Changes

== Historical background ==  

== Historical background ==  

In 1942, after the [[Soviet Army]] had withdrawn from the region{{#tag:ref|The Soviets had occupied the Eastern part of Poland in agreement with the Secret Amendment of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Non-Aggression Pact since the beginning of the Polish-German war in 1939. Article II of that agreement stated: ''"In the event of a territorial and political rearrangement of the areas belonging to the Polish state, the spheres of influence of Germany and the U.S.S.R. shall be bounded approximately by the line of the rivers Narev, Vistula and San. The question of whether the interests of both parties make desirable the maintenance of an independent Polish States and how such a state should be bounded can only be definitely determined in the course of further political developments. In any event both Governments will resolve this question by means of a friendly agreement."''<ref>{{cite web |title=The Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, 1939 |publisher=Modern History Sourcebook, the History Department of  Fordham University, New York |url=http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1939pact.html |accesssdate=September 17, 2013}}</ref> The Germans had not arrived into this region until the Summer or Autumn of 1941, after the first successes of their offensive in the direction of Smolensk, which however together with Katyn are actually situated already in an area which lay inside the borders of the USSR before 1939. If the killings took place in 1940 or the Winter of 1940-41, then these men were executed by the Soviets. If the corpses dated from the Autumn of 1941 or from 1942, then the murderers were Germans.<ref name="Amthches Material"/>|group=note}}, the advancing German troops found a mass grave of thousands of Polish officers near Smolensk.<ref name="Russiapedia">{{cite web |title=Prominent Russians: Nikolay Burdenko |author=Olga Prodan |publisher= Russiapedia, RT.com |url=http://russiapedia.rt.com/prominent-russians/science-and-technology/nikolay-burdenko/ |accessdate=September 17, 2013}}</ref> The Germans refused to take responsibility for the murders and organized exhumations witnessed by International [[Red Cross]] and foreign independent [[Forensics|forensic scientist]]s, among them, for example, a forensic pathologist Professor Ljudevit Jurak of Zagreb University.<ref name="Jurak">{{cite web |title=Professor Ljudevit Jurak of Zagreb University  |url=http://katyn.org.au/jurak.html |accessdate=September 17, 2013}}</ref> After making the Official Statement Concerning the Mass Murder at Katyn prepared by the German Information Bureau on direct special order of the German Foreign Office, they accused the Soviet forces and attempted to make the case an international scandal.<ref name="Amthches Material">{{cite web |title=Official German Documentary Evidence Of The Katyn Case |url=http://www.allworldwars.com/Katyn-Files.html |accessdate=September 17, 2013 |quote=In 1943 the German authorities published a special report under the title: "The Official Statement Concerning the Mass Murder at Katyn. Collected, prepared and edited by the German Information Bureau on the basis of documentary evidence by order of the German Foreign Office."[Amthches Material zum Massenmord van Katyn. Im Auftrage aea Auswartigen Amtes auf Grund urkundlichen Beweismaterials zusammengestellt, bearbeitet und herauagegeben von der Deutschen mjormationastelle"—Berlin 1943.]

In 1942, after the [[Soviet Army]] had withdrawn from the region{{#tag:ref|The Soviets had occupied the Eastern part of Poland in agreement with the Secret Amendment of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Non-Aggression Pact since the beginning of the Polish-German war in 1939. Article II of that agreement stated: ''"In the event of a territorial and political rearrangement of the areas belonging to the Polish state, the spheres of influence of Germany and the U.S.S.R. shall be bounded approximately by the line of the rivers Narev, Vistula and San. The question of whether the interests of both parties make desirable the maintenance of an independent Polish States and how such a state should be bounded can only be definitely determined in the course of further political developments. In any event both Governments will resolve this question by means of a friendly agreement."''<ref>{{cite web |title=The Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, 1939 |publisher=Modern History Sourcebook, the History Department of  Fordham University, New York |url=http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1939pact.html |accesssdate=September 17, 2013}}</ref> The Germans, who declared the war to Soviet Russia on June 21, 1941<ref>{{cite web |title=German Declaration of War on the Soviet Union |publisher=Public Broadcasting Service|url=http://www-tc.pbs.org/behindcloseddoors/pdfs/NaziInvasionDeclaration.pdf |accessdate=November 24, 2013}}</ref>, had not arrived into this region until the Summer or Autumn of 1941, after the first successes of their offensive in the direction of Smolensk, which however together with Katyn are actually situated already in an area which lay inside the borders of the USSR before 1939.  

*If the killings took place in 1940 or the Winter of 1940-41, then these men were executed by the Soviets.  

*If the corpses dated from the Autumn of 1941 or from 1942, then the murderers were Germans.<ref name="Amthches Material"/>|group=note}}, the advancing German troops found a mass grave of thousands of Polish officers near Smolensk.<ref name="Russiapedia">{{cite web |title=Prominent Russians: Nikolay Burdenko |author=Olga Prodan |publisher=Russiapedia, RT.com |url=http://russiapedia.rt.com/prominent-russians/science-and-technology/nikolay-burdenko/ |accessdate=September 17, 2013}}</ref> The Germans refused to take responsibility for the murders and organized exhumations witnessed by International [[Red Cross]] and foreign independent [[Forensics|forensic scientist]]s, among them, for example, a forensic pathologist Professor Ljudevit Jurak of Zagreb University.<ref name="Jurak">{{cite web |title=Professor Ljudevit Jurak of Zagreb University  |url=http://katyn.org.au/jurak.html |accessdate=September 17, 2013}}</ref> After making the Official Statement Concerning the Mass Murder at Katyn prepared by the German Information Bureau on direct special order of the German Foreign Office, they accused the Soviet forces and attempted to make the case an international scandal.<ref name="Amthches Material">{{cite web |title=Official German Documentary Evidence Of The Katyn Case |url=http://www.allworldwars.com/Katyn-Files.html |accessdate=September 17, 2013 |quote=In 1943 the German authorities published a special report under the title: "The Official Statement Concerning the Mass Murder at Katyn. Collected, prepared and edited by the German Information Bureau on the basis of documentary evidence by order of the German Foreign Office."[Amthches Material zum Massenmord van Katyn. Im Auftrage aea Auswartigen Amtes auf Grund urkundlichen Beweismaterials zusammengestellt, bearbeitet und herauagegeben von der Deutschen mjormationastelle"—Berlin 1943.]

This volume of 330 pages begins with a short introductory section entitled "General Outline", followed by the "Documentary Evidence", divided in five chapters.}}</ref> Being familiar with Nazi atrocities, many Poles themselves regarded the effort for being just another masterpiece of Nazi propaganda.<ref name=“Katyn crime“>{{cite web |title=From a report on the Katyn crime prepared by the Soviet Special Commission headed by Nikolai Burdenko |publisher= Katyn crime

This volume of 330 pages begins with a short introductory section entitled "General Outline", followed by the "Documentary Evidence", divided in five chapters.}}</ref> Being familiar with Nazi atrocities, many Poles themselves regarded the effort for being just another masterpiece of Nazi propaganda.<ref name=“Katyn crime“>{{cite web |title=From a report on the Katyn crime prepared by the Soviet Special Commission headed by Nikolai Burdenko |publisher= Katyn crime

  |url=http://katyncrime.pl/From,a,report,on,the,Katyn,crime,prepared,by,the,Soviet,Special,Commission,headed,by,Nikolai,Burdenko,363.html

  |url=http://katyncrime.pl/From,a,report,on,the,Katyn,crime,prepared,by,the,Soviet,Special,Commission,headed,by,Nikolai,Burdenko,363.html