Beisfjord massacre
The Beisfjord massacre (Norwegian: Beisfjord-massakren) was a massacre on 18 July 1942 in Beisfjord, Norway of 288 political[1] prisoners who were killed at Lager I Beisfjord (German for "Beisfjord Camp No.1", Norwegian: Beisfjord fangeleir). The massacre had been ordered a few days earlier by the Reichskommissar for Norway Josef Terboven.[1]
During the [first] "4 months that the prison camp existed, 82% of the Yugoslavs died" at the Beisfjord camp and its satellite camp at Øvre Jernvatn—out of the 900 that arrived; "rightfully the camp can be described as the worst camp in Norway during World War II", according to Michael Stokke, a historian at the Narvik War and Peace Centre;[2][3] early in 1943 the Beisfjord camp was re-opened for Soviet POWs (without Yugoslav prisoners).
Background
"As many as 150 000 foreign POWs, political prisoners and forced laborers were in Norway between 1941 and 1945. Over 13 700 died. The majority performed heavy labour construction work on Nordland Line, Highway 50 (overlapping present-day E06)[4] thru North Norway", airports, and fortifications against the Allies.[5] The largest group of prisoners were Soviets, followed by Poles and Yugoslavs.
In the summer of 1942 a number of Yugoslavian prisoners started arriving in North Norway as a result of the transfer of prisoners from the new Croatian puppet regime to German authorities who needed manpower for projects in Norway.[5] Many[6] of the victims were Serbs from the independent state of Croatia (NDH), not partisans but chosen for imprisonment, based on ethnicity.
The Yugoslavian prisoners that came to Norway, were at first subjects of SS, and in 1943 they were transferred to Wehrmacht and Organisation Todt.[7] Organisation Todt's Einsatzgruppe Wiking (no) eventually acquired the manpower of the prisoners.
4,041[2] (or around 5,000)[5] Yugoslavian political prisoners and prisoners-of-war (brought in by the Germans) did forced labour on infrastructure projects, including the following roads: Elsfjord—Korgen, Rognan to Langsølet, "Bjørnefjell Road towards Kiruna", and between Karasjok and the Finland—Norway border.[4] (At least three of these roads are among roads in Norway called "the Blood Road"—blodveien.)[8][9][10][11] "The Germans prioritized access to iron ore mines in Kiruna and the nickel mines in Petsamo".[4] [Including contract workers] 4250 Yugoslavians worked on infrastructure projects.[12]
2,368[6] (or around 2,700) Yugoslavians died in prison camps; the majority of these died in North Norway.[12]
In the first deployment of camp guards that were sent to North Norway, some used their bayonets so often "that even the Germans had enough of it".[13] The second group were not issued bayonets, for fear that they would become as blood thirsty.[13] (The guards from these groups came from Hirdvaktbataljonen—a battalion within Hirden,[13] that had the responsibility for guarding the prison camps in North Norway, between June 1942 and April 1943.[14] 500[13] of these guards served at four main camps—Lager 1 Beisfjord, Lager 2 Elsfjord, Lager 3 Rognan and Lager 4 Karasjok—and their satellite prison camps at Korgen, Osen, and at Lake Jernvann on Bjørnfjell.[15])
The Yugoslavians stayed in 24 camps; 13 of those camps were in North Norway, 9 in Mid-Norway and 2 in South-East Norway.[12]
5 of the camps in North Norway were run by SS,[12] out of 31 camps between Bergen and Hammerfest during World War II.[16]
"[F]rom June 1942 until March 1943, regularly there were executions of Yugoslavs [such as at Beisfjord and Bjørnfjell ] in Norwegian camps. 27 prisoners were shot at Ulven near Bergen, and 26 were shot in Tromsø during a ship's arrival. In both cases, the prisoners were told that the sick were going to hospital. In the Karaskjok camp, [and] in Botn, in Korgen and in the Osen camps, groups of 10 to 50 sick prisoners were removed from the camps and shot. The SS cleaned out the infirmaries in this manner", according to the website of HL-senteret (Norwegian Center for Studies of Holocaust and Religious Minorities).[17]
The commandant of the Osen camp, Sturmbannführer Dolph, was also given oversight over the Botn camp and Korgen camp.[18]: 39 The number of individuals victimized by Hermann Dolp and his German and Norwegian subordinates, might total 3,000 or even 4,000, according to a newspaper article.[16]
Many[5] hundreds of Bosnian Muslims were among the Yugoslav prisoners in Norway, but they only figure on a British list from 1945. After they were sent from Norway to Berlin, there is no trace of them, according to the Croatian philosopher Gorona Ognjenovic.[5] Yugoslavia did not want those prisoners back, claims Ognjenovic.[5]
