(7) Functions and activities with respect to commission of war crimes. During the war great use was made of the peculiar qualities possessed by the SS, qualities not only of its combat force, but of its other components as well -- in executing tasks embracing the commission of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

(a) "Antipartisan" operations. A directive issued by Keitel on 13 March 1941, making preparations 3 months in advance for the attack on Russia, provided that in the area of operations the

[Page 225]

Reichsfuehrer SS was entrusted with special tasks for the preparation of the political administration -- tasks which would result from the struggle about to commence between two opposing political systems. (447-PS)

One of the steps taken by the Reichsfuehrer SS to carry out those "special tasks" was the formation and use of so-called "antipartisan" units. They were discussed by Himmler in his Posen speech:

"In the meantime I have also set up the Chief of the anti-partisan units. Our comrade SS Obergruppenfuehrer von dem Bach is Chief of the antipartisan units. I considered it necessary for the Reichsfuehrer SS to be in authoritative command in all these battles, for I am convinced that we are best in position to take action against this enemy struggle, which is decidedly a political one. Except where units which had been supplied and which we had formed for this purpose were taken from us to fill in gaps at the front, we have been very successful.

"It is notable that by setting up this department, we have gained for the SS in turn, a division, a corps, an army, and the next step -- which is the High Command of an-army or area of a group -- if you wish to call it that." (1919-PS)

What the SS did with its division, corps, and army, out of which the antipartisan units were formed, is illustrated in the "Activity and Situation Report No. 6 of the Task Forces of the Security and SD in the USSR.," covering the period from 1 October 1941 to 31 October 1941 (R-102). The report shows that so-called "antipartisan activity was actually nothing but a name for extermination of Jews and persons believed politically undesirable. The report is a carefully organized and detailed description of such extermination. Section I describes the stations of the various Task Forces involved, and section II their activities. The latter section is divided into parts, each dealing with a different geographical region -- the Baltic area, White Ruthenia, and the Ukraine. Under each area the report of activities is classified under three-headings: (a) Partisan activity and counteraction; (b) arrests and executions of communists and officials; and (c) Jews. The following units were involved (R-102):

"The present stations are:

"Task Force A: since 7 October 1941 Krasnowardeisk.
"Task Force B: continues in Smolensk.
"Task Force C: since 27 September 1941 in Kiew.
"Task Force D: since 27 September 1941 in Nikolajew.

The Action and Special Commandos (Einsatz und Sonder

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Commandos) which are attached to the Task Force continue on the march with the advancing troops into the sectors which have been assigned to them." (R-102)

The section headed "Baltic area" and subsection labeled "Jews" read as follows (R-102):

"Spontaneous demonstrations against Jewry followed by pogroms on the part of the population against the remaining Jews have not been recorded on account of the lack of adequate indoctrination.

"However, the Estonian Protective Corps (Selbtschutz), formed at the time of the entry of the wehrmacht, immediately started a comprehensive arrest action of all Jews. This action was under the direction of the task force of the Security Police and the SD."

"The male Jews over 16 were executed with the exception of doctors and the elders. At the present time this action is still in progress. After completion of this action there will remain only 500 Jewesses and children in the Eastern Territory." (R-102)

In the section headed "White Ruthenia," the subsection labeled "Partisan activity and counteraction," the following appear:

"In Wultschina 8 juveniles were arrested as partisans and shot. They were inmates of a children's home. They had collected weapons which they hid in the woods. Upon search the following were found: 3 heavy machine guns, 15 rifles, several thousand rounds of ammunition, several hand grenades, and several packages of poison gas Ebrit.

"b. Arrests and executions of communists, officials, and criminals.

