Now I come to Document Number RF-1222, of which I shall also read only the title, “Conference with the Specialists for Jewish Questions of the Security Police, Command of the Section IV-J on 30 June 1942. Deportation to Auschwitz of Jews from the Occupied Territories.”
In this memorandum Dannecker again alludes to the conference which took place at the RSHA, according to which 50,000 Jews were to be transferred. There follows a list of trains, the stations in which they were to be assembled, and a request for reports.
I now submit Document Number RF-1223. It is a memorandum, dated 1 July 1942, summing up a conference between Dannecker and Eichmann, who, as we already know, was in Berlin but had to come to Paris on that occasion. “Subject: Departmental Conference with SS Hauptsturmführer Dannecker, Paris, Concerning the Impending Evacuation from France.” It still deals with the preparation of the great operation envisaged.
I now submit Document Number RF-1224, of which I read only the title and the date, “4 July 1942: Directives for a Major Round-up of Jews in Paris.”
I now offer in evidence Document Number RF-1225, which is a Dannecker memorandum dated 6 July 1942. Subject: “Deportation of Jews from France.” It concerns a conference held with representatives of French authorities. We see in the document the expression “Judenmaterial,” which was translated in a roundabout way by the words “Jewish livestock.”
I now submit Document Number RF-1226. I should like to read, if the Tribunal please, the first paragraph of this document which is very revealing both in regard to the collaboration with the transport services and the horrifying mentality of the Nazi authorities. The memorandum is the sequel to a telephone conversation between the signatory Röthke and the SS Obersturmführer Eichmann at Berlin:
“The SS Obersturmführer Eichmann in Berlin telephoned on 14 July 1942 about 1900 hours. He wished to know why the train provided for the transport of 15 July 1942 had been cancelled. I replied that originally the star bearers in the provinces were to be arrested too but that by virtue of a new agreement with the French Government only stateless Jews were to be arrested to begin with.
“The train due to leave on 15 July 1942 had to be cancelled because, according to information received by the SD Kommando at Bordeaux, there were only 150 stateless Jews in Bordeaux. There was no time to find enough other Jews to fill this train. SS Obersturmführer Eichmann replied that it was a question of prestige. They had to conduct lengthy negotiations about these trains with the Reichsminister of Transportation, which turned out successfully; and now Paris cancels a train. Such a thing had never happened to him before. The matter was highly shameful. He did not wish to report it to SS Gruppenführer Müller right now, for the blame would fall on his own shoulders. He was reflecting whether he would not do without France as an evacuation country altogether.”
I now submit Document Number RF-1227, which gives statistics indicating that up to the 2d of September 1942 27,069 Jews were evacuated and that by the end of October a total figure of 52,069 might be reached. They are anxious to accelerate the pace and to attack also the Jews in the unoccupied zone of France.
I now submit Document Number RF-1228. It is also an account of a conference where there were invited representatives of the French authorities. I should like to read only the last paragraph of this document:
“On the occasion of the meeting which took place on 28 August 1942 in Berlin, it was stated that most of the European countries are much nearer to a final solution of the Jewish problem than France. In fact, these countries began much earlier. We then must catch up with them in many matters between now and 31 October 1942.”
I now submit Document Number RF-1229 without reading it. It is a memorandum by Dr. Knochen on this same subject of deportation dated 31 December 1942.
I now submit Document Number RF-1230, which is a memorandum dated 6 March 1943, headed, “Ref: Present Situation of the Jewish Question in France.” In the first part of this document, the deportations are stated to have reached a total of 49,000 Jews as on 6 March 1943. This is followed by a statement of the nationalities, which are extremely varied, of a certain number of Jews who were deported in addition to the French Jews. Paragraph 3 of this memorandum is headed, “Attitude of the Italians with Regard to the Jewish Question.” I shall read only the first and the last lines of this long paragraph:
“The attitude adopted up to now in the French territory occupied by Italy must be changed by all means if the Jewish problem is to be solved. A few conspicuous cases. . . .”
I break off the quotation here. These conspicuous cases were cases in which the Italians opposed the arrest of Jews in the zone occupied by them.
I now read the last paragraph:
“A.A. has been informed by the RSHA (Eichmann) about proceedings of the Italians.”—A.A. appears to be the initials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and this is confirmed by the following sentence. I continue the quotation—“The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ribbentrop, meant to discuss, in negotiations with the Duce, the attitude adopted by the Italians with regard to the Jewish question. We do not yet know the results of these discussions.”
I shall not submit Documents RF-1231 and RF-1232. I pass then to the last documents which I want to present to the Tribunal. These documents relate more specifically to the deportation of children.
I submit Document Number RF-1233, which is a memorandum by Dannecker dated 21 July 1942. I shall read Paragraph 2:
“The question of deporting children has been examined with SS Obersturmbannführer Eichmann. He decided that as soon as deportations to the Government General could be resumed, convoys of children could be sent by rail. SS Obersturmführer Nowak promised to arrange about six convoys to the Government General at the end of August or the beginning of September, which may comprise all sorts of Jews (also disabled and old Jews).”
Now I offer in evidence Document Number RF-1234. It is a memorandum dated 13 August 1942. Before pointing out the interest of this document I remind the Tribunal that I have already submitted Document Number RF-1219 and in that document there was a formula which I recall, namely, “The possibility is left open of sending at a later date for children under 16 who were left behind.” The Nazis wished to give the impression that they deported entire families at the same time or at least that they did not deport whole trainloads of children. To give this impression, they invented a device which is wholly incredible unless you actually see it in black and white: the mingling of children and adults in definite proportions. I read Paragraph 4 of this Document Number RF-1234:
“The Jews arriving from the unoccupied zone will be mingled at Drancy with Jewish children now at Pithiviers and Beaune-la-Rolande, so that out of a total of 700 at least 500 Jewish adults 300 to 500 Jewish children will be allotted. According to instructions of the Reich Security Main Office, no trains containing Jewish children only are to leave.”
I read the next sentence too:
“Leguay has been told that 13 trainloads of Jews would also leave Drancy in September and that Jewish children from the unoccupied zone could be handed over.”
I now submit the last document of the series dealing with the Jewish question, Document Number RF-1235. I am going to read it, as it is very short.
“6 April 1944, Lyons, 2010 hours. Subject: Home for Jewish Children at Izieu, Ain.
“The home for Jewish children, ‘Child Colony,’ at Izieu (Ain) was raided this morning and a total of 41 children aged from 3 to 13 were apprehended. Moreover, the arrest of the entire Jewish personnel, numbering 10 in all and including 5 women was successfully carried out. Money or other property could not be seized. The convoy for Drancy will leave on 7 April 1944.”
This document also bears a memorandum written by hand and couched in the following terms:
“Matter discussed in the presence of Dr. V. B. and Hauptsturmführer Brunner. Dr. V. B. stated that