Fechter Shot at the Wall: Cold War's Youngest Martyr
East German border guards shot and killed Peter Fechter as he scrambled over the Berlin Wall in 1962, leaving his body bleeding on the no-man's-land for nearly an hour while thousands watched from both sides. This brutal execution shattered any remaining illusion of a peaceful division and galvanized international outrage that turned the Wall into a global symbol of oppression rather than just a border barrier.
August 17, 1962
64 years ago
Key Figures & Places
What Else Happened on August 17
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