Soviet lieutenant, Yugoslav partisan and intelligence officer, famous for daring operations against the German-Italian invaders during the Second World War in Yugoslavia and Italy
life path
Before the war
Mehdi Huseynzade was born on December 22, 1918 in the village of Novkhany, Baku province, in the family of the future head of the Baku city police, Ganif Huseynzade, who participated after the establishment of Soviet power in the fight against banditry in the territory of Azerbaijan. Mehdi graduated from the Baku Art School, then studied at the Leningrad Institute foreign languages, and in 1940, returning to Baku, he continued his education at the Azerbaijan Pedagogical Institute named after V. I. Lenin.
War
In August 1941, Mehdi was drafted into the Red Army. After graduating from the Tbilisi Military Infantry School, in 1942 he was sent to the front, where fierce battles were going on during this period. Mehdi commanded a mortar platoon in Battle of Stalingrad. In August 1942, near the city of Kalach, he was seriously wounded and taken prisoner. Was sent to Germany. In the capital of Germany, he attended courses for translators for three months, having studied German. However, he was then able to escape and joined the second corps of the Italian-Yugoslav partisans. Received the nickname Mikhailo. Repeatedly carried out sabotage operations against the invaders.
In mid-January 1944, Mikhailo, along with his fighters, captured enemy topographic maps. The following month, Mehdi, in the form of a German officer, made his way to the German barracks and, placing a mine on fire extinguishers, blew up the central premises. On April 2, Huseynzade organized the bombing of the cinema building at Villa Opcina near Trieste, killing 80 and injuring 110 German soldiers and officers, 40 of whom later died in the hospital. In the same month in Trieste, during the sabotage carried out by Mikhailo, along the Via Gega street, Soldatenheim, a soldier's house, was blown up. In the Italian fascist newspaper "Il-Piccolo" there was an article "A terrorist attack on the "German soldiers' house", which officially states: "Yesterday, on Saturday, the communist elements carried out a terrorist attack on the "German soldiers' barracks" in Trieste, which cost lives some German soldiers and some Italian citizens". After a while, Mehti, together with his comrade Ali Tagiev and anti-fascist Hans Fritz, committed another sabotage by blowing up a bridge near the Postaino railway station, as a result of which a German freight train consisting of 24 wagons suffered a railway accident. a few days, by decision of the partisan headquarters, Mikhailo executed Gestapo officer N. Kartner.
In September of the same year, Mehdi Huseynzade in the form of a German officer technical service penetrated the enemy airfield and, using delayed-action mines, blew up 2 aircraft and 25 vehicles. The following month, partisans under the command of Mikhailo organized a raid on the local prison. Mehdi, in the uniform of a Wehrmacht officer, together with two partisans, who were also dressed in the uniform of German soldiers, accompanied by "prisoners", approached the gates of the German prison and demanded that the guards open the gates. As soon as they were on the territory of the prison, Huseynzade and his partisans disarmed the guards and opened the doors of all the cells, freeing 700 prisoners of war, including 147 Soviet soldiers. The next day, the fascist radio broadcast that the prison had allegedly been attacked by a 3,000-strong partisan division. In one of his poems, Mehdi wrote: "I'm afraid that I'll die young!" In a letter to her sister, Khurriyet Mehdi writes:
The Germans set a bounty of 400,000 Reichsmarks for the head of Mehdi Huseynzade, but Mehdi continued to remain elusive. Once he entered the bank, where he captured, and then delivered to the partisan headquarters, a million Italian lire.
To the 65th anniversary of the Great Victory
Dedicated to the memory of the glorious Hero Soviet Union Mehdi Hussein-zade!
“On a winter Sunday afternoon, an old man walked slowly through the streets of Trieste with a crumpled bucket and a thick brush in his hands. His long unshaven face was black, partly from dirt, partly from sunburn, and kept a phlegmatic expression. Slapping his tattered boots on the snowy slush, he turned onto St. Jakob Street in the working-class district and, having taken a fancy to one of the fences, stopped in front of it, dipped his brush into a bucket, smeared the damp stone of the fence with glue and stuck a notice on it, announcing in Italian and German the inhabitants Trieste that for the capture of a partisan named Mikhailo, a monetary reward of one hundred thousand Reichsmarks is established.
A crowd gathered at the announcement, astonished exclamations were heard:
- One hundred thousand! Wow!..
Yes, a lot...
- Well, well done, this Mikhailo!
- One hundred thousand on the street do not roll. Strongly he, you see, annoyed them.
- Look, how generous!
The old man gave everyone an indifferent look and moved on. Advertisements appeared on every street; they were pasted on fences, on tree trunks, on the walls of city houses and on the lattice fences of squares, on the windows of empty shops and on the windows of lonely trams, in the port and even among the ruins of an ancient amphitheater.
The people of Trieste read the announcements and tried to imagine the appearance of the mysterious Mikhailo. Who is he? Where? What is it like?.. The signs indicated in the ads were meager and vague: “above average height, swarthy, broad-shouldered, swollen eyelids, black eyes, a chin with a small dimple ...” - this is how the story of Imran Kasumov and Hasan Seyidbeyli begins distant shores” dedicated to the legendary son of the Azerbaijani people, Hero of the Soviet Union Mehdi Huseynzade.
Mikhailo ... Mehdi Huseynzade was born in 1918 in the city of Baku. In 1936 he graduated from the Azerbaijan State Art College. In 1937, Mehdi became a student at the Leningrad Institute of Foreign Languages, faculty French. And in 1940, returning to Baku, he continued his education at the Azerbaijan Pedagogical Institute named after V.I. Lenin.
In the Red Army since August 1941. After graduating from the Tbilisi Military Infantry School, he was awarded the rank of lieutenant and in August 1942 he was sent to the formed 223rd Azerbaijani rifle division. In December 1942 he fought in the Mozdok direction, commanded a rifle platoon of the 1041st rifle regiment of the 223rd rifle division. From December 10, the division fought heavy offensive battles.
By order of the GUFU KA No. 0288 dated March 26, 1943, Lieutenant Mehdi Huseynzade was excluded from the lists of personnel of the Armed Forces of the Red Army as killed on December 29, 1942. In fact, he was wounded in battle and taken prisoner. Sent by the Germans to the hospital. After recovery, in the city of Mirgorod, Poltava region, he was enlisted in the Azerbaijan Legion of the Wehrmacht. Then, at the school of translators near Berlin, he studied German for 3 months. After successfully completing the course in April 1943, he was sent to Shtrans to form the 162nd Turkestan division of the Wehrmacht. He served in the department 1-C (propaganda and counterintelligence) of the headquarters of the 314th regiment of this division. In September 1943, the 162nd Turkestan Division was sent to Italy to suppress partisan movement.
