European Resistance Archive/European Resistance Archive (ERA)
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First combat with German forces
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I was so eager to exchange blows with the enemy.
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I was in a battalion, equipped with only three machine-guns and rifles, very poorly armed.
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The Germans surrounded us with tanks during the night.
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It was their mighty army against ours. They waited until morning to attack.
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I immediately offered to go, and three more men were equally enthusiastic to go with me up against the German tanks with hand grenades.
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We imagined it was just a matter of throwing the grenades, we would simply kill the Germans
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and blast everything to ruins. Older and more experienced Partisans told us to calm down.
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There would be many more opportunities to fight. They clarified that it’s not that simple to destroy a tank.
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They’re not made of paper, rather of steel, and also the Germans were not sleeping.
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We were atop this hill. There was also a bit of forest around.
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The Germans approached in a dense line of ‘shooters’ followed by a display of tanks, slowly advancing in the rear.
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We then recognized the horror.
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We were all novices, it was our first fight, except for a few leading cadres.
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On the basis of my four grades of high schooling, I was named right off as the Political Commissary of a unit;
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without any previous fighting experience. I had to take care of my men.
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We had these dugouts or shelters made from stones.
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During a fight we were to defend ourselves from behind the shelters.
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The command was to remain quiet and calm and to wait until the commander yelled charge (‘juris’).
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We were to wait for the enemy to approach within 20 meters and then each man was to pick his own target enemy.
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