Archive/File: people/e/eichmann.adolf/transcripts/Appeal/Appeal-Session-03-06 Last-Modified: 1999/06/15 On page 1636, I ask him: "Q. Sometimes the organizer of the deportation notified you which transport was going to Auschwitz and which to Cholm, and asked you to inform the relevant departments, as in T/447(15). "A. Yes, in accordance with orders, transport matters came within the sphere of Section IVB4. I have stated that as well. "Q. And that would be after you issued authorization? "A. In order to keep the timetables, IVB4 had to issue the authorization. That was also dealt with in Section IVB4." My colleagues inform me that in the meanwhile they have found the document. The matter of destroying the documents of the Dutch Jews is to be found in T/574-575. President: Destroying the passports. Attorney General: Yes. President: What was the exhibit concerning the Westerbork documents? President: T/559. In his police interrogation, T/37, bottom of page 1765 and top of page 1766, Eichmann was asked in general the following questions: "Less I want to ask you the following. The Jews were rounded up, expelled, transported to the extermination camps, exterminated. "Eichmann Yes. "Less Were you the dispatching authority? "Eichmann Yes, of course. The authority sending them off to detention, of course, Inspector. President: Perhaps we should break off here, if that is convenient. [Recess ] President: [To the Attorney General] Please proceed, Mr. Hausner. Attorney General: In the Duesseldorf Folder (T/1395), Kaltenbrunner, Heydrich's heir, indicates that Eichmann is his Specialist Officer, in respect of the destruction of the Lodz Ghetto. As early as October 1941, Eichmann was known to the German emigrants in London as being responsible for the destruction of German Jewry, and an indication of this is to be found in the newspaper Die Zeitung which appeared there (T/1419). President: Where, in London? Attorney General: In London. When the liquidation of the Warsaw Ghetto was being discussed, a German Foreign Ministry official wrote that he had spoken about several of the problems arising in this connection with "SS Obersturmbannfuehrer Eichmann, the representative of the Senior Commander of the Security Police and the SD" (T/268). Justice Silberg: Mr. Hausner, I am very sorry but I must interrupt you. Either the list is wrong or the quotation is wrong. T/1419 is a document about the murder of Berlin Jews. Attorney General: Yes, about the murder of Berlin Jews, and this is from ie Zeitung. The overall description of the exhibits in the list is not always exhaustive, Your Honour. Justice Silberg: Was ie Zeitung published in London? Attorney General: In London. President: You said that a German Foreign Ministry official had a conversation with Eichmann and you quoted exhibit T/268? Attorney General: Yes, T/268. In a conversation about dealing with Jews who had foreign and neutral nationality, who were still likely to be in the Warsaw Ghetto, SS Obersturmbannfuehrer Eichmann gave the following information. Justice Agranat: What is T/268? Attorney General: That is an internal memorandum of the German Foreign Ministry, DIII, signed by a Vice-Consul, which discusses matters arising in conjunction with the liquidation of the Warsaw Ghetto, dated 21 April 1942, during the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. Justice Silberg: The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising took place in 1943. Attorney General: I apologize - 1943. Eichmann is described in the same terms in the handwritten minutes in which the liquidation of the Lodz Ghetto is discussed (T/247). "List of participants: Eichmann, Kaltenbrunner's representative on Jewish affairs." And the German Foreign Ministry relies on him as if he is the SS Reichsfuehrung (Reich Leadership). Exhibit T/991 refers to the problem of dealing with Jews in the Italian-occupied territory in Greece. The document begins with the following words: "Nach Ansicht der Reichsfuehrung-SS (SS Obersturmbannfuehrer Eichmann) sind die im Telegramm Rom Nr. 1171 vom 12. Maerz italienischerseits in Aussicht genommenen Judenmassnahmen in Griechenland ungenuegend" (In the opinion of the SS Reich Leadership the measures against the Jews planned by the Italians in telegram, Rome No. 1171, dated 12 March, are insufficient). They are not satisfied with the measures adopted in respect of the Jews in the Italian-occupied territory in Greece. The only reason why I quote these words is to show how at that time the Reich authorities viewed him and how they viewed his position. The occupation authorities in Denmark negotiated with him as a plenipotentiary of the RSHA (T/587 and T/588). And when the German Foreign Ministry wanted to provide Ribbentrop, the Reich's Foreign Minister, with suitable instructions as to how to negotiate with Mussolini in respect of difficulties which had arisen in dealing with the Jews in the Italian_occupied territories, they approached him directly, addressing him as "Parteigenosse Eichmann" (Party Comrade