While in Italy in Trieste, he established contact with the Yugoslav partisans operating in the Slovenian Primorye of the Adriatic and, together with two other servicemen of the division - Azerbaijanis Javad Hakimli and Asad Kurbanov, escaped from the unit and joined the 9th Garibaldi Italian-Yugoslav partisan corps, where, after some time, under the pseudonym "Mikhailo" he led a sabotage group and became one of the largest partisan saboteurs of the Second World War. 
On April 2, 1944, "Mikhailo" (underground pseudonym Mehdi Huseynzade) planted a time bomb in the Opchina cinema in the city of Trieste. As a result of the explosion, 80 Wehrmacht soldiers were killed and 260 wounded, 40 of whom later died in the hospital.
In April 1944, "Mikhailo" blew up "Soldatenheim" on the street. Via Gega in Trieste. The losses of the Nazis amounted to 450 people killed and wounded. For the first time, a price was set for the head of a saboteur - 100,000 Reichsmarks.
At the end of April 1944, Mehdi, together with his comrades Hans Fritz and Ali Tagiyev, blew up the bridge near the Postaino railway station. As a result of this sabotage, a German train of 24 cars crashed.
In June 1944, the explosion of the officer's casino. As a result of the explosion, 150 Nazis were killed and 350 wounded. The explosion of the military hotel "Deutsche Ubernachtungheim" - 250 killed and wounded soldiers and officers.
Only in the first half of 1944 did German losses in personnel from the activities of the sabotage group "Mikhailo" amounted to more than 1000 people. The reward for the head of a partisan appointed by the occupation authorities rose to 400,000 Reichsmarks.
Mehdi performed many acts of sabotage in German uniform. So in September 1944, dressed in the uniform of a German officer "Mikhailo", on a motorcycle approached a German company that was on a training march without weapons and, having shot up to 20 Nazis from a machine gun, disappeared.
Also in the form of a German officer, he made his way to a military airfield, destroyed 2 aircraft with explosives and caused a fire, as a result of which 25 vehicles and 23 military garages were destroyed.
In the fall of 1944, Huseynzade, with a group of partisans, carried out a bold operation to free 700 prisoners of war from a fascist prison in the city of Oudinot (Northern Italy), incl. 147 Soviet soldiers. On behalf of the command of the 9th Corps of the People's Liberation Army of Yugoslavia, Huseynzade created and led a reconnaissance group of saboteurs at the headquarters of the 31st division named after. Gradnik.
November 2, 1944, returning after an unsuccessful operation to seize property and equipment in the German warehouses, "Mihailo" was surrounded by the Germans in the Slovenian village of Vitovle. The Germans, having information that "Mikhailo" was in the village, gathered the villagers and demanded the extradition of the partisan. The peasants were not going to extradite Mehdi, then the Germans set fire to several houses and began to shoot the hostages. Mehdi himself opened fire on the Germans with a machine gun, thereby revealing himself and saving the lives of the villagers. In an unequal battle, he died with a weapon in his hands and was buried by the peasants. 
A week later, after the fighting in the area subsided, the command of the partisan corps sent a platoon, whose fighters dug up Mehdi and took them to the town of Chepovan (west of the city of Ljubljana, Slovenia), where the corps headquarters was located. Azerbaijani fighters washed the corpse according to Muslim customs. 9 bullet wounds were found on the hero's body. Lieutenant Mehdi Ganif oglu Huseynzade was buried with military honors in the village of Chepovan, the day of the funeral of the hero was declared a day of mourning by the corps command. By a decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of April 11, 1957, for the unparalleled heroism shown in the fight against the Nazi invaders, Lieutenant Huseynzade Mehdi Ganif oghlu was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. Named after Mehdi Huseynzade secondary school, steamboat, streets in the cities of the Republic of Azerbaijan. And in 1973, in Baku, on Victory Square, next to the school that bears his name, a sculptural monument was erected, the aforementioned book-story (1954) is dedicated to him, according to which the film of the same name was made in 1958, at the premiere of which, according to the USSR State Film Committee , at that time almost 60 million viewers descended.
The last lines from the story "ON THE FAR SHORE": “... Near Chepovan and now there is a stone with an inscription carved on it:
“Sleep, our beloved Mehdi, glorious son of the Azerbaijani people! Your feat in the name of freedom will forever remain in the hearts of your friends.
Yes, people will not forget Mehdi: he died so that they live, so that the earth blooms wildly!..
Until the very last hour, Mehti was waiting for her old bibi - she died, continuing to believe that he was alive. Mehdi's sisters, schoolmates, his friends always told her about him, as if he were alive, as if he could be expected home from day to day, from hour to hour.
They, in fact, did not lie to the old bibi: for them, Mehdi is alive, alive in his eternally living feat.
Mehdi and enemies will remember for a long time! Captain Milton will not forget him either, he is probably now of a higher rank, and on his orders villages are being destroyed on different continents to make room for military airfields. Schultz will not forget him either. The absence of a leg does not prevent him from developing a feverish activity to revive the "Wehrmacht", and he, obviously, will calm down only when he loses his head as well.
Fighting far from his native land, on the distant shores of the Adriatic, Mehdi could not finish his picture. However, it would be useful for the enemies of Mehdi to take a look at this unfinished picture: it depicts a man who won a victory with blood, walking towards the rising sun, a mighty soviet soldier. Around - spring, joyful, jubilant motherland, the soldier is happy, but at the same time alert and vigilant - woe to the one who tries to encroach on his happiness.
While the material was being prepared for publication, we managed to find out that quite recently, with the participation of the heads of state of Azerbaijan and Slovenia, a monument to Mikhailo was opened in the village of Chepovani in Slovenia (see photo), and a monument was filmed in Baku documentary about a partisan, with the participation of his surviving comrades. The most interesting thing is that Mikhailo's beloved girl, Mehdi Huseynzade, Angela's liaison partisan, is alive and well, she is already 86 years old.