"A further large part of the activity of the Security Police was devoted to the combatting of Communists and criminals. A special Commando in the period covered by this report executed 63 officials, NKVD agents and agitators." (R-102)

The preceding subsection ends with the following statement:

"The liquidations for the period covered by this report have reached a total of 37,180 persons." (R-102)

And under the section headed "Ukraine," the subsection "Jews," this statement occurs:

"In Shitomir 3,145 Jews had to be shot, because from experience they have to be regarded as bearers of Bolshevik propaganda and saboteurs." (R-102)

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The foregoing report deals with the activities of four Task Forces -- A, B, C, and D. The more detailed report of Task Force A up to 16 October 1941 shows great variety of SS components in a task force:

"This description of the over-all situation showed and shows that the members of the Stapo [The Secret State Police], Kripo and SD [Security Service] who are attached to the Action Group, are active mainly in Lithuania, Latvia, Esthonia, Ruthenia and to a smaller part in front of Leningrad. It show further that the forces of the uniformed police and the Armed SS are active mainly in front of Leningrad, in order to take measures against the returning population and under their own officers. This is so much easier because the Action detachments in Lithuania, Latvia and Esthonia have at their disposal native police units, as described in encl. 1, and because so far 150 Latvian reinforcements have been sent to White-Ruthenia.

"The distribution of the leaders of Security Police and SD during the individual phases can be gathered from encl. 2, the advance and the activities of the Action- Group and the Action-detachments from encl. 3. It should be mentioned that the leaders of the Armed-SS and of the uniformed police who are reserves have declared their wish to stay on with the Security Police and the SD." (L-180)

Inclosure la to this report shows the constitution of the Force:
                                                            

"Total Strength of Action Group A:                         Percent
"Total:                                           990
Waffen-SS                                         340       34.4
Motor Bicycle-Riders                              172       17.4
Administration                                     18        1.8
Security Service [SD]                              35        3.5
Criminal Police [Kripo]                            41        4.1
State Police [Gestapo]                             89        9
Auxiliary Police                                   87        8.8
Order Police                                      133       13.4
Female Employees                                   13        1.3
Interpreters                                       51        5.1
Teleprinter-Operators                               3        0.3
Wireless-Operators                                  8        0.8" (L-180)

Another report on the antipartisan activity, from the General Commissar for White Ruthenia to the Reich Minister for Occupied Eastern Territories 5 June 1943, deals with the results of the police operation "Cottbus":

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"*** SS Brigadefuehrer, Major General of Police von Gottberg, reports that the operation 'Cottbus' had the following result during the period mentioned:

 
     Enemy dead                                        4,500
     Dead suspected of belonging to bands              5,000
     German dead                                          59"

*******

"The figures mentioned above indicate that again a heavy destruction of the population must be expected. If only 492 rifles are taken from 4,500 enemy dead, this discrepancy shows that among these enemy dead were numerous peasants from the country. The battalion Dirlewanger especially has a reputation for destroying many human lives. Among the 5,000 people suspected of belonging to bands, there were numerous women and children.

"By order of the Chief of Band-Combatting, SS Obergruppenfuehrer von dem Bach, units of the armed forces have also participated in the operation ***" (R-135)

SS Obergruppenfuehrer vom dem Bach was referred to by Himmler as "our comrade" when he placed him in charge of antipartisan activity.

(b) Execution of civilians. The activities so far dealt with were joint activities in which the Gestapo, Order Police, the SD, Waffen SS, and SS Police Regiments were all involved. But these units were, of course, also used individually to carry out tasks of such a nature- tasks for which any component of the SS was well trained. A letter from the Chief of the Command Office of the Waffen SS to the Reichsfuehrer SS, 14 October 1941, contains an intermediate report on civilian state of emergency:

"*** I deliver the following report regarding the commitment of the Waffen SS in the Protectorate Bohemia and Moravia during the civilian state of emergency:

"In the mutual changes, all Battalions of the Waffen SS in the Protectorate Bohemia and Moravia will be brought forth for shootings, and relatively for the supervision at hangings. "Up until now there occurred:

 
     "in Prague:                             99 shootings
                                             21 hangings
     "in Bruenn:                             54 shootings
                                             17 hangings
     "Total:                                191 executions (including 16 Jews)

"A complete report regarding other measures and on the conduct of the officers, noncoms and men will be made following the termination of the civilian state of emergency." (1972-PS)

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