Nobody is forgotten, nothing is forgotten: Veteran of the Great Patriotic War Mukhamet Iskhakov shared his memories of the war years
The Ministry of Agriculture and Food of the Republic of Tatarstan has great respect for the veterans of the Great Patriotic War and those who worked in the rear in those years, providing food supply to the country. This week, the Ministry hosted a celebration of veterans and home front workers. The meeting was held in a warm, intimate atmosphere, while drinking tea the veterans shared their memories of the war years. One of the guests of the holiday was Iskhakov Mukhamet Zaripovich, who reached Berlin. The other day he turned 98 years old.
When the war began, Mukhamet Iskhakov worked as an agronomist at the state farm. All men were taken to the front. And he did not want to stay aside.
“The fights were different,” recalls the veteran, “but most of all I remembered the first and most terrible battle, which by a strange coincidence was on my birthday. In May 43, I was wounded in hand-to-hand combat with a German. He threw a grenade right into my hands, but I was not taken aback, threw it as far as possible. There was a deafening explosion. I did not immediately understand what hurt me. In the medical battalion he spent two weeks and returned to the front.
It happened on October 28, I was seriously wounded in the lung and I was sent to Nizhny Tagil and stayed there until February. I really wanted to go to the front, I felt good and was eager to fight, but the doctors grieved me with the news that they would send me home. I did not want to put up with it. I went to visit my regiment, and when it was time to leave, by fate I was late for the train ... I was confused and did not know where to go. I returned to my comrades. My fellow soldiers offered to take the horses for a walk, and then I realized that this was a gift of fate and I should take advantage of this. The next day there was a check and they noticed me. The lieutenant colonel was not glad but my comrades said that I was a good mortar and I really wanted to serve the Motherland. I was afraid of his reaction. Fortunately, he allowed me to stay.
First of all, the city of Chernigov was liberated, after which our regiment met with Zhukov, liberated Ukraine, Belarus and reached Warsaw.
When the defeat of the enemy was already close, we completely forgot about our hungry and cold walking through the swamps. Without food and drink we spent in the marshes 17 days. Horses could not stand and died. In such difficult times, when it seemed that death was just behind us, we sang songs. We had our own life-affirming song that warmed the soul. It was our weapon. "The bomb is afraid of us, the mine cannot get us, this is our cavalry guards coming."
In January, we met with Semyon Mikhailovich Budyonny. The conversation was about how we had the great fortune to storm Berlin. We experienced a sense of joy and the honor, but the fear had a place as well. Yes, it was scary and there is nothing to be ashamed of. War is war. It is very serious.
I am proud that I did not consider the Germans as enemies, I watched the peaceful population of Germany, learned from their experience in the issues of animal husbandry and agriculture. When we crossed the Polish-German border, all settlements were almost empty, only older women and children. I watched how they did housekeeping and admired their consistency and hard work. That is exactly how I remembered Berlin. ”