User:Martin Velek/Genickschuss

Genickschuss (or Nackenschuss), literally 'shot in the nape of the neck' in German, is a "rational", instant method of killing a human with a minimal blood loss by a single pistol shot, reportedly developed by members of the Cheka during the Red Terror. The purpose was to avoid the bloody aftermath of having half-dead victims writhing on the floor. Originally the kneeling victim's head was bent forward and the executioner fired slightly downward at point blank range. This had become the standard method used later by the NKVD to liquidate Stalin's purge victims and others. . The Nazi Germany's henchmen further developed an "industrialised" version of the Genickschuss, with a special wooden jig, simulating a body-height metering device. The victim was led to it, believing to be measured, and presed him/herself against the jig, mounted on the wall. The executioner, standing comfortably hidden behind the wall, then fired, through a vertical slit in the jig, a small-calibre shot (due to its relatively silent report) into the nape of the neck, instantly killing the victim. This device was installed in concentration camps, originally to dispatch masses of Soviet POWs, especially Communist Party Commissars and officers, but also the resistance fighters and other prisoners from the occupied Europan countries. Currently this method of execution is still used in China.