GARF, f. 9401, op. 2, d. 65 l. 398-399

July 20, 1944

L. Beria to J. Stalin

Nr. 778/b

Top Secret

State Defense Committee

[For:] Comrade Stalin, J. V.

Following information regarding operation to disarm enlisted men and officers of the Polish Home Army were received from comrade Serov and Tcherniakovsky: All in all, according to the preliminary assessments, during two days of the operation, 6,000 men were disarmed. Among them, 650 officers and NCOs.

During the disarming, confiscated were 5,100 rifles, 350 machine guns, 230 light and heavy machine guns, 12 light artillery pieces, 27 vehicles, 7 radio transmitters, 350 horses, and large amount of ammunition.

The Polish enlisted men and officers [of the Home Army] are transported under security to the assembly points.

According to the reports for July 20th, 1200-hours, 4,000 men are detained at the assembly point in Miedniki; the others are en route.

During the operation, some of the Polish sub-units entered forest, abandoned their weapons, and left for their homes, as most of the enlisted men and officers live in the Wilno voivodeship.

We estimate that up to 1,000 privates from various units went home.

Steps were taken to gather the abandoned weapons.

The following facts took place during the disarming [of Polish units]:

After the first day of the operation, some of the Polish units, that were on the move, found out about the disarming, and decided to change direction through the swampy area into the so-called Puszcza Rudnicka [forests], near the city of Jaszuny, hoping that the [Russian] military units will not move that far. They took defensive positions there. By the end of the day, on July 19, reinforced units of the 152 Region, and the 86th Regiment of Border Security forces, approached the Polish positions, surrounded them, and ordered them to give up their arms. Initially, the Polish officers refused, but later agreed, and asked for permission to take quarters in the village.

As a result [of this operation] 1,500 men were disarmed.

One of the Polish battalions moved into the forest, west of Jaszuny, took up defensive positions along the road, and refused to be disarmed. An [NKVD] battalion was dispatched in order to disarm them.

There were no excesses noted in all other instances.

As a rule, 200-300 men strong Polish units were being disarmed by 10-15 our soldiers. Furthermore, it is typical, that the great majority of [Home Army] enlisted men expressed their wish to join the Polish [Communist] Berling’s units.

Since the operation [to disarm Polish units] nears its end, the remaining, scattered units, and individual soldiers, asked comrades Serov and Tchernyakowskyi to permit them the following:

1. Allow representatives of the Berling’s [Polish Pelple's communist army] to the assembly points in order to select from among [the Home Army] enlisted men and officers those who would like to join the [Berling’s] army.

2. Enlisted men and NCOs who expressed desire to join the [Communist Polish People’s] army are to be directed to the reserves’ regiments of the Main Recruiting Board, in order to use them in the future as rear units of the Red Army.

3. The officers’ cadre of interest to NKVD-NKGB, counterintelligence, and “Smersh” [... unintelligible]

4. The remaining officers are to be transported to the NKVD camps, because under the present circumstances, they will begin to [re-] organize various Polish resistance organizations.

I request your further directives.

People’s Commisar for Internal Affairs of Union of Soviet Socialist Republics,

L. Beria