groups of men were being selected from the columns, led away into the forest and killed. These killings were well organized and the work of entire units of men. Soon the killings of small groups turned into massive scale executions. The local Partisan headquarters that coordinated the columns was located in Maribor. Organized executions were generally not conducted without the authorization of OZNA (Department of National Security). On 19 May, the Commander of the 3rd Army, Kosta Nađ, ordered the Majevica Brigade of the 17th Division to move to Maribor and subordinate itself to the local OZNA Command. At the transit camps a selection was made among the prisoners. Some were sent to Zagreb and Celje on forced marches or used as forced labour. Others were sent to Tezno near Maribor, where anti-tank trenches were located that were dug by the Germans during the war. Their length was several kilometers and stretched from the Drava River to the slopes of Pohorje Mountains. Prisoners were taken to the trenches by trucks from the transit sites. Their hands were tied behind their backs with wires and many were stripped of their clothes. Upon arrival, they were lined up on the edge of the trenches and shot. A former Partisan who witnessed the killings gave a description of one of them: The executions started on 19 May. Partisan units that conducted them were the Majevica Brigade, 1st, 2nd, and parts of 3rd Battalion of the 6th Eastern Bosnian Brigade, which were all part of the 17th Eastern Bosnian Division of the 3rd Army. The killings lasted continuously for several days and were delayed only in the case if trucks with prisoners were late. When the trenches were full, special squads were ordered to cover them with soil. Some bodies were dug in separate mass graves or craters. The last murders were carried out on 26 May. Aftermath The corpses were shallowly buried and in the following weeks and months additional conceals were made. The OZNA made a list of all mass grave sites in Slovenia. Together with the People's Defence Corps of Yugoslavia (KNOJ) they organized covering of the sites with land and plants. Local authorities were informed to prevent any mourning at the graves. Yugoslav authorities kept them secret; for decades, only limited access was allowed to the area. In 1984, it was designated by the government as a location of military