Kirkenes

a city and port in northern Norway, on Varanger Fjord, in the fylker (county) of Finnmark. Population, about 7,000. It is a center for the export of iron ore mined in Sor Varanger (4 million tons in 1967). Industrial enterprises in Kirkenes include an ore-dressing plant and a shipyard. During World War II, the city was occupied by fascist German armies in 1940; it was liberated by the Red Army on Oct. 25, 1944, as part of the Petsamo-Kirkenes operation.