A HERO FROM THE DIFFERENT SHORE
Published at the link of the newspaper's website "Azerbaijani News"
ELEONOR ABASKULIEVA
The exploits of the legendary "Mikhailo" - Mehdi Huseynzade - are still alive in the memory of grateful compatriots
For the generation of the 60s, the film "On the Far Shores", directed by Tofik Taghi-zade based on the story "On the Far Shores" by Hasan Seyidbeyli and Imran Kasumov about the legendary Soviet intelligence officer, a member of the resistance movement against fascism Mehdi Huseynzade, became a cult for obvious reason . After the end of the war, not even two decades passed: in the prime of life were those who were lucky enough to survive after the terrible meat grinder of World War II. The inconsolable widows had not yet taken off their black headscarves, and their children were grieving, mourning those who remained on the battlefields, died in captivity or died in hospitals. The memory was fresh and the wounds were bleeding. Young and old have watched the film dozens of times.
"Someday You Will Hear About Me"
The life of Mehdi Huseynzade, known among the fighters of the European Resistance under the pseudonym "Mikhailo", in its saturation with feat and fearless deeds in the name of a noble goal, contains a huge potential for influencing human characters, especially young ones. Because there is nothing more attractive than courage and courage. In addition, Mehdi - "Mikhailo" was not yet thirty years old when he died in the mountains of Slovenia at the hands of the Nazis, and all his daring actions, as if devoid of a sense of self-preservation, were performed at an age that in our century is not customary to identify with maturity.
Having been taken prisoner, seriously wounded, and then sent with a train of prisoners of war to Berlin, Mehdi did not break down, did not lose heart. He had the only goal - to escape from captivity in order to fight the Nazis. But first he went to courses for translators and, having studied German for three months, pretty soon he spoke it fluently. According to those who met him in the Yugoslav underground, Mehti was distinguished by his extraordinary ability not only in languages (in addition to Azerbaijani, Russian and German, he spoke French - before the war he studied it at the Leningrad Pedagogical Institute of Foreign Languages, as well as English, Spanish, Turkish and other oriental languages), but also drew beautifully, played the tar, and composed poetry.
After completing translator courses in Berlin, Huseynzade, according to the researcher of the participation of our compatriots in the European Resistance, writer Rugiya Aliyeva, arrived in the city of Shtrans (Germany), where by that time the 162nd Turkestan German division was being formed from parts of the Azerbaijani and Central Asian legions. Mehdi was enrolled in the "1-C" department, which was engaged in propaganda and counterintelligence. The Germans offered him to study at the counterintelligence school. He agreed and did not regret it. Much later came in handy for him in sabotage work. It is not difficult to imagine how those who sent him to this school got it when it turned out that the Nazis themselves taught the fearless "Mikhailo" sabotage work. But this will become known later, when the head of the elusive "Mikhailo", who destroyed hundreds of German soldiers and officers, the Germans will promise a reward of 300 thousand marks.
In 1943, after the capitulation of Italy, a division from Strass was sent to Italy to suppress the partisan movement. In Udine, Italy, Mehdi Huseynzade began to establish contacts with local residents in order to escape to the partisans with their help. On the border with Italy in Yugoslav Trieste, Mehdi and his two comrades, Javad Khakimli and Asad Kurbanov, escaped from the legion and, hiding in the forests, soon joined the partisans of the 9th Garibaldian Yugoslav-Italian Corps. A little time passed, and on the initiative of J. Hakimli, a company was formed at this corps from among the former Soviet prisoners of war "Ruska Cheta", the commander of which was Hakimli, and the intelligence officer and deputy commander for political affairs - M. Huseyn-zade. Thus began his own war with the Nazis, which he swore an oath to wage back in 1942 during the defense of Stalingrad, where Senior Lieutenant Mehdi Huseynzade was a mortar man. In a letter to his sister Hurriet, he wrote: “I do not know whether I will survive or not, but I give you my word that you will not have to lower your head because of me, and someday you will hear about me. If I die, I will die like a hero - the death of the brave.
"I'M AFRAID THAT I'LL DIE YOUNG!"
In one of his poems, Mehdi wrote: "I'm afraid that I'll die young!" and not wrong. It's amazing how some people foresee their future, their destiny. Most often, this can be done by those who are able to evaluate themselves with absolute accuracy, and Mehti was apparently one of them. The military exploits of an Azerbaijani from the distant Caucasus, who managed to smash the fascists in the very heart of Europe, still amaze the imagination with their audacity. Mining of the railway track, and derailed German military trains, blown up vehicles with German soldiers, seizures of "tongues", blown up bridges and much more that Mehti did with his group, dressed in German uniform, was just the beginning. Further sabotage operations, led by the elusive "Mikhailo", forced the Nazis to take extreme measures. And how could one not be afraid when, on April 2, 1944, as a result of the explosion of a cinema in Villa Opchina near Trieste, committed by Mehdi Huseynzade, 80 German soldiers and officers were killed and 110 were wounded.
The second even larger-scale sabotage was carried out by "Mikhailo" in the same month, but already in Trieste itself: "Soldatenheim" - a soldier's house - was blown up. In the Italian fascist newspaper "Il-Piccolo" an article was published "Terrorist attempt on the" German soldier's house ". It is officially reported: "Yesterday, Saturday, communist elements carried out a terrorist attack on the "German soldiers' barracks" in Trieste, which cost the lives of some German soldiers and some Italian citizens." “Some German soldiers” in numbers meant no less than 450 Nazi soldiers and officers killed and wounded. It was after this sabotage that the Germans placed an announcement in the newspapers that whoever caught or killed the partisan "Mikhailo" would be given a reward in the amount of one hundred thousand marks. After each operation carried out by Mehdi, the amount of remuneration grew and reached 300 thousand marks.
But this, like the German hunt that had begun for him, did not make the Russian, as all Soviet partisans were called abroad, the partisan "Mikhailo" from Baku to beware. The two months he spent on preparation ended in another major act of sabotage - the explosion of a casino in Trieste on Fortuna Street. And this time, fortune was on the side of the partisans, and not the German invaders, who had fun with the stolen money in a gambling establishment. 250 soldiers and officers died that evening at the casino tables.
And there was also a blown-up printing house, where the already mentioned fascist newspaper Il-Piccolo was printed, and other smaller operations. In total, according to official information available at the headquarters of the corps, as a result of sabotage carried out by Mehdi during the nine months of 1944, more than 1000 (!) German soldiers and officers were killed and wounded. These data are taken from the archive of the Ministry of National Security of Azerbaijan (FPKh, case No. 159, vol. 2, p. 94), which contains all the information about Mehdi Huseynzade.
