20 Nov. 45

During the whole period of the occupation by Germany of both the Western and the Eastern Countries, it was the policy of the German Government and of the German High Command to deport able-bodied citizens from such occupied countries to Germany and to other occupied countries to force them to work on fortifications in factories, and in other tasks connected with the German war effort.

In pursuance of such policy there were mass deportations from all the Western and Eastern Countries for such purposes during the whole period of the occupation.

These deportations were contrary to the international conventions,, in particular to Article 46 of the Hague Regulations, 1007, the laws and customs of war, the general principles of criminal law as derived from the criminal laws of all civilized nations, the internal penal laws of the countries in which such crimes were committed, and to Article B (b) of the Charter.

Particulars of deportations, by way of example only and without prejudice to the production of evidence of other cases, are as follows:

1. From the Western Countries:

From France the following "deportations" of persons for political and racial reasons took place each of which consisted of from 1,500 to 2,500 deportees:

1940, 3 transports; 1941, 14 transports; 1942, 104 transports; 1943, 257 transports; 1944, 326 transports.

These deportees were subjected to the most barbarous conditions of overcrowding; they were provided with wholly insufficient clothing and were given little or no food for several days.

The conditions of transport were such that many deportees died in the course of the voyage, for example:

In one of the wagons of the train which left Compiegne for Buchenwald, on the 17th of September 1943, 80 men died out of 130.

On 4 June 1944, 484 bodies were taken out of a train at Sarrebourg.

In a train which left Compiègne on 2 July 1944 for Dachau more than 600 dead were found on arrival, i.e. one-third of the total number.

In a train which left Compiègne on 16th of January 1944 for Buchenwald, more than 100 persons were confined in each wagon, the dead and the wounded being heaped in the last wagon during the voyage.

In April 1945, of 12,000 internees evacuated from Buchenwald 4,000 only were still alive when the marching column arrived near Regensburg.