Public Roads Administration
The involvement of the Norwegian Public Roads Administration was revealed in a 2014 Dagsavisen article: "The camps were built by the Public Roads Administration".[19] Furthermore, that the road work was led by the Public Roads Administration, "was more the rule, rather than the exception".[19] Furthermore, the agency's "employees were facilitators and witnesses—not executioners".[19] In November 1941 blueprints and descriptions for the construction of the prison camps were sent from the Directorate of Public Roads.[19] Furthermore, in the "early stage, we only know of one small protest: the" agency "refused to feed the prisoners. This was done by a lie": The agency claimed that it was not common for the agency to feed their road workers.[19] Furthermore, Anders Fagerbakk's dissertation says that Helgoland veikontor—a local office of the agency—sent a letter of complaint to Directorate of Public Roads, a few days after Yugoslavians were put to work on road construction: The engineer in charge reported that "Norwegian road workers became restless and nervous, as a result of working with the Yugoslavians. The Yugoslavians were being fed starvation rations, and they lacked [enough] clothing".[19] In later reporting from the village Karasjok, the description "skin and bones" was used about Yugoslavian prisoners constructing roads.[19] Furthermore, "after the war, everyone in the Public Roads Administration denied involvement with the Yugoslavian prisoners."[19] Reactions to the involvement of the agency, includes (in 2014) "Still, no one has asked: Could they have stopped the mass murders?"; could the agency "have done more—could it have been avoided?"[19]
"That the Public Roads Administration were early out to accept the use POWs on the agency's construction projects, opened for others—such as the State Railways—to flag their interest for this contoversial manpower", according to a 2015 Klassekampen article.[4]
Arrival, visit of physicians, and quarantine
On 24 June 1942,[17] 900 Yugoslavian prisoners arrived at the Fagernes Pier in Narvik. "They start to walk the ten kilometer long road to Beisfjord" (...) Five prisoners are hit, and die along the road, and one is shot and killed"[17] before the prisoners arrive at the location where a prison camp was established.[20]
On 12 July 1942 "some German officers, a German- and a Norwegian physician came for an inspection of the camp" (...) The SS officers' suspicion of typhoid fever was confirmed by this [Norwegian] MD. Typhoid fever must be diagnosed thru blood- or stool samples. (...) The physical symptoms that the prisoners had, concurred, but neither the Norwegian- or German MD took blood tests. The Norwegian MD picked out 85 prisoners who allegedly had typhoid fever. He supposedly did not examine them thoroughly, but [he] picked out the prisoners from a distance because they looked frail. They were immediately sent to the infirmary".[17]
The Beisfjord camp was quarantined by the SS on 15 July 1942 allegedly to avoid an outbreak of typhus.[5] According to Ljubo Mladjenovic (a former prisoner) in his 1989 book, conditions at the camp were unhealthy and there was an outbreak of typhus.[21] Prisoners with various illnesses were moved into two barracks, which became surrounded by barbed wire.[5]
On the evening of July 17, the 588 "prisoners regarded as healthy" were marched out of the camp by nearly all of the Norwegian[22] guards and some German superiors.[1]
The guard staff of the camp consisted of around 150 men from Ordnungspolizei—controlled by the SS—and 64[23] Norwegian guards who were volunteers.[17] (63 volunteers, says an older source.)[20]
Massacre at the Beisfjord camp
The remaining "weak and exhausted" prisoners (in Beisfjord) were ordered to dig graves and then ordered into standing positions where they would drop into the grave after the guards had shot them.[5] These 288 prisoners were killed in groups of twenty.[1]
Those prisoners who could not stand on their own feet, were left in the two barracks — which were then doused in gasoline and set on fire.[5] Some sources say that a number of prisoners refused to leave the infirmary,[1] and the building was set ablaze; those who jumped out of the windows were shot.[1] Those who tried to escape the conflagration, were shot by a machine gun in the watch tower.[5]
Seventeen Norwegian guards were present and played a role[24] during the massacre.
