Members of an Einsatzkommando (mobile killing squad) before
shooting a Jewish youth. The boy's murdered family lies in front
of him; the men to the left are ethnic Germans aiding the squad.
Slarow, Soviet Union, July 4, 1941. Dokumentationsarchiv des
Oesterreichischen Widerstandes Einsatzgruppen (in this context,
mobile killing units) were squads composed primarily of German
SS and police personnel. Under the command of the German
Security Police (Sicherheitspolizei; Sipo) and Security Service
(Sicherheitsdienst; SD) officers, the Einsatzgruppen had among
their tasks the murder of those perceived to be racial or
political enemies found behind German combat lines in the
occupied Soviet Union. These victims included Jews, Roma
(Gypsies), and officials of the Soviet state and the Soviet
Communist party. The Einsatzgruppen also murdered thousands of
residents of institutions for the mentally and physically
disabled. Many scholars believe that the systematic killing of
Jews in the occupied Soviet Union by Einsatzg