Moscow announced that the German siege on Leningrad, which had lasted since September 1941, was over. The blockade had caused terrible privation in food, medicines, and running water. These conditions, coupled with bombardments and shelling by the Germans and their accomplices, as well as the terrible cold of the far north, subjected the besieged millions of inhabitants to horrific suffering and caused frightful losses among them. The number of victims, although unknown, is estimated at 1 million, if not more. Hitler had ordered his armed forces to reject the surrender of Leningrad, RussiaΓÇÖs second-largest city, and to reduce the city to rubble and obliterate its population. He failed, but Leningrad paid a terrible price.