This was needed when in 1956 "Mikhailo" was posthumously presented to the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. For the younger generation, who knows about these years and the socio-political situation of those years only from history textbooks, we will only tell you one thing: those who returned to their homeland from German captivity were indiscriminately destined for a terrible fate - first filtration, and then just Stalinist camps, which are not enough different from the fascists. Sometimes, as a gift of fate, just a special settlement. But even so, only a few were lucky. And then - the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
In the book “Azerbaijanis in the European Resistance Movement”, Rugiya Aliyeva cites a certificate prepared in October 1951 under the heading “Top Secret” by the Minister of State Security of Azerbaijan, Major General S.F. members of the 162nd Turkestan German division, the Ministry of State Security of the Azerbaijan SSR came to the attention of the Ministry of State Security of the Azerbaijan SSR heroic story activities and death of a certain Huseynov Mehdi, a Baku resident. By the measures taken, the identity of Huseynov was established - Huseynzade Mehdi Ganif oglu, born in 1918, a native of Baku ...., and his exploits were documented by the testimony of eyewitnesses.
On the basis of the collected materials, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Azerbaijan petitioned the Central Committee of the CPSU in 1955 to award Huseynzade Mehdi Ganif oglu the title of Hero of the Soviet Union (posthumously). However, all materials "were found insufficient and in February 1956 returned with the offer of additional documentation of his exploits by interviewing new eyewitnesses." At the same time, inspections were also carried out by the Yugoslav security agencies. In April 1957, the legendary partisan, the brave son of the Azerbaijani people, who fought against the Nazis in the very center of Europe, Mehdi Huseynzade was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union by the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR.
LIFE AFTER DEATH
The Motherland has not forgotten its son. Movie "On Distant Shores", which passed through all the screens of the then large country, was a resounding success. The fame that came to the actor Nodar Shashik-ogly after playing the role of the main character in this film could not be compared with his previous fame in other films.
In 1963, the memoirs of J. Hakimli under the title "Intigam" ("Revenge") were published in Azerbaijani. The book, in which the military exploits of "Mikhailo" were described with Caucasian emotionality through the eyes of an eyewitness, told about the everyday life of the first partisan shock brigade and the "Ruska Cheta" company.
On October 25, 2007, in the village of Shempas, near the Slovenian city of Nova Gorica, a solemn ceremony was held to open the bust of the brave son of Azerbaijan, Hero of the Soviet Union Mehdi Huseynzade, by the Azerbaijani sculptor Akif Askerov. On a granite pedestal in Slovenian, Azerbaijani and English the inscription is carved: “Mehdi Huseynzade (“Mikhailo”), 1918-1944. Hero of the resistance movement in Slovenia during the Second World War. Brave son of Azerbaijan.
In the village of Novkhani in the Absheron region, where the Huseynzade family comes from, a monument to the hero was also opened. But the most majestic monument to the memory of the brave partisan "Mikhailo", the hero of the European Resistance, was erected in the center of Baku. Every year on April 11 (on the day when M. Huseynzade was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union), on May 9 (on Victory Day) and on November 2 (on the day of Mehdi’s death), people come here to lay flowers at its foot and bow head before the bright memory of a brave compatriot.
At the end of last year, the presentation of the film "Underground Nickname - Mikhailo" by director Tahir Aliyev, filmed by the documentary studio "Salname" according to the script of the writer-publicist Intigam Gasim-zade, took place. Dedicated to the 90th anniversary of the birth of the Hero of the Soviet Union Mehdi Huseynzade, the 38-minute film tells about his combat way. Filming took place in Azerbaijan, Slovenia, Italy and Austria.
On December 29, the National Museum of the History of ANAS hosted Scientific Conference dedicated to the 90th anniversary of the birth of Mehdi Huseynzade, which was attended by his relatives, representatives of the museum, the public, funds mass media. A new exposition dedicated to the hero has opened here, which contains documents, letters, things belonging to our brave compatriot. After the war, his commander Javad Hakimli, on whose initiative "Mikhailo" was reburied with full military honors, brought Mehdi's sisters in Baku his silver cigarette case, a ring, a small French-Russian dictionary, photographs, documents. Now everyone can get acquainted with all this, and especially, I think, young people. Unfortunately, museum pedagogy has not yet taken its place in school and university programs, as it has already happened all over the world. Appeared new specialty- a museum teacher who conducts lessons with schoolchildren in historical halls and is a full-time employee of the museum. The work of such museums is carried out under the motto “Show the country (say, Azerbaijan) through world history. Show the world through the history of Azerbaijan”. The life and exploits of the brave fighter against fascism Mehdi Huseynzade perfectly fit into this perspective of educating the younger generation. And with all that has been done regarding the popularization of the heroic participation of our compatriots in the European Resistance (honor and praise to the enthusiasts and employees of the National Museum of History and the Military Museum of the Ministry of Defense, who tried to draw public attention to the 90th anniversary of the beloved son of the Azerbaijani people Mehdi Huseynzade !), nevertheless, there remains a certain sediment about the fact that the anniversary of such people should be celebrated more widely, on a larger scale. As the poet said: “This is not necessary for the dead! It needs to be alive!”.
BY THE EYES OF THE RESEARCHER
Rugiya Aliyeva, who not only studied the archives of the special guard, where materials are stored about all those who were captured during the Second World War, but is also well acquainted with many Azerbaijani resistance fighters - comrades of "Mikhailo" in partisan and sabotage work, can talk about Mehdi Huseynzade hours.
Writer Rugiya Aliyeva has been dealing with the topic of Azerbaijani fighters of the European Resistance for more than twenty years. And he never ceases to be amazed at the characters of those who, it seems, in a completely hopeless situation, not only saved their lives, but also heroically fought against fascism.
- Rugiya xanim, second World War has already become the past. Why do you think it is important today, after more than six decades, to write about its heroes?
- It seems to me that no matter how many years have passed since that terrible war with fascism, these people should never be forgotten. It is impossible not to belittle their exploits, their high patriotism, the Caucasian love of freedom that moved them. They did everything possible and impossible to defeat fascism. And this feeling made them invincible in everything else. post-war life no matter how hard it may be for many of them. They knew for certain that they had not lived their lives in vain. As you get older, you realize how much it means. By the way, do not think that young people are not interested in history. Of course they are different. But here at the premiere of the documentary film, the screenwriter of which I am, “Password Az-Rodez”, I looked at the faces of young viewers and saw that they were touched by this topic, the history of the struggle of our compatriots against fascism in the ranks of the French European Resistance.