Torture, massacres and other killings at Bjørnfjell
On the evening of July 17, the 588 "prisoners regarded as healthy" were marched out of the Beisfjord Camp by nearly all of the Norwegian[22] guards and some German superiors.[1] Their destination was 30 km (19 mi) north-east — Bjørnefjell.[25] At Bjørnfjell they were quarantined, [a continuation of the quarantine they experienced at the Beisfjord camp,] and the camp at Øvre Jernvann was established[20]—a satellite camp of the Beisfjord camp.
"On 22 July, two days after arrival at Bjørnfjell, all the prisoners had to run around the camp six times. Those prisoners who were not able, were shot." 10 prisoners were picked out and shot "farther down by the lake" [Jernvann]. Runs of this kind were held at other times, resulting in deaths every time. After five weeks on the mountain, 242 prisoners were dead. "The last 43 were [those classified as] sick who were shot" during the hike down Bjørnfjell,[17] to Bjørnfjell Station from where the survivors were transported by train to Narvik.[26]
Torture and killings after return from Bjørnfjell
On all of the remaining days at camp in October, the Germans ordered prisoners to: run (around) in circles in the camp; carry sacks with cement [while moving] around in circles; perform (knee-) squats and push-ups.[27] On 1 October, 70 prisoners were transferred to Korgen.[28]
In writing, 85 named prisoners were ordered to transfer to another camp; 3 of those prisoners became sick, and were shot during the night between 24- and 25 October.[27] The surviving 82 prisoners transferred out of the Beisfjord camp, on the morning of 25 October.[27]
Two days later, the staff transferred out of the camp. Early in 1942, the camp was re-opended for Soviet POWs.
Trials
The commandant at Beisfjord [during the Beisfjord massacre], SS-Obersturmbannführer Goecke, was not punished; there never was a request for extraditing him to Yugoslavia; "The prisoners did not have any particular recollection of him."[29]
Convictions
- SS-Sturmscharführer Karl Matthäus - "camp leader" at Beisfjord - was sentenced to death by hanging "by military court in Beograd 23 October 1946".[30]
- The second in command, SS-Obersturmführer Otto Seifert, was sentenced to death by hanging "by military court in Beograd 31 October 1947".[30] In addition to the above two convicts, 9 other members of the German camp command were sentenced to death after the war;[30][31] however, HL-senteret only reports death sentences (in Beograd) for 7 of "the circa 20 SS officers that worked at the camps at Beisfjord and Øvre Jernvann", and in the spring of 1946 were arrested [and deported].[17]
Convictions in Norway includes those of
- 44-year old (at the time of his crime) from Hirdvaktbataljonen - sentenced to death in 1947 for aiding in murder; his sentence was commuted to lifetime forced labor; he served 8 years before his release.[32]
- 15-year old (at the time of his crime) served as "guard soldier" - sentenced to 16 years forced labor; convicted of assault and aiding in murder. Released in 1951.[33]
11 Norwegian[camp guards, formally affiliated with Den Norske Legion] were convicted; [prison terms served were] from 3 years- to 10 years of penal labor.[30]
Acquittal
SS-Obersturmführer Franz de Martin, second in command when Yugoslavs arrived at the camp; he led the executions of the 287 sick prisoners; he "avoided punishment".[34]
Reactions to the massacre
Pål Nygaard (author and researcher) said that "Not long after the war" Nils Christie "interested himself in the Yugoslavian prisoners. Christie thought that research (en studie) of their prison guards, was the best way we in Norway could gain knowledge and understanding (...) He wanted to dig deeper where others waived off the actions [merely] as evil. In Norway there was little interest in reading- or listening to him. Killings and brutality belonged to the others, the bad: occupants. - Still it is like that".[19]
A 2015 Dagbladet article was written by Guri Hjeltnes.[citation needed]
1988 book, ["the Beisfjord tragedy"] Beisfjordska tragedija
In 1988 Ljubo Mlađenović's book about the massacre was published (in Serbo-Croatian). In 1989 he published a version of the book (in Norwegian) that is not merely a translation of the 1988 edition.[35] (The author was not imprisoned at Beisfjord-; he survived his stay at camps at Botn, Pothus "and The Polar Circle";[36] he died in 1993.)
