“Kaisariani Massacre”: One of the biggest Nazis atrocities in Greece captured in shocking pictures

A historic evidence that shocks the collective memory in Greece. For the first time ever, a series of pictures have captured one of the biggest  atrocities of the Nazis occupying the country during the WWII, known in Greece as the “Massacre of Kaisariani.”

For the first time ever, we see the faces of the 200 executed communists in Kaisariani, short before they fall in front of the wall.

200 Greeks, all men, communists, arise from anonymity and oblivion  as they walk towards death. They were executed in Kairasiani municipality  in Athens on 1. May 1944 as retaliation for the death of a Nazi general, three dead soldiers and several injured ones.

Simple clothes, steady pace, gallant gaze, pride and dignity. No fear even if they know they will die in the next moments.

The pictures came to light 82 years after what is known in Greece as the “Massacre of Kaisariani” and were posted for sale on eBay by a seller based in Belgium, who claims that they come from the private collection of a German Wehrmacht non-commissioned officer.

According to the description of the ad, the material is attributed to Sergeant Hermann Heuer or Hoyer, who served in a unit based in Malakasa, Attica, during the Nazi occupation for Greece.

The authenticity of the photographs, however, has not yet been confirmed by an official body or historical archive.

The existence of the auction was announced through a post on the Facebook page “Greece at WWII Archives.”

These photographs are historical evidence and documents of invaluable value, but they are also proof that memory does not obey oblivion.

So far, no pictures of video documentation of the execution of the 200 men was published anywhere.

The execution of the 200 communists in Kaisariani is one of the biggest  crimes of the Nazis in Greece. Most of those executed were political prisoners, many of whom had been transferred from the Chaidari camp in retaliation for their actions.

They were executed on May Day, in retaliation for the death of a German general, three of his officers and the injury of many soldiers in Molae, Laconia, on April 27, 1944.

If the photographs prove to be authentic, they may add new visual evidence to one of the most traumatic chapters of the Nazi occupation, perhaps even helping relatives or researchers identify individuals.

At the same time, the issue of managing and protecting historical documents related to war crimes and collective memory is raised again.

Historic documents belong to Greece

Memorial of Kaisariani Massacre

Mayor of Kaisariani, Ilias Stamelos said that “these photographs cannot be considered a commodity and their value is not measured in money. They are not allowed to belong to private collections. They are historical evidence and documents of invaluable value for our place and people” and ought to be claimed by the Greek state, “be acquired and returned to where they belong, to the EAM National Resistance Museum of the Municipality of Kaisariani, to the Municipality of Chaidari, as well as to the KKE [Greek Communist Party].

Stamelos stressed that “from the first moment the photographs were made public, they have received dozens of messages from residents of Kaisariani and descendants of the heroic struggle of the period.”

First identification

Από ΦΒ, η πρώτη ταυτοποίηση. Ο ψηλός με το άσπρο πουκάμισο είναι ο μηχανικός Βασίλης Παπαδήμας (Πύλος, 1909).
Στις 6/8/1941 συνελήφθη από Ιταλούς καραμπινιέρους με βάση καταστάσεις που είχε παραδώσει η "ελληνική" κυβέρνηση στους κατακτητές. Αδελφός του εκδότη Δημ.Παπαδήμα. pic.twitter.com/xCY2HcDdD6

— Nikos Sarantakos (@nikosarantakos) February 15, 2026

As posted on Sunday evening on social media, a first identification has already be made: the tall man in white shirt was engineer Vasilis Papadimas (born in Pylos, 1909). He was arrested in August 1941 by Italian carabinieri based on statements that the “Greek” government had handed over to the occupiers. He was the brother of publisher Dimitris Papadimas.

Many more identifications may come, many more wounds will be open again…