- In your opinion, did the war show the personality of Mehdi Huseynzade?
- No, of course not. I, like all of us, admire the life and exploits of Mehdi Huseynzade. But I am absolutely sure that if the legendary hero of the Second World War lived an ordinary life, he would still remain in the memory of the Azerbaijani people. It was a completely extraordinary person, endowed with great inclinations. Moreover, they concerned not only art, abilities in different areas whom he was generously endowed with: a passion for writing poetry, a talent for painting, an ability for languages, and many others. His extraordinary audacity, which was admired by friends and paid tribute to by enemies, was a meaningful calculation of a military strategist who knew how to clearly plan planned operations, take into account the realities of the German military machine which he thoroughly studied. I don’t know, maybe my admiration will be considered too much, but as a person he seems to me close to the people of the Renaissance.
He was a very versatile person, not only in the humanitarian sphere, but also in technical disciplines. He taught fellow partisans to draw topographic maps, prepared explosives, developed sabotage plans, and was an excellent organizer. And Mehdi had one more very important feature - he was very sociable, he knew how to influence people, find a language with everyone, he was easy to communicate with. I believe that, without having the artistic abilities that "Mikhailo" possessed, he could hardly have been so successful in impersonating a fascist. In a word, he was given a lot. And he brilliantly disposed of what he had. Someone, perhaps, will say: "But someone lived only 26 years." This is true. But how he lived! If we admire his exploits, his life and fate even after six decades, you must admit that it is worth a lot!
- How did Mikhailo die?
- Mehdi Hussein-zade died, as he lived, - a hero. According to eyewitnesses and his comrades in arms, the planned operation to steal uniforms from the German warehouses of the town of Gorizia ended in failure. The Germans pursued the partisans, who stopped in one of the villages. Someone told the Nazis that the legendary "Mikhailo" was among the attacking partisans. The Nazis warned the inhabitants that if they did not hand over the partisan, the village would be burned, and all the inhabitants, including the elderly, women, children, would be shot. The traitor was not found. And then Mehdi made his last choice - he opened fire on the Nazis in order to find himself. The house was immediately surrounded. Mehdi threw grenades at the Nazis, replenishing his account with the Nazis with dozens of Germans who died at his hands. Save the last bullet in the gun for yourself.
After the Germans left, the inhabitants of the village of Vitovle, where it happened, buried the hero. A week later, his comrades in the partisan corps delivered his body to the territory controlled by the partisans, where he was interred with full military honors. Javad Hakimli said that at his insistence Mehdi Huseynzade was buried according to the Muslim custom - facing Mecca
Let the descendants know and remember! Historical and literary portal of the ITC "Eternal Memory":
|
Mehdi Hanifa ogly Huseynzade (Mikhailo) (Azerb. Mehdi Hənifə oğlu Huseynzadə; December 22, Novkhany - November 2, Vitovle, now Slovenia) - Soviet lieutenant, Yugoslav partisan and intelligence officer, famous for daring sabotage against German invaders in the Slovenian Primorye (Venice Giulia, Italy) during World War II, led a sabotage and reconnaissance group under headquarters of the 9th corps (English)Russian People's Liberation Army of Yugoslavia; Hero of the Soviet Union, Azerbaijani by nationality.
life path
Before the war
Mehdi Huseynzade was born on December 22, 1918 in the village of Novkhany, Baku province. His father Ganif Huseynov (1881-1922), was one of the active fighters for the establishment Soviet power in Azerbaijan, a member of Gummet. Later, he became the first head of the Azmilitsiya, participated in the fight against banditry in the territory of Azerbaijan, and in the last days of his life worked as the head of the administrative department of the Baksovet. Having lost his father at an early age, M. Huseynzade first grew up with his mother, and then with his aunt.
Then M. Hussein-zade went to Leningrad in the hope of enrolling in. However, he could not enter the Academy and, returning home, got a job in the library. M. Azizbekova. A year later, he again left for Leningrad, but this time he failed to enter. Then he enters the Faculty of French at. In 1940, M. Huseynzade achieved a transfer to the second year of the Faculty of Language and Literature. The reason for the translation is the love of poetry and literature.
War
The house in Baku where Mehdi Huseynzade lived
Partisan "Mikhailo"
In early 1944, Mehdi Huseynzade escaped with a group of comrades from a camp in Italy and joined the Yugoslav partisans of the 9th NOAU Corps operating in Slovenian Primorye. Here, the "Russian" company of the 4th battalion of the 3rd Slovenian People's Liberation Brigade "Ivan Gradnik" was formed from among the Azerbaijanis. Javad Hakimli became the company commander, and Mehdi Huseynzade became the commissar. The company was stationed in the village of Otlitsa, located near Mount Angel, north of the city of Aydovshchyna. Since that time, M. Huseynzade became an active participant in the partisan movement in the region, acting under the partisan pseudonym "Mikhailo". Slovenian partisan, military historian Stanko Petelin (Slovenian)Russian calls him one of the best saboteurs in the entire 9th Corps. Partizan Mahar Mammadov wrote in his memoirs:
This was at the beginning of 1944. The Germans, the local population and prisoners very often called the name Mikhailo, which was not very well known to us then. It was a mystery to us at the time. However, everything soon cleared up. We were honored to fight hand in hand with Mikhailo against the Nazis.
In mid-January, Mikhailo, along with his fighters, captured the topographic maps of the enemy, which were of considerable importance. The following month, M. Huseynzade, in the form of a German officer, made his way to the German barracks and, placing a mine on fire extinguishers, blew up the central premises.
On April 2, Mehdi Huseynzade, together with Mirdamat Seyidov, blew up the cinema building in locality Opcine (Slovak. Opcine), located near the city of Trieste. Having penetrated into the cinema hall, they quietly set a time bomb under the armchair, after which they left the building. As a result of the explosion, 80 German soldiers were killed, 60 were seriously injured, 200 were slightly injured; 40 of them died from their wounds in the hospital. In the same month, on April 22, Mikhailo committed a second major sabotage. On Via Gega, the building of the German restaurant "soldatenheim" - a soldier's house - was blown up. Disguised as German soldiers, M. Huseynzade and Mirdamat Seyidov entered the restaurant, after crushing the detonator ampoules. They took two places at the table and, leaving bags of explosives under the table, left the hall under the pretext of buying coupons, and then went out into the street. After the German restaurant blew up, the Nazis spent two days extracting the dead and wounded from under the ruins of the building. In the Italian fascist newspaper Il Piccolo (English)Russian On April 23, a note was posted officially stating: Yesterday, on Saturday, communist elements carried out a terrorist attack on the "German soldiers' barracks" in Trieste, which cost the lives of some German soldiers and some Italian citizens» . On charges of committing an explosion, the Gestapo seized people from a barbershop located in the same building, who were executed.