Criticism of lack of focus on the involvement of Norwegian paramilitary soldiers
In 2009, Aftenposten wrote "That Norwegian pupils are sent on organized bus trips to Germany and Poland to get a sense of the atrocities there, without knowing that equivalent atrocities were committed in Norway, puzzles the leader of Nordnorsk Fredssenter in Narvik". Adding "That the events [of the massacre] were covered up, is feared by the head of a war museum in Narvik (current name: Narvik War Museum)[37] because members of a paramilitary force of Norwegians—Hirden— participated in the atrocities".[1] In 2010 Fritt Ord sponsored research that has led to an exhibition (from 12 August 2012) at the Falstad Center.[5]
Efraim Zuroff
In 2013 Efraim Zuroff reportedly "has eyed the groups of war criminals that he thinks there is reason to still hunt: It concerns soldiers from SS-Division Wiking that amongst other things, participated in the massacring Jews on the Eastern Front 70 years ago; soldiers that served in Hirdvaktbataljonen in North Norway and who exposed Serbian POWs for horrific violations; and Norwegians that participated in arrests of Jews during the war. - Many of them were convicted, but not for what they really did".[38] The same article said that Norway's Department of Justice had scheduled a meeting with Zuroff on 20 November 2013, but a misunderstanding within the department led to Zuroff not being notified. State Secretary Vidar Brein-Karlsen has said that he will gladly meet with representatives from the Wiesenthal Centre to hear what they have to say.[38]
2013 opinion of book author Knut Flovik Thoresen
In 2013 Dagbladet quoted a book author[39] (Knut Flovik Thoresen) saying—in regards to the camps (that were to cost the lives of 2,368 Yugoslavs)—that "Norwegian [camp] guards' [in North Norway] gruesome violations against Yugoslav prisoners in Norway during the war, were so cruel that I have hardly ever read about more brutal acts".
In 2013 Flovik Thoresen said "You can be sure that if Norwegian prisoners had been exposed to similar [atrocities], then many of the perpetrators would have been sentenced to death. Instead most were let off with sentences more lenient than those received by women who served as nurses at the front lines".[40]
Monuments and conservation area
In 1949 a monolith in memory of the Yugoslavians [at Beisfjord] was erected.[17]
On 22 June 2011 at Øvre Jernvann, a monument was unveiled. Those presiding included environmental minister Erik Solheim, ambassadors to Norway from Serbia, and Bosnia-Herzegovina, and a German Minister-Counsellor to Norway. Religious rites were delivered by one Serbian Orthodox priest and one Lutheran-, and one imam .
During the public event the so-called ["the Serbs camp"] serberleiren came under conservation; it was the first prison camp area to be conserved in accordance with ["the culture memorial act"] kulturminneloven;[41][42] the documents regarding the conservation were handed to a representative for the county (Nordland) by the Director for Cultural Heritage Jørn Holme.
Details about the camp
"Only 152 of 900 prisoners survived."[43]
The commandant of the camp on 1 June 1942 was SS-Untersturmführer Kiefer, who was relieved in the beginning of July.[44]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h [dead link] Ole Magnus Rapp (17 September 2009), "Gransker nordmenns rolle i leirene", Aftenposten (in Norwegian),
Alle hadde status som politiske fanger, og var arrestert for å ha motarbeidet Hitler-Tyskland.
- ^ a b "Afterword by Michael Stokke, historian, Narviksenteret". ISBN 978-82-93206-10-1. (2013) p. 252
- ^ "The Narvik War and Peace Centre". Narvik War Museum. Retrieved 2016-12-31.
- ^ a b c d Guri Kulås (2015-02-27). "Fleire bøker viser korleis offentlege etatar og private selskap tente på den tyske okkupasjonen av Noreg: Slavane som bygde Noreg". Klassekampen. p. 20.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Svarstad, Asbjørn (29 July 2012). "Drapsnatta i Beisfjord". Dagbladet (in Norwegian). p. 18.
