The German army occupied Vilna (Vilnius), Lithuania, on June 24, 1941. The following month, German Einsatzgruppen and their Lithuanian auxiliaries murdered thousands of Jewish residents of Vilna at a killing site in the Ponary (Paneriai) Forest, southwest of Vilna. By the end of 1941, Einsatzgruppen had killed about 40,000 Jews in Ponary. By July 1944, perhaps as many as 75,000 people had been killed at the site, the vast majority of them Jews.

Cornelia Fuchs

July 16, 2025

Hiking

This monument commemorates the Roma killed in Paneriai. It was dedicated in 2023 at the initiative of the Roma community to commemorate the Day of Remembrance of the Roma Genocide. …

Cornelia Fuchs

July 16, 2025

Hiking

Architect Jaunutis Makariūnas designed the monument as two blocks bearing inscriptions in Lithuanian and Russian that "more than 100,000 Soviet people were shot in Paneriai". In 1989, on the initiative of the re-established Lithuanian Jewish community, a vertical black granite stone was inserted between the granite blocks, stating in Hebrew, Yiddish, Lithuanian, and Russian that "Among those killed in the Paneriai Forest were 70,000 Jews - men, women, and children." In 2004, identical marble plaques were placed on both blocks, covering the inscription referring to "Soviet Citizens". The new plaques state that "one hundred thousand people" were killed at Paneriai.

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1. Paneriai Railway Tunnel – Paneriai Massacre Memorial loop from Jankiškės

11.8km

03:09

130m

Moderate hike. Good fitness required. Easily-accessible paths. Suitable for all skill levels.

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Elevation 180 m

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Wednesday 4 March

6°C

-2°C

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Max wind speed: 21.0 km/h

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Location: Vilnius County, Lithuania

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Paneriai Railway Tunnel

Paneriai Massacre Memorial

1. Paneriai Railway Tunnel – Paneriai Massacre Memorial loop from Jankiškės

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