US soldiers in Nazi slave camp

A photo from 1945, recently given to the US Holocaust Memorial Museum:

The photograph is a jarring image that shows Nazi Party members, shovels in hand, digging up graves of American soldiers held as slaves by Nazi Germany during World War II.

While the men dig up the site, U.S. soldiers investigating war crimes stand over them. Two crosses with helmets placed atop them -- the sign of a fallen soldier -- are visible. Two Germans are knee deep in mud. Another, with a handlebar mustache, has the look of a defeated man. The bodies of 22 American soldiers were found in at least seven graves, according to the photographer.

On the back of the photo is written, "Nazi Party members digging up American bodies at Berga."

Two of the Berga commanders were tried and sentenced to death, but had their sentences commuted in 1948 and were released in the 1950s. A third the Soviets got; he, of course, was promptly tried and hanged. Full article here.

Posted by David on April 23, 2009 2:52 PM