Jägala concentration camp
Encyclopedia
Jägala concentration camp was a labour camp of the Estonian Security Police and SD
during the German occupation of Estonia during World War II. The camp was established in August 1942 on a former artillery range of the Estonian Army near the village of Jägala
, Estonia
. It existed from August 1942 to August 1943. Aleksander Laak
, an Estonian
was appointed by SS-Sturmbannführer Ain-Ervin Mere
of Group B of the Estonian Security Police to command the camp with Ralf Gerrets as assistant.
Officially Jägala was a "labour education camp" or "Arbeitserziehungslager" for forced forestry and field workers. The camp housed Jews
deported to Estonia from other countries, including Lithuania
, Czechoslovakia
, Germany
and Poland
. About 3,000 Jews who were not selected for work at their arrival at Raasiku
railway station were taken driectly from the station and shot at the near-by Kalevi-Liiva
extermination site.
The camp never held more than 200 prisoners and had a short life span of several months. In November 1942 it was reported that the camp held 53 men and 150 women. Most of the prisoners were eventually transferred to Tallinn Central Prison starting with about half of the prisoners moved in December 1942 and the rest in June and July. By August 1943 the camp was closed and most of the remaining inmates were shot. Several sick prisoners were shot at the Jägala camp while about 15 hospitalised prisoners were sent to Kalevi-Liiva to be executed, Laak also killed three women, one of them his sex slave; the camp was then dismantled by September 1943.
The estimates for the number of killed at Jägala concentration camp vary. Soviet investigators
concluded that 2,000-3,000 were killed in Jägala and Kalevi-Liiva
taken together, but the number 5,000 (as determined by the Extraordinary State Commission
in 1944) was written into the verdict.
In modern sources, the number 10,000 occurs. However, Estonian International Commission for Investigation of Crimes Against Humanity
and estimates of scholars place the number of total Jewish victims in Estonia during 1941-1944 around 8,500.
Estonian Security Police and SD
The Estonian Security Police and SD , or Sipo, was a security police force created by the Germans in 1942 that integrated both Germans and Estonians within a unique structure mirroring the German Sicherheitspolizei....
during the German occupation of Estonia during World War II. The camp was established in August 1942 on a former artillery range of the Estonian Army near the village of Jägala
Jägala
Jägala is a village in Jõelähtme Parish, Harju County, Estonia. It had 139 inhabitants in 2007.-See also:*Jägala River*Jägala Waterfall*Jägala concentration camp*Jägala Army Base*Jägala Airfield-External links:* *...
, Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
. It existed from August 1942 to August 1943. Aleksander Laak
Aleksander Laak
Aleksander Laak was a lieutenant and the commander of the Jägala concentration camp during the German occupation of Estonia....
, an Estonian
Estonians
Estonians are a Finnic people closely related to the Finns and inhabiting, primarily, the country of Estonia. They speak a Finnic language known as Estonian...
was appointed by SS-Sturmbannführer Ain-Ervin Mere
Ain-Ervin Mere
Ain Mere was an Estonian military officer. During the World War II, he was an Obersturmbannführer in the Waffen SS and also the head of the Sicherheitspolizei in Estonia following its creation in 1942.He was born in Vändra and fought voluntarily in the Estonian War...
of Group B of the Estonian Security Police to command the camp with Ralf Gerrets as assistant.
Officially Jägala was a "labour education camp" or "Arbeitserziehungslager" for forced forestry and field workers. The camp housed Jews
Jews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
deported to Estonia from other countries, including Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
, Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
and Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
. About 3,000 Jews who were not selected for work at their arrival at Raasiku
Raasiku
Raasiku is a small borough in Raasiku Parish, Harju County, Estonia, with a population of 1,340 . Although situated in a parish with the same name, Raasiku is not the official administrative centre of the municipality...
railway station were taken driectly from the station and shot at the near-by Kalevi-Liiva
Kalevi-Liiva
Kalevi-Liiva are sand dunes in Jõelähtme Parish in Harju County, Estonia. The site is located near the Baltic coast, north of the Jägala village an the former Jägala concentration camp...
extermination site.
The camp never held more than 200 prisoners and had a short life span of several months. In November 1942 it was reported that the camp held 53 men and 150 women. Most of the prisoners were eventually transferred to Tallinn Central Prison starting with about half of the prisoners moved in December 1942 and the rest in June and July. By August 1943 the camp was closed and most of the remaining inmates were shot. Several sick prisoners were shot at the Jägala camp while about 15 hospitalised prisoners were sent to Kalevi-Liiva to be executed, Laak also killed three women, one of them his sex slave; the camp was then dismantled by September 1943.
The estimates for the number of killed at Jägala concentration camp vary. Soviet investigators
Holocaust trials in Soviet Estonia
A number of Holocaust trials in Soviet Estonia were held in the 1960s.The best-known trial was brought in 1961, by the local Soviet authorities against Estonian collaborators who had participated in the execution of the Holocaust during the Nazi German occupation...
concluded that 2,000-3,000 were killed in Jägala and Kalevi-Liiva
Kalevi-Liiva
Kalevi-Liiva are sand dunes in Jõelähtme Parish in Harju County, Estonia. The site is located near the Baltic coast, north of the Jägala village an the former Jägala concentration camp...
taken together, but the number 5,000 (as determined by the Extraordinary State Commission
Extraordinary State Commission
The Extraordinary State Commission – fully: "Extraordinary State Commission for ascertaining and investigating crimes perpetrated by the German–Fascist invaders and their accomplices, and the damage inflicted by them on citizens, collective farms, social organisations, State enterprises and...
in 1944) was written into the verdict.
In modern sources, the number 10,000 occurs. However, Estonian International Commission for Investigation of Crimes Against Humanity
Estonian International Commission for Investigation of Crimes Against Humanity
The Estonian International Commission for Investigation of Crimes Against Humanity is the commission established by President of Estonia Lennart Meri in October 1998 to investigate crimes against humanity committed in Estonia or against its citizens during the Soviet and German occupation, such as...
and estimates of scholars place the number of total Jewish victims in Estonia during 1941-1944 around 8,500.