In the same Trieste, Mikhailo blew up the editorial office and printing house of the Il-Piccolo newspaper. After a while, Mehdi, together with his comrade Ali Tagiyev and anti-fascist Hans Fritz, committed another sabotage by blowing up a bridge near the Postojna railway station, as a result of which a German freight train consisting of 24 wagons suffered a railway accident.
By decision of the partisan headquarters, Mikhailo and M. Seyidov executed Gestapo Major N. Kertner. At the end of the summer, on behalf of the command of the division, Mehdi Huseynzade, together with Akper Agayev, at the head of a platoon of partisans, conducted an operation against the retreating German unit. Many German soldiers and officers died in the battle, more than 10 enemy trucks were destroyed.
In September, Mehdi Huseynzade, in the form of a German technical service officer, entered the enemy airfield and, using delayed action mines, blew up 2 aircraft and 25 vehicles. In the same month, Mikhailo committed another act of sabotage. On a motorcycle in the form of a German officer, he approached the fascist company, which was without weapons on a training march, and, having shot more than 20 enemy soldiers from a machine gun, instantly disappeared. In the city of Gorizia, he managed to steal a German car with ammunition. In Opchina (English)Russian Mikhailo blew up the transformer of a high-voltage power plant.
In October, partisans under the command of Mikhailo organized a raid on the local prison. Huseynzade, in the uniform of a Wehrmacht officer, together with two partisans, who were also dressed in the uniform of German soldiers, accompanied by "prisoners", approached the gates of the German prison and demanded that the guards open the gates. As soon as they were on the territory of the prison, Huseynzade and his partisans disarmed the guards and opened the doors of all cells, freeing 700 prisoners of war, including 147 Soviet soldiers. The head of the prison was also captured and taken to the partisan headquarters. The next day, the fascist radio broadcast that the prison had allegedly been attacked by a 3,000-strong partisan division. In addition, during one of the actions, Mikhailo entered the bank, where he captured and then delivered to the partisan headquarters, a million Italian liras.
Fighting in the distant Adriatic, Huseynzade did not stop remembering his homeland. In one of his poems, he recalls his homeland with exceptional warmth:
I wanted to become a crimson autumn leaf,
For a gust of wind to take me,
And, lifting over the forests, over the snowy ridge,
On the native side would have lowered me ...
Another quatrain, written by him at the end of 1943 far from his homeland, testifies very characteristically to his love for his fatherland:
You nursed and raised me in your arms.
I am ready to sacrifice myself to you, Motherland!
I won't let foreign hands defile you
Know that I am your faithful son. Motherland!
The story of Javad Hakimli, chief of staff of the “Soviet” battalion of the 18th Slovenian shock Bazovitskaya brigade and a close friend of Mikhailo, differs in some details. According to him, the partisans spent the night in the basement. When the Germans surrounded them, Mikhailo, while trying to break through the cordon, was wounded and shot himself to avoid capture. D. Hakimli assumed that one of the local residents had betrayed the partisans.
The body of Mehdi Huseynzade was buried by local residents, then reburied by partisans of the 2nd "Russian" battalion of the 18th Slovenian brigade in the cemetery of the village of Chepovan. A wooden pyramid was installed on his grave with an attached iron plate with the inscription: “Comrade Mehdi Huseynov (Mikhailo) is buried here ... He died a heroic death on 2-XI-1944 in Vipava”.
As follows from the report of the headquarters of the 30th division to the command of the 9th corps of the NOAU dated November 9, 1944, on the eve of the death of Mehdi Huseynzade, on the night of October 30-31, the Germans began to systematically concentrate their units on the outskirts of the Trnovsky plateau for the subsequent offensive into territory controlled by the partisans. The German operation began on October 31 from the side of the Goritsa - Aydovshchina road by transferring advanced units to the villages of Vitovle and Shmikhel ( Smihel). On the night of November 31-1, a patrol of the 19th Slovenian brigade established the presence of German troops on the way from Vitovle to the Trnovo road ( Trnovo) - Lokwe ( Lokve). At the same time, the patrol, which was sent by the partisans to Vitovla itself, ran into the Germans here near the Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. On November 1 - 2, the Germans made a number of attempts to break through to the crest of the Trnovsky plateau. Fighting in the direction of the village of Trnovo continued until November 6 .
Related videos
After death
The role and activity of Mehdi Huseynzade in the ranks of the NOAU was not known to the general public of the Soviet Union for a long time. On May 31, 1956, the Krasnaya Zvezda newspaper, based on the memoirs of the former partisan V. Sokolov, published the article “The Courage of the Partisan”, dedicated to the exploits of Mikhailo. Later, in October of the same year, another former partisan, G. A. Zhilyaev, wrote down “Memories of Mehdi Huseynzade (Mikhailo)”, handing over the manuscript to the Institute of History of the Academy of Sciences of the Azerbaijan SSR. The Institute soon collected a significant amount of material on the exploits of the partisan, in accordance with which the First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Azerbaijan, Imam Mustafayev, sent a secret letter to the Central Committee of the CPSU. The KGB of the Azerbaijan SSR launched a secret investigation confirming the heroism of Lieutenant Huseynzade during the Second World War in Yugoslavia and Italy. F. Kopylov wrote to the Central Committee of the Azerbaijan SSR: "The Embassy of the USSR in Yugoslavia turned to the Yugoslav competent authorities with a request to additionally check and document the activities of Huseynzade in the Yugoslav partisan formation". The investigation ended with the receipt of information confirming the exploits of the Soviet lieutenant; the Yugoslav side also presented additional documents. As a result, by the decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of April 11, 1957, Mehdi Huseynzade was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union (posthumously).
When in 1957 a delegation of participants in the partisan and anti-fascist movement headed by S. A. Kovpak visited Yugoslavia, it included the commander of the Soviet partisan battalion operating in Slovenia Anatoly Dyachenko. He left the following impressions from visiting the grave of Mehdi Huseynzade: "The Yugoslav people, in order to perpetuate the memory of our Mehdi, erected a wonderful monument on his grave. The grave is decorated with fresh flowers. They are brought daily to the grave of the hero locals who heard a lot about his brave and heroic deeds. The Yugoslavs begin their story about the glorious son of the Azerbaijani people with the words "Our friend Mikhailo" .
