Selektor, Leyzer
Posted on 15 September, 2021 by in Veterans By Name, S
June 19, 2013
Page 54 Notebook 3
DVD 1
Leyzer Selektor 1921: Brigade 69
At about 1 hour into the interview, he talks about Germans and Jewish killings in camps so I could show 1st hour at the library program.
Leyzer was born in Romny, Ukraine in 1921. In 1939, Leyzer was sent to school (Marine) college in Leningrad. He fought the entire seige of Leningrad, Leyzer was in the NE corner of it, 17 died out of the 37 of Leyzer’s Marine class during war. His training would have taken 5 years, but in his 4th year of college (Sikeour West PT), Leyzer was sent to Siberia for more training and to form up. The temperatures were -43 Celsius (25 degrees below 0). He was only allowed to fire 2 artillery rounds per day and had very little food. He talked about the 1937 purges of the officers corps. The judgment was instant death for desertion, or cowardliness or self wounding. He went through mine fields because it was sometimes safer than going around mind fields because there was more artillery and mortars in those areas. Artillery was his biggest threat. He took Finnish soldiers who were fighting with Germany as POW’s, 900 day seize about 1 million people died. He was about 400 miles from the center of Leningrad (St.Pettersburg). Leyzer wore the same handmade boots (made from saddle leather) for 2 years. Then gave them to a friend who wore them for 3 more years.
He did not hate German civilians or POW’s, but he had to kill or be killed when fighting. It sounds like the Russians (Leyzar), treated German POWs and later civilians very well. He fed and gave a 70 year old German a room on his submarine since the German had no home.
Mr. Selektor also said to me that the United States Army fought so much more smarter than the Russian army since the Russian fought only with “bodies”. With horrible loss of life.