On March 8, 1944, the entire Balkarian people were deported. Deportation was declared illegal, criminal and an act of genocide.
The deportation period for the Balkars continued for 13 years, until in 1956-1957 a series of decrees of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR were issued. These decrees consistently lifted all restrictions on the Balkars and a number of other peoples of the USSR who were deported.
