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Today in History: Soviet Union deported Crimean Tatars to Uzbek SSR

5/18/2026

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Summary

Story summary

From 18 to 20 May 1944, Stalin ordered the NKVD, under Beria, to load roughly 191,000 Crimean Tatars—including party members and Red Army soldiers—onto cattle trains and ship them from Crimea to the Uzbek SSR. The forced transfer constituted ethnic cleansing and cultural genocide against the indigenous Turkic people.

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Story summary

From 18 to 20 May 1944, Stalin ordered the NKVD, under Beria, to load roughly 191,000 Crimean Tatars—including party members and Red Army soldiers—onto cattle trains and ship them from Crimea to the Uzbek SSR. The forced transfer constituted ethnic cleansing and cultural genocide against the indigenous Turkic people.