airdropped behind the Soviet front line to spark disarray. These were known as "Čorny Kot" ("Black Cat") led by Michał Vituška. They had some initial success due to disorganization in the rear guard of Red Army. Other Belarusian units slipped through Białowieża Forest and full scale guerilla war erupted in 1945. But the NKVD infiltrated these units and neutralized them in 1957. In total, Belarus lost a quarter of its pre-war population in the Second World War, including practically all its intellectual elite. About 9,200 villages and 1,200,000 houses were destroyed. The major towns of Minsk and Vitebsk lost over 80% of their buildings and city infrastructure. For the defense against the Germans, and the tenacity during the German occupation, the capital Minsk was awarded the title Hero City after the war. The fortress of Brest was awarded the title Hero-Fortress. See also Eastern Front (World War II) Katyn massacre: slaughter of Polish officers Khatyn massacre: slaughter of Belarus civilians Maly Trostenets extermination camp Military history of Belarus during World War II Operation Tempest Narodowe Siły Zbrojne Slutsk Affair Soviet partisan Territories of Poland annexed by the Soviet Union Come and See Fortress of War People Radasłaŭ Astroŭski Pyotr Masherov Michał Vituška Notes Further reading Exeler, Franziska. "What Did You Do during the War?" Kritika: Explorations in Russian & Eurasian History (Fall 2016) 17#4 pp 805–835; examines popular behaviour in Byelorussia under the Germans, using oral history, letters of complaint, memoirs and secret police and party reports. External links Belarus at European Holocaust Research Infrastructure (EHRI) 1941 establishments in Belarus 1944 disestablishments in Belarus Belarus in World War II Belarus Military history of Belarus during World War II Belarus Jewish Belarusian history Belarus–Germany relations it:Resistenza bielorussa