On December 7, 2012, Slovenia hosted the presentation of the novel by the writer P. Amelietti entitled “One for All or Mihailo's Revenge” about the legendary partisan Mehdi Huseynzade.
Speaking at the event, Chargé d'Affaires of the Embassy of the Republic of Azerbaijan in Slovenia Azer Khudiyev spoke in detail about the exploits of Mehdi Huseynzade during the Second World War. The author of the book introduced the audience to the content of the novel. Then the documentary "Pseudonym Mikhailo" was shown.
Historians about Mehdi Huseynzade
The publication “History of the Second World War 1939 −1945” classifies Mehdi Huseynzade as national heroes Yugoslavia.
Historian V.N. Kazak cites the data of the former chief of staff of the 31st division of the 9th corps of the NOAU, Stanko Petelin-Voiko, according to which, Mehdi Huseynzade alone destroyed about a thousand fascist invaders during various operations.
A. M. Sergienko, who studied the documents of the TsAMO of the Russian Federation, reports on the “great help” of Mekhti Huseynzade to the personnel officer of the GRU NPO, Lieutenant Colonel Ivan Petrovich Rybachenkov, who has been acting since June 1944 as a representative of the Soviet military mission at the headquarters of the 9th Corps of the NOAU. The historian writes: “Knowing German perfectly well, he penetrated into the military establishments of the enemy, bringing valuable information. Great importance for the Soviet command had data obtained by Rybachenkov and his assistants on the transfer German units from Italy to Hungary.
The Yugoslav military historian Stanko Petelin dedicated a separate chapter to Mehdi Huseynzade in his monograph The Gradnikov Brigade. The historian believed that the saboteur Mikhailo destroyed more enemy command personnel than the entire 9th Corps during the entire period of its existence.
Information about the two largest acts of sabotage by Mehdi Huseynzade (dated April 2 and April 22, 1944) is included in the "Chronology of the People's Liberation War of 1941-1945". Reports from the headquarters of the 31st division and the 9th corps about these actions are presented in the collection of documents of the NOAU during the period of the people's liberation war in Yugoslavia, published by the Belgrade Military History Institute.
On the role of Soviet intelligence in the activities of Mehdi Huseynzade
The role of the representatives of the Soviet military mission in the activities of Mehdi Huseynzade's group remains unclear.
Mehdi Huseynzade's group acted as a separate sabotage unit of the 9th Corps. This information is also confirmed by Simon Vicic ( Simon Vicic), who was instructed to organize a secret courier connection between the reconnaissance group Mehdi Huseynzade and the head of the sabotage and reconnaissance group ( sabotazno skupino) of the 9th Corps in the Gorishka area by Ivan Sulich ( Ivan Sulic), who bore the partisan pseudonym "Tsar" ( car). Vicic notes that Mehdi Huseynzade “…was a real type of scout. Never said his name. He was always just Mikhailo... No one knew where he came from... He spoke only with the "Tsar". October 30, 1944 during a meeting in the village of Renche ( Rence) Mehdi Huseynzade and "Tsar" previously discussed the advisability of joining the Soviet sabotage group to the "Tsar" unit. For the final solution of this issue, it was necessary to agree with the representative of the Soviet military mission and obtain the approval of the headquarters of the 9th Corps.
Analyzing the isolation of the group of Mehdi Huseynzade, the Slovenian researcher of the people's liberation war Marijan F. Krants ( Marijan F. Kranjc) puts forward a version about the work of Mehdi Huseynzade in the interests of Soviet intelligence on the instructions of employees of the Soviet military mission
This year marks the centenary of the birth of Mehdi Huseynzade, a partisan and intelligence agent who became famous for his daring sabotage against the German invaders during World War II.
He was born in 1918 in the Baku province. Since childhood, he loved literature and painting. The director of the secondary school where Mehdi studied was the writer Suleyman Sani Akhundov, and the teacher was the composer Seyid Rustamov. Mehdi himself drew beautifully, played the tar and wrote poetry. After school, Huseynzade entered the Baku Art College, where he studied with future famous artists Kazim Kazimzade, Asker Abbasov, Ali Zeynalov, art critic Mursel Najafov. After graduating from college, Mehti failed to enter the Leningrad Academy of Arts, but he was admitted to the French language department at the Leningrad Institute of Foreign Languages.
Mehdi's plans to become a writer were interrupted by the war. In August 1941, the 22-year-old Komsomol member Huseynzade joined the Red Army, and after graduating from the Tbilisi Military Infantry School, he went to the front. Having been taken prisoner seriously wounded, he was sent with a train of prisoners of war to Berlin, where he set out to escape in order to fight the Nazis. Here the knowledge gained at the Leningrad Pedagogical Institute of Foreign Languages came in handy. Mehdi spoke Russian, Azerbaijani and French, so it was not difficult for him to master German.
After completing translator courses in Berlin, Huseynzade was sent to the German city of Shtrans, where by that time the 162nd Turkestan German division was being formed from parts of the Azerbaijani and Central Asian legions. Mehdi, as a particularly gifted person, was enrolled in the propaganda and counterintelligence department, and was also sent to improve his qualifications at the counterintelligence school.
Film frame
He used all these skills in sabotage work. A talented person is talented in everything, and Huseynzade, not devoid of an acting gift, managed to fool the Nazis, who believed that the young Azerbaijani intended to fight to the victorious side on their side.
In 1943, after the capitulation of Italy, the Mehdi division from Shtrans was sent to Italy to suppress the partisan movement, from where Gusenov managed to escape and join the partisans of the Garibaldian Yugoslav-Italian corps. The extraordinary audacity, which was admired by friends and paid tribute to by enemies, was a meaningful calculation of a military strategist who knew how to clearly plan planned operations, take into account the realities of the German military machine, which he thoroughly studied.
It is difficult to enumerate the military exploits of Huseynzade, who began working under the underground nickname Mikhailo, - here are the mining of the railway track, and derailed German military trains, and blown up cars with German military personnel, and captures of "tongues", and undermined bridges. He taught partisans to draw topographic maps, prepared explosives, developed sabotage plans, and was an excellent organizer.
