7 Jan. 46
members of the German Armed Forces, where, for example,
prisoners of war were handed over to and mistreated by the SS or SD, we
will show that in those cases members of this group were well aware that
they were assisting in the commission of War Crimes. We will show that
many crimes committed by the SS and SD were committed with the knowledge
and necessary support of the General Staff and High Command group.
The first matter which I will take up relates to the killing, in
violation of international law and the rules of war, of Allied
commandos, paratroopers, and members of military missions, and the first
document to which I wish to refer is 498-PS, which will be Exhibit
USA-501.
This story starts with the order embodied in that document, which is an
order issued by Hitler on 18 October 1942, and which Mr. Storey has
already mentioned in the presentation of charges against the
Sicherheitsdienst. The order begins with a recital that Allied commandos
were using methods of warfare alleged to be outside the scope of the
Geneva Convention, and thereafter proceeds to specify the methods of
warfare which German troops should use against Allied commandos, and the
disposition which should be made of captured commandos.
This order is one of the two basic documents in the story. I will read
it in full:
"1. For some time our enemies have
been using in their warfare methods which are outside the
international Geneva Conventions. Especially brutal and treacherous is
the behavior of the so-called commandos, who, as is established, are
partially recruited even from freed criminals in enemy countries. From
captured orders it is divulged that they are directed not only to
shackle prisoners, but also to kill defenseless prisoners on the spot
at the moment in which they believe that the latter, as prisoners,
represent a burden in the further pursuit of their purpose or could
otherwise be a hindrance. Finally, orders have been found in which the
killing of prisoners has been demanded in principle.
"2. For this reason it was already announced, in an addendum to
the Armed Forces communiqué of 7 October 1942, that in the
future, Germany, in the face of the sabotage troops of the British and
their accomplices, will resort to the same procedure, that is, that
they will be ruthlessly mowed down by the German troops in combat,
wherever they may appear.
"3. I therefore order:
"From now on all enemies on so-called commando missions in
Europe or Africa, challenged by German troops, even if they are to all
appearances soldiers in uniform or demolition troops,