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Barrier troops, blocking units, or anti-retreat forces are formations of soldiers that in some armies are placed behind regular troops on a battle line to prevent unauthorized withdrawal or retreat. Barrier troops are used to prevent unauthorized withdrawal of soldiers from the battlefield by any means, including indiscriminate killing.
In the Red Army of the Soviet Union, the concept of barrier troops first arose in August 1918 with the formation of the (zagraditelnye otriady), translated as "blocking troops" or "anti-retreat detachments". The barrier troops were composed of personnel drawn from Cheka punitive detachments or from regular Red Army infantry regiments.
The concept was re-introduced on a large scale during the Second World War. On June 27, 1941, in response to reports of unit disintegration in battle and desertion from the ranks in the Soviet Red Army, the 3rd Department (military counterintelligence of Soviet Army) of the USSR's Narkomat of Defense issued a directive creating mobile barrier forces composed of NKVD personnel to operate on roads, railways, forests, etc. for the purpose of catching 'deserters and suspicious persons'.
On September 12, 1941, Joseph Stalin issued the Stavka Directive No. 1919 (Директива Ставки ВГК №001919) concerning the creation of barrier troops in rifle divisions of the Southwestern Front, to suppress panic retreats. Each Red Army division was to have an anti-retreat detachment equipped with transport totalling one company for each regiment. Their primary goal was to maintain strict military discipline and to prevent disintegration of the front line by any means, including the use of machine guns to indiscriminately shoot any personnel retreating without authorization.
It was hardcore method to keep soldiers on front anyone retreating or desertion killed with machine guns.
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