The 24th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Karstjäger was a German mountain infantry division of the Waffen-SS, the armed wing of the Nazi Party that served alongside, but was never formally part of, the German armed forces during World War II. Formed on 18 July 1944 from a battalion, it was understrength and was soon reduced to a brigade. Its main task was fighting partisans on the rugged frontiers of Yugoslavia, Italy, and Austria, and it consisted mainly of ethnic Germans from Yugoslavia and Italy. It also disarmed Italian troops and protected ethnic German communities in Italy in the wake of the Italian surrender. Members of the division were implicated in the 25 August 1944 murder of 33 people in the village of Torlano near Nimis in Italy, and 22 other major crimes. At the post-war Nuremberg trials, the Waffen-SS was declared to be a criminal organisation due to its major involvement in war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/24th_Waffen_Mountain_Division_of_the_SS_Karstj%C3%A4ger

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1758:

Seven Years' War: Prussian forces engaged the Russians at the Battle of Zorndorf in present-day Sarbinowo, Poland. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Zorndorf

1914:

World War I: During the sack of Louvain in Belgium, German troops burned the town's Catholic university, destroying several medieval manuscripts. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sack_of_Louvain

1989:

The NASA spacecraft Voyager 2 made its closest approach to Neptune and provided definitive proof of the existence of the planet's rings (pictured). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rings_of_Neptune

2011:

Mexican drug war: Fifty-two people were killed in an arson at a casino in Monterrey, Mexico. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2011_Monterrey_casino_attack

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

micropolitan: 1. (US) Of or pertaining to a city or twin cities having at least 10,000 but fewer than 50,000 inhabitants; of a city: less populated than a metropolitan area but more than a rural one. 2. (US) A city or twin cities having at least 10,000 but fewer than 50,000 inhabitants; a city which is less populated than a metropolitan area but more than a rural one. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/micropolitan

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

Oh some are fond of Spanish wine, and some are fond of French,And some’ll swallow tay and stuff fit only for a wench;But I’m for right Jamaica till I roll beneath the bench,Says the old bold mate of Henry Morgan.   --John Masefield https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/John_Masefield