Eichmann), and asking him to inform the Foreign Ministry as soon as possible of the wishes of the SS top echelons concerning the Jewish Question in Italy and the occupied territories. "Parteigenosse Eichmann" ensures that the demands of the SS top echelons are formulated immediately, and on the same day, 25 February 1943, a telegram is sent by his Section (T/613), setting out all the requirements concerning the Italian authorities. This telegram is indeed signed by Mueller, but Eichmann immediately informs France (T/473) that he drafted these instructions, the very next day, 26 February 1943, and announces that he provided the Foreign Ministry with the demands (this concerns Jewish problems in Italian occupied territory in France). He indicates that he has sent the demands to the Foreign Ministry, and that the Reich Foreign Minister will negotiate accordingly with the Duce. And as soon as he knows the outcome of the negotiations, he will inform Knochen in France. Justice Sussman Is Knochen the Head of Police in France? Attorney General: Yes, I would simply like to show that in a telegram signed by Mueller Eichmann writes that he drafted the letter, and in fact the telegram bears his Section's reference. Furthermore, in T/616, Mueller, who writes about what he wants Ribbentrop to discuss with the Duce, says "Re: Ongoing talks with SS Obersturmbannfuehrer Eichmann." In other words, in this letter he is basing himself on talks held with Eichmann. As to how he performed his duties, his zeal and his meticulousness in carrying out a task completely, we had two admissions from him. In Session 105, Vol. IV, pages 1797- 1798, I read out to him a passage from the Sassen Document in which it says the following: "I - my rank, my official rank, though - and I am saying this all along - I always worked one hundred per cent, and above all I turned things over in my mind, and I was definitely not lukewarm in giving my orders... I confess that I did my duty exactly and correctly, so that once Mueller said to me: `If we had had fifty Eichmanns, we would automatically have been bound to win the War.' ...This referred to a tough ability to prevail and an unswerving punctiliousness in carrying out orders received." I asked Eichmann: "Is it true that you said something along these lines?" And he replied: "...I cannot comment on the actual wording, but the content is correct." And in Session 104, Vol. IV, p. 1791, he was asked about the following passage from the Sassen Document. There the following comments by him were cited: "And so the Jews basically are right, in accordance with the facts, a Jesuit was put there, who was indefatigable, who was always full of fire, wherever there was even a hint of resistance... I was not a normal recipient of orders, because that would have made me an idiot; I thought about things as well, I was an idealist." And the reply to the question as to whether this was correct: "I accept that I was an idealist, but I cannot accept that what else appears here is literally true, because I do not know whether this is right or not." This way of thinking in common also appears in the Accused's cross-examination about T/294. There was a meeting in which it was decided to set up the Theresienstadt Ghetto and to send 50,000 Jews to Minsk and Riga. In T/37, page 3434, he said about that meeting: "Heydrich hat sein Programm gegeben, hat seine Sachen dazwischengeworfen und jeder der Teilnehmer hat nun hier sein - wie soll ich mal sagen - seine Punkte mit hineingeflochten. Und so ist dann diese Sache - aus dieser Gemeinschaftsarbeit, moecht ich mal sagen - entstanden." (Heydrich announced his programme, and each of the participants in the meeting added his points to the programme, and this is how this matter came about, as a result, let us say, of this collaboration.) Justice Silberg: Are you referring, Mr. Attorney General, to the consultations on 27 September? Attorney General: On 10 October 1941. Justice Silberg: The meeting that took place in Prague. Attorney General: As if he struggled with difficulties and overcame them. In Session 104, page 1785, I read out to him another passage by Sassen, and I asked him to confirm that it was reliable. Eichmann said to Sassen: "...then the problems cropped up and things became as tough as anywhere else, until finally a unit could be transported again. But you can see it in all the books - that at the beginning ten thousand were deported at some speed - then there was a lull - then there was fighting - not with weapons - then another contingent went out with ten or fifteen thousand, or maybe just four, five, three, two thousand - then again there was fighting to be got through - then another part was prized off, and that is the way things went. It was only with Hungary that it was different. Hungary really offered us the Jews like sour beer, and Hungary was the only country where we just could not work fast enough. I was constantly being put under pressure where I just could not round up the rolling stock for transports, however