksdeutscher Selbstschutz". As the result of this operation 60,000 Polish nobles, teachers, entrepreneurs, social workers, priests, judges and political activists were killed in 10 regional actions. The "Intelligenzaktion" was continued by the German "AB-Aktion" Operation in occupied territories of central Poland. Both murder operations were conducted in part according to an "enemies of the Reich list" prepared before the war by members of the German minority in Poland and printed ahead of time by the German Intelligence as the "Sonderfahndungsbuch Polen" (Special Prosecution Book-Poland).