The Nizkor Project: Remembering the Holocaust (Shoah)

The Trial of Adolf Eichmann
Session 84
(Part 2 of 6)


The next exhibit is T/934, document No. 1030. This is a report by Dannecker to the Head Office for Reich Security IVB4, dated 16 February 1943. On page 1 it says: "Without waiting for the decision of the Council of Ministers, Belev on his own initiative had already dispatched delegates to Thrace and Macedonia, in order to investigate the possibilities." At the end it reads: "In order to reach the figure of twenty thousand, Belev will also, in accordance with my proposal, have recourse to what are known as 'undesirable' Jews." In the top left-hand corner of page 1 it says "seen - Beckerle."

Next exhibit - T/935, document No. 1031. The Foreign Ministry to Eichmann. It says that "the legation in Sofia reports that the Bulgarian Diet has given initial approval to the evacuation of twenty thousand Jews from the liberated zones." The last sentence reads: "I would be grateful if everything could be done at the other end to ensure that the end of March as the date for evacuation can be observed." Signature: van Hahn, Foreign Ministry.

Next exhibit - T/939, document No. 204. Another report from Dannecker, to the Head Office for Reich Security IVB4, Attache Group. The text reads: "Following the telephone conversation with Eichmann I enclose: (1) Photocopy of the agreement between the Bulgarian Commissioner for Jewish Affairs and the undersigned as authorized representative, with regard to the resettlement of initially twenty thousand Jews from Bulgaria to the German Eastern Territories."

Witness, what was the content of this telephone conversation to which reference is made here in connection with the agreement?

Accused: Today, I can only think that, after the agreement was concluded, Dannecker went to the telephone and reported back. And then, once he had reported to me, I asked him, as was the required bureaucratic practice, to send the documents to me, because I, in turn, had to submit the documents to my chief, and my chief then doubtless said: "Now begin negotiations with the Reich Transport Ministry in order to draw up the timetable." That was the normal sequence.

Judge Raveh: Dr. Servatius, I have a question about the form of correspondence in the case of Bulgaria. We see that here Dannecker is writing directly to the RSHA, Attache Group, for the attention of IVB4, and at the side the envoy adds something to the effect that he has seen the letter. It appears to me that this is a rather different form from that which we have seen in other countries. Perhaps this could be explained?

Dr. Servatius: I can explain, but perhaps it might be better for me to ask the Accused to do so?

Judge Raveh: By all means.

Dr. Servatius: You have heard the question from His Honour.

Accused: Yes.

Dr. Servatius: Can you make a statement on that?

Accused: This communication - that is to say, this conveyance of documents - was made to the Attache Group - through the Attache Group, and the envoy - the superior of the Police Attache - passed this matter on. It is possible - but I can no longer remember - that the form is somewhat different from that of Romania, for example, but I believe that it was a question of local arrangements made by the legations.

In any case, what was important was that Beckerle - as the envoy responsible, the head of the mission responsible - had seen this matter and thus taken upon himself approval and responsibility.

Dr. Servatius: Perhaps I might draw the Court's attention to the Instructions to Attaches submitted recently. I am not able to give the reference number.

Presiding Judge: Thank you.

Dr. Servatius: I now turn to Romania. I would also, at the outset, like to submit a diagram.

Witness, is this diagram drawn according to your information, and is it correct?

Accused: It is drawn according to my information, and it is also correct. However, the same applies here. The diagram is designed to go with the text, and the text is not submitted. That is the only...-

Dr. Servatius: On the right hand side in the explanations, where it says "Diagram of chain of command," (19), five thousand children - what does that refer to?

Accused: This was the reason why I referred to the text. Because in the text there are explanations about emigration matters - I think there were five thousand children who were to go to Palestine, as part of the Feldscher Operation, or the operation before the Feldscher Operation.

Presiding Judge: I mark this exhibit N/57.

Dr. Servatius: I shall start with exhibit T/1001, document No. 472. This is a communication from the ambassador in Bucharest, von Killinger, to the Foreign Ministry. An urgent request is made for the Adviser on Jewish Affairs Richter to be dispatched. It says:

"Since the question of Aryanization and Romanization has now entered a decisive phase in Romania, and the major Aryanization and Romanization laws are being prepared, it is vital for Hauptsturmfuehrer Richter to be immediately detached from the SS and reassigned to Bucharest. A request to this effect from Deputy Prime Minister Mihai Antonescu to Reichsfuehrer-SS Himmler is on its way to Berlin in a letter. If there is no likelihood at all of Richter returning, it is crucial that a specialist in Jewish and Romanization questions be immediately dispatched." Signed: von Killinger.
The next exhibit is T/1002, document No. 840. This is an agreement dated 30 August 1941, marked Tighina. It concerns the security, administration and economic exploitation of the areas between the Dniester and the Bug (Transnistria), as well as the Bug and the Dnieper (Bug-Dneiper area). The agreement is between the Romanian Supreme General Staff and the High Command of the German Army. On the last page, point 7, it says:
"Deportation of Jews from Transnistria. For the time being, it is not possible to deport the Jews to the other bank of the Bug. They must therefore be assembled in concentration camps and used for labour purposes, until after the operations are concluded, and it is possible to deport them to the East."
I submit in evidence document No. 473, not previously presented. This is a communication from Ambassador von Killinger to the Foreign Ministry dated 1 September 1941. It refers again to the urgent need to dispatch Hauptsturmfuehrer Richter.

Presiding Judge: I mark this N/58.

Dr. Servatius: Under point 2, page 1, it says:

"Repeated attempts on the part of the Deputy Prime Minister to have SS Hauptsturmfuehrer Richter return as soon as possible to Romania, since he attaches major importance to Richter's activities."
And at the end the last sentence reads:
"Crucial to dispatch a competent Adviser on Jewish and Aryanization Matters as soon as possible to replace Richter. I would ask you not to request this adviser from the Reich Leadership of the SS, in order to avoid further difficulties."
Presiding Judge: Dr. Servatius, how do you understand this last passage?

