During Volodymyr Zelensky’s speech in the Canadian Parliament, MPs praised 98-year-old Ukrainian émigré Yaroslav Hunka, who fought against Soviet Russia during World War II. He has been called a “Ukrainian and Canadian hero”.
Who is Jaroslaw Hunka?
It turns out that Hunka served in the Nazi SS Galizien division, among other things, as he announced on Twitter. Ivan Katchanovski of the University of Ottawa. “The veteran of the SS Galizien division was called a hero of Ukraine and a hero of Canada by the Speaker of the Canadian Parliament and thanked for all his service,” Katchanovski wrote.
The division that served in Hunka was a volunteer unit commanded by the Nazis. The division was known as the Waffen-SS Galician Division or 14th Waffen-SS Division. It was founded in 1943 and Ukrainian volunteers from Galicia served in it. In this way, Germany wanted to cover personnel shortages during the offensive on the Eastern Front.
This division is responsible for mass murder and crimes against humanity. Currently, the Institute of National Remembrance is investigating war crimes committed in Huta Pieniacka in 1944. About 850 people died there. Other crimes committed by members of the division were also documented, including crimes committed against Polish soldiers and the Home Army.
The unit was defeated by the Red Army near Brody and then moved to Slovakia. During the Nuremberg trials after World War II, the division was considered a criminal organization.
Amid international interest in the situation unfolding in the Canadian Parliament, the Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center for Holocaust Studies issued a statement saying the division was “responsible for the mass murder of innocent civilians with an unimaginable level of brutality and hatred.”
Canada apologizes for inviting war criminals
Canada’s parliament honoring veterans of Ukraine’s SS Galizien division who fought alongside Germany during World War II was “utterly disgraceful” and “unacceptable,” Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told reporters Monday.
What happened was “a huge embarrassment for the Canadian Parliament and for all Canadians,” Trudeau said, quoted by public broadcaster CBC.
– That this happened is truly sad. House Speaker Anthony Rota, at whose invitation Hunka appeared in the Canadian Parliament, acknowledged his mistake and apologized, the prime minister added.
“Reader. Future teen idol. Falls down a lot. Amateur communicator. Incurable student.”
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