Monument to the Victims of the Holocaust in Darbėnai
Memorial site

The monument is dedicated to the victims of the Holocaust. On June 28, 1941, local white-collar workers gathered all the Jews of Darbėnai (about 600 people) and sent them to Kretinga. Those brought to Kretinga were placed near the Jewish cemetery. There they were photographed and after 2 hours they were sent back to Darbėnai. On the way back, the Jewish column spent the night on the side of the road. On June 29, 1941, the Jews were kept in the open air on the outskirts of the town around the clock. They had not received any food for two days. On the same day, 6 German officers arrived, separated the Jewish men from the women and drove them away. In total, about 150 Jewish men and 4 Soviet prisoners of war were taken. The condemned were taken outside the town and shot in a forest on the left side of the Darbėnai-Lazdininkai road. The Germans shot them with automatic weapons. Jewish women and children were herded into the town's synagogue on the evening of the same day (June 29).

The Kretinga County Commission investigating Nazi crimes stated in a report drawn up on April 11, 1945, that 596 people were killed in the town of Darbėnai during the Nazi occupation, the absolute majority of whom were Jews.