Reconstructing the past: first hours of Nazi invasion

The Leningrad region has marked the anniversary of the start of the Great Patriotic War by staging reconstructions of the battle against the Nazis. The massive show included pyrotechnics as well as the appearance of aviation and military vehicles from Wor

One show participant, Olga Struzanova, said: “It's a scary thing to do. It is difficult. Sometimes you want to die as soon as possible. You wonder how they could live like that for months.”

The action took the audience to the first hours of the day of the German invasion on June 22, 1941. The Russian border troops were caught by surprise and their losses were great.