March 18, Pozirk. The Belarusian Supreme Court has found deceased Vladimir Katriuk guilty of genocide, it press office reports.
The court has not imposed any punishment because Katriuk died in Canada in 2015. Proceedings opened on February 8 with the criminal case against Katriuk comprising 35 volumes.
During WWII, Ukrainian-born Katriuk served with a Nazi SS battalion and was involved in war atrocities in Belarus, including the Chatyń massacre, the Guardian reported in 2015.
After the war, he emigrated to Canada where he was granted citizenship. The Belarusian foreign ministry said Canadian authorities did not respond to the extradition request.
In 2015, Katriuk ranked second on the list of surviving Nazi war criminals wanted by the United States-based Simon Wiesenthal Center hunting Nazi war criminals.
Katriuk denied his involvement in war crimes.
After the 2020 post-election protests, officials in Minsk have been promoting a theory that the Belarusians suffered genocide at the hands of the Nazis and their collaborators during WWII.
In July 2023, Alaksandar Łukašenka signed a law providing for criminal prosecution of the dead.
