Occupation of Liberec

Part of Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia
| Date| 21 August 1968

|

Location|

Liberec, Czechoslovakia

Result|

Soviet victory

* Occupation of Liberec by Soviet army

Belligerents
Czechoslovakia|  Soviet Union
Strength
Hundreds of unarmed people|  Unknown
Casualties and losses
9 killed
45 injured|  Unknown

* v
* t
* e

Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia

* Prague Spring
* Battle for Czechoslovak Radio
* Occupation of Liberec
* Bloody Sunday
* Holešov barracks incident
* Czechoslovak Hockey Riots

Occupation of Liberec occurred on 21 August 1968 during the Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia.[1] In the early hours of the Soviet invasion, 4 people were shot dead by Soviet troops in the main square and 24 were injured, 2 of whom died later; a few hours after this, a Soviet tank rammed the arcade at the square[2] causing the immediate death of 2 people and injured 9 (1 died later);[3] Occupation of Liberec was second bloodiest event of the invasion after Battle for Czechoslovak Radio.[4]

## Background

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On January 5, 1968, Alexander Dubček became the first secretary of the Central Committee of the CPSU. It marked the beginning of the so-called Prague Spring. This process began to worry other Eastern Bloc countries, including the USSR. The leadership of the Soviet Union initially attempted to stop or limit the changes in the Czechoslovakia through a series of warnings. After a series of unsuccessful negotiations on the night of August 20 to August 21, 1968, the troops of the five Warsaw Pact states launched an invasion of Czechoslovakia.

## Events

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Soviet troops reached Liberec at 2 am.[4] At 3 am, the first incident happened when a group of Soldiers started shooting at youths who believed it was a military training. Miroslav Vlček was shot in the head but survived.[5]

When the sun came out, crowds of people went to the streets. They expressed their opposition to the Soviet occupation by making gestures, threatening with their fists, crying and shouting at the soldiers. Some started throwing stones and pieces of construction material at them. At 6 am a Soviet tanks ran over Jan Šoltys on Beneš' square after Šoltys threw a piece of wood at the tank. Šoltys was badly injured but luckily survived.[6][7] At 7 am a brick was thrown at Soviet soldiers passing through Beneš's square in a GAZ vehicle which injured the driver. Soviet soldiers started shooting at people on the square, which resulted in the immediate deaths of 4 people and the injury of many. 2 other people died of their injuries a few days later.[8] Around 11 am a Soviet tanker crashed near town's square and killed three more.[6]

## References

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1. ^ "Obrazem: Osudný 21. srpen 1968 v Liberci. I zde umírali lidé, zranění mají traumata". Aktuálně.cz (in Czech). 21 August 2021. Retrieved 13 September 2022.
2. ^ "Liberec, Czech Republic – August 21, 2018: People Are Looking At The Famous Vaclav Touzimsky Photography Where Soviet Occupation T Editorial Photography – Image of europe, occupation: 124890507". Dreamstime.com. Retrieved 2019-01-29.
3. ^ Mikulička, Jan (21 August 2015). "Sovětští vojáci zabili v roce 1968 devět Liberečanů, nejvíc po Praze". iDnes.cz. Retrieved 17 September 2016.
4. ^ a b "21. srpen 1968 byl v Liberci po Praze nejkrvavější". pametnaroda.cz (in Czech). Retrieved 13 September 2022.
5. ^ "Bratrská pomoc ze SSSR v Liberci: devět mrtvých, desítky zraněných". iDNES.cz (in Czech). 21 August 2013. Retrieved 13 September 2022.
6. ^ a b "rok 1968 - 21. srpen v ulicích Liberce: TOTALITA". totalita.cz. Retrieved 13 September 2022.
7. ^ "SRPEN 1968: Invazi ohlásila letadla nad Ještědem a tanky v ulicích". Liberecká Drbna (in Czech). Retrieved 13 September 2022.
8. ^ "Schytal sedm střel, přežil jako zázrakem. Bylo to peklo, vzpomíná Petr Šída na srpen 1968 v Liberci". Aktuálně.cz (in Czech). 15 August 2018. Retrieved 13 September 2022.

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