Guest
monument in the Estonian town of Johvi commemorates two veterans who died fighting for Germany in 1944. The Estonian authorities have inaugurated a restored monument to two Waffen-SS veterans who fought on the German side against the Soviet Army in World War II, local media reported on Wednesday. Georg Sooden was a career member of the Estonian Army before World War II, joining the Red Army in 1940 after Estonia was absorbed into the Soviet Union. In late July 1941, weeks after Germany invaded the Soviet Union, he defected to the Nazi military and rose to the rank of battalion commander. In 1944, his battalion was incorporated into the 20th Estonian SS Volunteer Division. As for Raul Juriado, available data indicates that he was a junior officer in Sooden’s unit. The 20th Estonian SS Volunteer Division was part of the Waffen-SS Estonian Legion, which was actively involved in anti-partisan actions and numerous atrocities. A total of 70,000 Estonians were enrolled in various units, though many were conscripts.