hard I tried, so that even the receiving localities had problems with accommodation. The Hungarian Government set such a pace! It was in total contrast to Denmark, where the problems existed right from the very first day, something not found in any other country. So, from this point of view, these two countries - Denmark and Hungary - were the only contrasting exceptions to the other European countries." "Question Did you say that? "Answer As I have said, this cannot be taken literally, because in part it does not make sense and slip 28 is missing; but the substantive content - that is correct. I cannot say anything else." When we have before us this description of Eichmann's position on the one hand, a description of his zeal, obstinacy and determination in carrying out an assignment on the other hand, then we can examine the detailed evidence that was submitted. Rudolf Hoess was the Commandant of the Auschwitz Camp. He was on friendly terms with Eichmann. In Session 95, Vol. IV, p. 1658, Eichmann said that he was on good terms with him. And in the same session, also on page 1658, he admitted that Hoess had no reason to shift the guilt onto him. And in the same session, on page 1659: "Hoess was punctiliousness and accuracy personified." Eichmann even admits that he was in Auschwitz where he visited Hoess. In his police interrogation he added that there were periods where Auschwitz was incapable of absorbing all its victims at once. This is referred to in T/37, page 1321. There were periods where in Auschwitz there were difficulties in digesting all the victims, and I am not sure whether the word "digest" is an accurate translation of "verkraften." Justice Silberg: How many people in Auschwitz were housed in huts? Is there any testimony about how many huts there were there, and how many living people could be there at the same time? Attorney General: There is a Polish report by examining magistrate Jansen who investigated the subject of Auschwitz. This is a Court exhibit, and I would ask my colleague to give me its number. It contains a detailed description of the camps and the various satellite camps, what is called "Birkenau-Auschwitz," which is an enormous complex of labour camps, satellite camps and satellite branches. There were major industries there. Justice Silberg: How many blocks were there, how many living people could exist there? Attorney General: According to Hoess, the number who could be accommodated at one time was about 100,000. There were 39 camps. There were special camps. For example, there was the family camp of the Theresienstadt people, there was the Gypsies' camp, there were the women's camps. Jansen's report is T/1329. We submitted to the Court the autobiography of Hoess, the Commandant of Auschwitz. This is T/45. There are two chapters at the end of the book. Among the other chapters, there is one chapter about the Final Solution at the Auschwitz camp, and another chapter about Eichmann. We submitted these chapters separately. The chapter about Eichmann is T/88, and the chapter about the Final Solution is T/90. There Hoess writes about matters which are cited in the Judgment, and consequently I shall not repeat them. He tells how in the summer of 1941, he was called to Himmler, and Himmler said that there was an extermination order, and that the Fuehrer had issued orders to exterminate Jewry, and Auschwitz had been chosen as the place where this was to be carried out. Further details would be given to them by Sturmbannfuehrer Eichmann when he came to them. Eichmann came to Auschwitz shortly after this, and they discussed various details, questions that had arisen, and then the problem of gas was discussed. Finally it was decided, after joint experiments, that Zyklon `B', which was used by one of Hoess' assistants to exterminate Soviet prisoners of war, would be the right gas. Hoess says that Eichmann's Section had complete control over the Jews in Auschwitz, or, as he calls them, the "Transportjuden." This matter of the "Transportjuden" appears not only in Hoess' book, which was written in a Polish jail, but also in official documents of the Reich. In T/1280, dated 23 March 1944, there are general guidelines to the Political Division of the Concentration Camps Administration. On page 3 it says: "In reports about Jews who have died, it must be indicated specifically whether these are Transportjuden (IVB4a), or whether they are Schutzhaftbefehljuden (Jews under orders for protective custody), who were transferred from Section IVCB." Justice Silberg: Who were the Transportjuden? Attorney General: These were Jews whom the Big Forwarding Agent of Death delivered to death. Justice Silberg: Without selection. Attorney General: On the spot. Justice Silberg: Who was the commandant of the Auschwitz Camp during the 1944 summer months? Attorney General: Baer. Justice Silberg: There was also a commandant called Liebehenschel. Was he commandant before Baer or after him? When did Hoess leave Auschwitz?
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