By Yana Lyubarskaya for AZE.US
Photographs, military records and a wartime letter shared by artist Albert Rafiyev shed light on the lives of three Mountain Jewish servicemen from Krasnaya Sloboda who served during World War II.
World War II left a lasting mark on nearly every Soviet family. For the Mountain Jewish community of Krasnaya Sloboda, the memory of those who went to the front remains an essential part of both family history and national heritage.
Behind faded photographs, military certificates and yellowing letters are the lives of real people – those who returned home and those whose families never saw them again.
Mountain Jewish artist, designer and collector Albert Rafiyev shared documents connected to three members of his family: his father, Rafael Rafiyev; his uncle, Natan Yakubov; and his mother’s uncle, Khagai Abramov.
Much of the family archive was lost in the mid-1980s. The surviving materials, however, make it possible to reconstruct several chapters in the lives of the three veterans.
An Artist Preserving the Heritage of Krasnaya Sloboda
Albert Rafaelovich Rafiyev was born in Krasnaya Sloboda on February 1, 1966, into the large family of Rafael Yakubovich and Mikhal, also known as Gyuli, Pinhasovna Rafiyev.
He is known for paintings depicting everyday life in Krasnaya Sloboda and for handmade carpets whose ornaments reflect Mountain Jewish history, customs, traditions and holidays.
Rafiyev has assembled an extensive collection of ethnographic objects and antique Caucasian carpets. He was also part of the team that designed and developed the Museum of Mountain Jews in Krasnaya Sloboda, personally helping to select many of its exhibits.
He works with the STMEGI International Charitable Foundation and the Mountain Jewish Community Center in Moscow, contributes illustrations to books and calendars, and is a member of both the Union of Artists of Azerbaijan and the Creative Union of Artists of Russia.
In 2026, director Rufat Asadov made a documentary about his life titled Traditions From the Depths of the Centuries.
Ahead of Victory Day, Rafiyev shared photographs and documents belonging to relatives who served during the war.
Rafael Rafiyev: A Hospital Orderly Who Rescued the Wounded
Rafael, or Rafi, Yakubovich Rafiyev was born in Krasnaya Sloboda in 1910. He later became the father of nine children, including Albert Rafiyev.
After being drafted into the Red Army, he served for several years as an orderly at a military hospital.
In 1943, Rafael suffered a leg injury and concussion while evacuating a wounded serviceman from the battlefield. He was subsequently discharged on medical grounds.
According to his family, he did not like speaking about the war.
In 1975, Rafael Rafiyev received the Soviet jubilee medal marking the 30th anniversary of victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945.
The surviving award certificate bears the signature of the military commissar of the Guba district of the Azerbaijan SSR and an official seal. It also contains an image of the medal featuring the “Motherland Calls” monument, a celebratory salute and the dates 1945-1975.
Rafael Rafiyev died in 1980 and was buried in Krasnaya Sloboda. His descendants now live in different parts of the world but continue to maintain their family ties and preserve his memory.
Natan Yakubov: From the Soviet-Finnish War to Victory
Natan Yakubovich Yakubov was born in Krasnaya Sloboda in 1918. He was the younger brother of Rafael Rafiyev.
Yakubov was drafted into the Red Army in 1939 and took part in the Soviet-Finnish War. He later served throughout World War II and returned home alive.
Few details about his military service have survived in the family archive.
His name nevertheless appears in publications devoted to Jewish soldiers from the Caucasus. In memorial records, it is listed alongside other members of the Yakubov family from Krasnaya Sloboda who went to the front during the early years of the war.
Natan Yakubov died in 1993.
“I honor their memory, because they protected all of us from the enemy,” Albert Rafiyev said.
Khagai Abramov: A Letter From the Front
The family archive also contains documents connected to Khagai Saviyevich Abramov, an uncle of Albert Rafiyev’s mother.
Abramov was born in Krasnaya Sloboda in 1911. He was a father of four and served as a private during the war.
He was reported missing in 1943.
His name was included in a memorial book dedicated to Jewish soldiers who died fighting Nazism. It also appeared in other memorial lists created to preserve the names of Mountain Jews who were killed or went missing during the war.
Among the surviving materials is a copy of a personal letter Abramov wrote to his relatives in Juhuri, the traditional language of Mountain Jews. The original is kept at the Museum of Mountain Jews in Krasnaya Sloboda.
The letter is dated November 3, 1941.
Some sections are no longer legible because the paper is torn along its folds and the writing has faded. Its central message, however, can still be understood.
Abramov wrote that he deeply missed his family and constantly thought about them. He asked whether his relatives were well, whether his letters were reaching them and why he had not received a reply for so long.
At the end of the letter, he sent greetings to his family and neighbors and expressed hope that they would soon meet again.
That meeting never took place.
One Family’s Story, Part of a Larger History
The lives of Rafael Rafiyev, Natan Yakubov and Khagai Abramov represent more than the wartime history of one family.
Their stories reflect the contribution of Mountain Jews who, alongside other peoples of the Soviet Union, took part in the fight against Nazi Germany.
Some cared for wounded soldiers. Others fought through more than one war. Some never returned and remained listed as missing for generations.
Photographs, military certificates and letters from the front continue to carry their voices. Even after many decades, the documents preserve concern for loved ones, hope of returning home, personal courage and faith in victory.
The history maintained by the Rafiyev family connects military service, family memory and Mountain Jewish identity, ensuring that the names of the three veterans from Krasnaya Sloboda are not forgotten.
Photographs and documents courtesy of the Albert Rafiyev family archive.
AZE.US