Dr. Servatius: I was about to ask the Accused the same question.

Are you able to explain what this last comment means?

Accused: I shall try: Whether this is correct I obviously have no way of judging today, but I can draw inferences from the content of the document. The first paragraph indicates that there were differences between Heydrich and von Killinger, who was easily irritated, and various reproaches were made against the Romanians, whom Killinger, as the head of the German mission, is now trying to defend to some extent - and here point 1 explains the reasons. Repeated attempts to obtain an SS Leader - in this case, Richter - have so far been fruitless, so that Killinger is now prepared to give up this approach, and is prepared to accept any Adviser on Jewish Affairs from the Foreign Ministry. That would be my interpretation today of this matter.

Dr. Servatius: The next exhibit is T/1004, document No. 573. This is a memorandum from Richter, dated 15 December 1941. The document shows the very special position occupied by Richter at the mission. At the top it says: "Interview with Deputy Prime Minister Antonescu at the Premier's offices." Under point 2 it says - first of all one would think it must be decided who is having this conversation with the Premier - it is Richter, because under (2) it says, "I informed the Deputy Prime Minister."

He says that lately the Reichsfuehrer-SS has been trying to prevent all mass and individual emigration of Jews from Europe to overseas countries. He goes on to say: "I would therefore be happy to be able to inform Berlin in some suitable fashion that the Romanian Government will also in the future prevent any further emigration of Jews from Romania." At the end, there is a note that the memorandum is to be submitted to Ambassador von Killinger for his information.

Next exhibit - T/1008, document No. 1225. This is another discussion Richter had with the Deputy Prime Minister. I would refer the Court to the top of page 2, where it says: "The emigration of Jews from Reich territory, including the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, as well as from the occupied territories, has in principle been discontinued, in view of the approaching Final Solution of the European Jewish Question. The Chief of the Security Police and the Security Service now requests that Jewish emigration be prevented by all means, also from Romania. Antonescu agreed immediately with the proposal by the Chief of the Security Police and the Security Service."

Next exhibit - T/1013, document No. 83. I only added this to the list afterwards, and I am not sure whether it is available to the Court.

Presiding Judge: Yes, it is before us.

Dr. Servatius: This is a communication from Eichmann to the Foreign Ministry, re: Deportation of Romanian Jews to the Ukraine Reich Commissariat. As an introduction to the letter it says:

"As has been indicated by the Reich Minister for the Eastern Occupied Territories, local Romanian offices have recently deported some ten thousand Jews across the Bug to the Nikolayev Commissariat General of the Ukraine Reich Commissariat. It is feared that under the circumstances, something like another sixty thousand Romanian Jews will probably be deported."
At the bottom of page 2 it says that this is to be prevented:
"But if the Romanian Government does not agree to the request to cease such deportations and continues to deport Jews, I shall be prepared to apply Security Police measures."
Witness, what is meant by these Security Police measures?

Accused: This can be understood from the penultimate paragraph on page 2 of the communication, where it says:

"Since I assume that the Romanian Government will unconditionally comply with the request made to them, in order to avoid increasing the tension which has already arisen as a result of the illegal deportation of Jews between the local offices, I have for the time being decided not to apply any Security Police measures."
These Security Police measures did not apply to the Jews; Security Police measures applied to the relationship between the Romanian authorities and the German authorities. These Security Police measures included closing the border, which my chief, as Inspector General of Borders, could perfectly well decree at any time.

And I would also draw the Court's attention to point 8 of the Treaty of Tighina, pursuant to which border matters were also subject to regulations, and which says that the closing of the eastern and northern borders of Transnistria is under the charge of the Southern Army Group, and the agreed Romanian border runs along the Dniester. I am not able today to outline all the geographical arrangements, but from this item it emerges without doubt.

Dr. Servatius: Next exhibit - T/1014, document No. 99. This is a communication from Rademacher of the Foreign Ministry to Eichmann, about the position of the German legation in Bucharest as to how to prevent the deportation of the sixty thousand Jews, and it says that the Romanian point of view still has to be examined. This simply shows that the legation intervened in this matter.

Next exhibit - T/1028, document No. 1348. This is an invitation from Rademacher to a meeting in Berlin, a work meeting. At the bottom there is a handwritten note which, as far as I can make it out, says:

"The work meeting, which will be attended mainly by the Jewish Specialist Officers posted in Germany, will deal with technical matters related to the administration of camps, and will consist almost entirely of inspections of German installations.
" Witness, would you care to tell the Court what this meeting dealt with and what sort of inspections took place, as well as what these inspections had to do with your Section?

Accused: It is very easy for me to give an exhaustive answer to this question. In the files on France, I came across an exhibit, Prosecution document No. 142, dated 1 September, headed, "Meeting at the Head Office for Reich Security on 28 August 1942 on Jewish Questions." Drawn up by the Deputy of Section Head (Dezernent) Roethke with the Senior Commander of the Security Police and the Security Service.

The document contains an extremely detailed report on the discussions which took place on that day. There is no reference at all to any visit to one camp, let alone two. There is a description of what was discussed in the morning, and there is a description of what was discussed after the official part of the proceedings was over, that is to say, matters discussed with the individual officials in charge. However, on the second page of this document there is a Point E, which reads:

"SS Obersturmbannfuehrer Eichmann requested immediate implementation of the purchase of the barracks ordered by the Senior Commander of the Security Police in The Hague. The camp is to be set up in Russia. The barracks can be sent off by each transport train transporting three to five barracks."
I have nothing further to add - this document replies to the question.


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