- ^ a b Asbjørn Svarstad; Line Brustad (8 November 2013). "Massakrer i Nord-Norge - utført av norske hirdmenn". Dagbladet. p. 18.
{{cite news}}
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- ^ http://www.aftenposten.no/norge/Noen-av-krigens-grusomme-dodsleirer-var-pa-norsk-jord-137889b.html
- ^ http://www.lofotenkrigmus.no/russerfang.htm
- ^ https://www.nrk.no/troms/blodveien-i-karasjok-1.12028795
- ^ https://twitter.com/drammenstidende/status/787251525282369536
- ^ a b c d ISBN 978-82-93206-10-1. (2013) p. 171
- ^ a b c d Asbjørn Svarstad; Line Brustad (8 November 2013). "Massakrer i Nord-Norge - utført av norske hirdmenn". Dagbladet. p. 18.
{{cite news}}
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suggested) (help) - ^ "SS-soldater måtte stanse brutale norske fangevoktere". NRK. 4 November 2013.
{{cite news}}
: Unknown parameter|trans_title=
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suggested) (help) - ^ Asbjørn Svarstad; Line Brustad (8 November 2013). "Massakrer i Nord-Norge - utført av norske hirdmenn". Dagbladet. p. 19.
{{cite news}}
: Unknown parameter|trans_title=
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suggested) (help) - ^ a b Svarstad, Asbjørn (29 July 2012). "Drapsnatta i Beisfjord". Dagbladet (in Norwegian). p. 19.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Norske leirer: Beisfjord ved Narvik, 1942-1945". Hlsenteret.no. Retrieved 8 June 2016.
- ^ Parelius, Nils. 1984. Tilintetgjørelsesleirene for jugoslaviske fanger. Saltdal: Saltdal kommune. (Reprinted from Samtiden 6, 1960.)
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Pål Nygaard (2014-11-18). "2. Verdenskrig: Etter krigen benektet alle i Vegvesenet at de hadde noe med de jugoslaviske fangene å gjøre. - Kunne de stoppet massedrap?". Dagsavisen. p. 6.
{{cite news}}
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suggested) (help) - ^ a b c "Innsigelse til Reguleringsplan for NygÅrdsfjellet Vindkraftverk Trinn II, Narvik Kommune" (PDF), Government correspondence from Minister Erik Solheim (in Norwegian), 26 September 2007
- ^ Mladjenovic [page needed]
- ^ a b Sigurd Bakke Styrvold, "Heil og Sæl. Jeg er utdannet morder!" - Den norske SS Vaktbataljon 1942 – 45" (PDF), MA in history - University of Oslo (in Norwegian), p. 19,
ble alle de friske fangene sendt av gårde i en hard marsj mot Jernvatn på Bjørnfjell eskortert av nesten alle de norske vaktene i leiren, samt noen få tyske befalingsmenn.
- ^ "Norges største massakre". Hjemmesiden til Narviksenteret og Røde Kors Krigsmuseum. (17. juli 2015)
- ^ "Noen av krigens grusomme dødsleirer var på norsk jord". Afternposten.no. Retrieved 8 June 2016.
- ^ [dead link]Sigurd Bakke Styrvold, "Heil og Sæl. Jeg er utdannet morder!" - Den norske SS Vaktbataljon 1942 – 45" (PDF), MA in history - University of Oslo (in Norwegian), p. 19,
ble alle de friske fangene sendt av gårde i en hard marsj mot Jernvatn på Bjørnefjell
- ^ ISBN 978-82-93206-10-1. (2013) p. 143
- ^ a b c ISBN 978-82-93206-10-1. (2013) p. 169
- ^ ISBN 978-82-93206-10-1. (2013) p. 167
- ^ ISBN 978-82-93206-10-1. (2013) p. 223
- ^ a b c d ISBN 978-82-93206-10-1. (2013) p. 220
- ^ https://finnbakk.wordpress.com/2016/10/26/myrdetkrigsfanger/ "Disse ledende offiserene fra krigsfangeleirene i nord ble henrettet ved skyting i Jugoslavia: Franz Kiefer (kommandant i Botn), ... Karl Lampe (nestkommanderende i Korgen), ... Johan Aninger (Beisfjord ogKarasjok), Hans Genninger (Beisfjord og Karasjok), Fritz Lehmann (Beisfjord), ... Karl Matheus (Beisfjord), Willbald Kranz (Beisfjord), Fridrich Kapuss (Beisfjord), Fridrich Dwelk (Beisfjord), Kurt Bretscneider (Beisfjord, Botn), Richard Hager (Beisfjord, Botn), Willy Seifert (Beisfjord). Alle SS-personell."
