Six high-ranking members of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politburo_of_the_Communist_Party_of_the_Soviet_Union" id="mwow" rel="mw:WikiLink" title="Politburo of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union">Soviet politburo</a>, including <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Stalin" id="mwpA" rel="mw:WikiLink" title="Joseph Stalin">Joseph Stalin</a>, sign an order for the execution of 25,700 Polish <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intelligentsia" id="mwpQ" rel="mw:WikiLink" title="Intelligentsia">intelligentsia</a>, including 14,700 Polish <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prisoner_of_war" id="mwpg" rel="mw:WikiLink" title="Prisoner of war">POWs</a>, in what will become known as the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katyn_massacre" id="mwpw" rel="mw:WikiLink" title="Katyn massacre">Katyn massacre</a>.