During the night of 24th to 25th of November 1944, soldiers of the 1st Czechoslovak Army Corps managed to seize elevation point Obšár near village Nižný Komárnik and also adjacent ridges. With this action, they definitely broke the resistance of German forces around the Dukla Pass, ending one of the bloodiest, but winning battles in the territory of Czechoslovakia.

Klub vojenskej histórie Svoboda, together with other members of the 4th Shock Battalion, took part in a march along an authentic route in the direction of Bodružal - Gribov - Olšavka - Vislava. Our order was to pursue retreating German troops. In a very demanding, typical Dukla, muddy and water-soaked terrain, we had to reach heights which are surrounding these villages while facing constant threats from German rear-guards. Regardless of many fight encounters with Germans, we eventually managed to "liberate" mentioned villages and experience generosity of local inhabitants, which illustrated the atmosphere of the liberation battles at the end of 1944.

Photos by: Mirka Mindárová, Andrej Slavik