- ^ *Her er Eirik Veums liste over de 20 verste torturistene i Hirden: [Here is Erik Veum's list of the 20 worst torturers in Hirden] "Mann (44) Drammen [.] Hirdvaktbataljonen. Født 1898. Kom til Beisfjord fangeleir i juni 1942. Overført til Korgen fangeleir og senere til Osen hvor han tjenestegjorde frem til november 1942. Dømt til døden i 1947 for blant annet medvirkning til drap. Senere benådet til livsvarig tvangsarbeid. Sonet fra 19. februar 1948. Løslatt ved Berg arbeidsskole 20. april 1956."
- ^ *Her er Eirik Veums liste over de 20 verste torturistene i Hirden: [Here is Erik Veum's list of the 20 worst torturers in Hirden] "Mann (15) Lørenskog [.] Født 1926. Tjenestegjorde som vaktsoldat ved Beisfjord fangeleir fra mai 1942 og senere Korgen. Var frontkjemper og vervet seg i april 1945 til 4. SS-Politikompani. Dømt for legemsbeskadigelse og medvirkning drap til tvangsarbeid i 16 år. Løslatt 30. november 1951."
- ^ ISBN 978-82-93206-10-1. (2013) p. 220 "(...) ungikk straff"
- ^ ISBN 978-82-93206-10-1. (2013) p. 2
- ^ ISBN 978-82-93206-10-1. 2013-edition of Norwegian version from 1989; Text from the removable book cover: "Han var selv fange i Norge under krigen. Han overlevde krigen i leirene i Botn, Pothus og Polarsirkelen."
- ^ http://www.warmuseum.no
- ^ a b "Vil starte ny nazijakt i Norge". Vg.no. Retrieved 8 June 2016.
{{cite web}}
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To nye norske bøker avslører nå barbariske handlinger begått av nordmenn mot krigsfanger i Nord-Norge. - Norske vokteres grusomme overgrep mot jugoslaviske fanger i Norge under krigen var så groteske at jeg knapt har lest om mer brutale handlinger, sier forfatteren Knut Flovik Thoresen.
{{cite news}}
: Unknown parameter|trans_title=
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suggested) (help) - ^ Asbjørn Svarstad; Line Brustad (8 November 2013). "Massakrer i Nord-Norge - utført av norske hirdmenn". Dagbladet. pp. 17–8.
{{cite news}}
: Unknown parameter|trans_title=
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- ^ http://www.riksantikvaren.no/Fredning/Fredninger/2011
- ^ ISBN 978-82-93206-10-1. (2013) p. 172
- ^ ISBN 978-82-93206-10-1. (2013) p. 174 and 176
Literature
- Mladjenović, Ljubo. Oversatt av Brit Bakker. «Beisfjordtragedien», Oslo: Grøndahl, 1989. ISBN 82-504-1723-2
- Nygaard, Paal Store drømmer og harde realiteter ["great dreams and tough reality"] (2014)
External links
- «Det grusomste er at de norske legionærene var med som fangevoktere. De var like gale som tyskerne» Datoen for Utøya-tragedien 22. juli har festet seg for all framtid. Men det er en annen dag i juli det også er grunn til å minnes: Beisfjord-massakren 18. juli 1942. [«The most horrifying is that the Norwegian legionaires participated as prison guards. They were just as crazy as the Germans» The date of the tragedy at Utøya, 22 July, has become steadfast. But for another day in July, there is reason to memorialize: the Beisfjord Massacre 18 July 1942]
- Her er Eirik Veums liste over de 20 verste torturistene i Hirden: [Here is Erik Veum's list of the 20 worst torturers in Hirden]
- Photo of the unveiling (in 2011) of a monument dedicated to the victims of the massacre
- [dead link] Photos (from 2006) of a monument
- Photo of buildings of the Beisfjord Camp