Destruction of anti-Soviet gangs in Kuban during the Great Patriotic War

During the Great Patriotic War, one of the most important tasks that was set before the internal affairs agencies was the liquidation of anti-Soviet gangs that were created in the front-line areas against the backdrop of the advance of the Nazi troops in the first years of military operations. The article examines the specifics of the aforementioned activities of the internal affairs agencies in Kuban (Krasnodar Territory), with an emphasis on the period of the war when the Red Army began to liberate the temporarily occupied territories. The relevant legal acts, archival documents, and scientific works on this issue are analyzed. It is noted, in particular, that the gangs in a number of settlements could count on some support from their residents, which, of course, complicated the Department for Combating Banditry of the NKVD of the USSR for Krasnodar Krai, responsible for carrying out this task in the territory of Kuban. In this context, law enforcement officers applied a number of rather harsh measures against citizens who helped the bandits, including detaining relatives of gang members. As a result of the measures taken, by the end of 1943, organized anti-Soviet gangs were destroyed in the territory of Kuban.