In April 1944, as a result of Mikhailo's bombing of a cinema not far from Trieste, 80 fascists were killed and 110 were injured. Then there was a raid on the German soldiers' barracks, where 450 soldiers and officers were killed and wounded. Mehdi blew up the casino, where 250 soldiers and officers died, then the printing house where the fascist newspaper was printed.
300 thousand marks were promised for Mikhailo's head, but this did not make him stop.
Film frame
The creative nature of Mehdi helped in carrying out dressing operations. Once Huseynzade, in the form of a German technical service officer, entered the enemy airfield and, using delayed-action mines, blew up two aircraft and 25 vehicles, and a few days later, in the form of a German officer, he drove up on a motorcycle to a fascist company that was on a training march, shooting from machine gun more than 20 soldiers and disappeared.
The uniform of a Wehrmacht officer helped Mikhailo during another operation, when he organized a raid on a local prison, freeing 700 prisoners of war and capturing the head of the prison. There were three raiders, but the German radio reported about a three thousandth partisan division.
In total, as a result of sabotage organized by Gusenzade in 1944, more than 1,000 German soldiers and officers were killed and wounded.
In November 1944, the house where Mikhailo stopped after completing another assignment was surrounded by the Nazis. He went into battle with only two lemons and a gun. The forces were unequal. Gusenzade saved the last cartridge for himself by shooting in the heart.
In April 1957, by decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, Mehdi Huseynzade was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. The film about him "On Distant Shores", which was shown on all the screens of the USSR, was a resounding success. Rugia Aliyeva, who develops the topic of Azerbaijani fighters of the European Resistance in the archives, says about Huseynzade: “He was a completely extraordinary person, endowed with great inclinations. Moreover, they concerned not only art, with the abilities in various areas of which he was generously gifted - a passion for writing poetry, a talent for painting, an ability for languages and many others. He was very sociable, knew how to influence people, find a language with everyone, was easy to communicate with. Not having artistic abilities, Mikhailo could hardly have been so successful in impersonating a fascist. In a word, he was given a lot. And he brilliantly disposed of what he had. And he lived only 26 years.
Huseyn-zade Mehdi Hanifa oglu (Mikhailo) - Yugoslav partisan. Born December 22, 1918 in Baku in a working class family. Azerbaijani. In 1932 he entered the Azerbaijan Art School and successfully completed it. In 1937, Mehdi became a student at the Leningrad Institute of Foreign Languages. And in 1940, returning to Baku, he continued his education at the Azerbaijan Pedagogical Institute named after V.I. Lenin. In the Soviet Army since 1941. He graduated from the Tbilisi Military Infantry School in 1942.
In the battles of the Great Patriotic War since July 1942. In August 1942, seriously wounded, Hussein-Zade was captured, was in prisoner of war camps in Italy, Yugoslavia. In early 1944, he fled with a group of comrades. With the Yugoslav partisans he participated in the resistance movement in Yugoslavia and Northern Italy. Killed in action November 16, 1944.
Awarded the Order of Lenin. He was buried in the town of Chepovan (west of the city of Ljubljana, Yugoslavia). A monument to the Hero was erected in Baku. A secondary school, a steamboat, streets in the cities of Azerbaijan are named after him.
Many combat episodes from the life of a courageous Azerbaijani partisan spoke of his unusual courage, dexterity, and resourcefulness. Mehdi (Mikhailo) was fluent in several languages, knew engineering, and was an excellent driver of a car.
Being in a Nazi concentration camp, Mehdi Huseynzade created an underground anti-fascist organization. She played a big role in preparing a mass escape from German captivity of prisoners who joined the Yugoslav partisans.
A special detachment of scouts-saboteurs led by Mikhailo terrified and feared the enemy. Mehdi Hussein-zade either in the form of a German officer, or in the clothes of a poor peasant appeared in the cities and villages of the Adriatic, collected intelligence data necessary for the partisans, organized sabotage, where and in what way he could harm the Nazis.
Once Hussein-zade organized an explosion of the cinema building, in which there were Nazi soldiers and officers. 80 fascists were killed, 110 seriously wounded. Somewhat later, Mehdi's detachment blew up the Nazi canteen in Trieste. As a result of this sabotage, many fascists were killed and wounded.
Best of the day
One day, on a summer day in 1944, a brave partisan made his way to a large Nazi gas depot in the suburbs of Gorizia. With a delayed action mine, he blew up this warehouse. Three weeks later, a second fuel storage facility was set on fire nearby.
Mehdi, together with his detachment of reconnaissance saboteurs, blew up bridges, destroyed warehouses, enemy vehicles, exterminated the Nazis and their accomplices, pulled out local patriots and Soviet prisoners of war from fascist captivity.
In the city of Udina (Northern Italy), the Germans imprisoned 700 local patriots and Soviet prisoners of war. Those arrested faced certain death. Headquarters partisan detachment decided to free the slaves. This risky and daring operation was entrusted to Mehdi. Putting on the uniform of a German officer, he entered the prison with a small group of partisans, disarmed the guards and released all those arrested, among whom were 147 Soviet soldiers who were captured.
The next day, the fascist radio reported that a 3,000-strong partisan division allegedly attacked the prison ...
Bold and daring was the raid of the reconnaissance hero on a German airfield, where he also penetrated under the guise of a Hitlerite technical service officer. He managed to blow up several planes with the help of delayed action mines.
All the feats accomplished by Mehdi cannot be counted. At the end of 1944, he made one of his most daring operations.
A car drove up to the officer's casino, where the Nazis were carousing. From it with a suitcase in hand came out in the form of the captain of the Nazi army Hussein-zade. He appeared in the hall. Welcoming the tipsy company, Mehdi sat down at the table, put the suitcase he had brought against the wall. Some time later, the imaginary officer left this institution. Already on the way to the mountains, Mehdi, together with his Slovenian comrade, heard an explosion. And this time, many fascist officers were killed and wounded. The brutalized fascists set a reward in the amount of 400 thousand liras for Mehdi's head. But the brave partisan was elusive. In a short time, he committed several more daring acts of sabotage. So, one day he broke into a bank, captured and delivered a million Italian lire to the partisan headquarters.
On November 16, 1944, Hussein-zade went to perform another combat mission. He was supposed to blow up a German ammunition depot. Having successfully completed this task, Mehdi returned to the headquarters of the corps. In the village of Vitovlye, he stumbled upon a fascist ambush. The hero fired back until the cartridges ran out. He fired the last bullet into his heart.
