Erich Priebke on his early SS career

Erich Priebke during the trial

Erich Priebke (born July 29, 1913 at Hennigsdorf, Brandenburg, Germany) is a Nazi war criminal. A former Hauptsturmführer in the S.S., he participated in the massacre at the Ardeatine caves in Rome, on March 24, 1944. 335 Italian civilians were killed there as revenge after a partisan group had killed 33 German soldiers and an unknown number of civilians. Priebke was one of those who stood responsible for this mass execution. After the Nazis were defeated, he got help from ODESSA to flee to Argentina where he lived for over 50 years. Erich Priebke, from WWII This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... Erich Priebke, from WWII This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... Erich Priebke This work is copyrighted. ... Erich Priebke This work is copyrighted. ... is the 210th day of the year (211th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1913 (MCMXIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Tuesday of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... Hennigsdorf is a town north west of Berlin, Germany. ...   (Lower Sorbian: Bramborska; Upper Sorbian: Braniborska) is one of Germanys sixteen Bundesländer (federal states). ... National Socialism redirects here. ... A war crime is a punishable offense, under international (criminal) law, for violations of the law of war by any person or persons, military or civilian. ... Hauptsturmführer was a Nazi rank of the SS which was used between the years of 1934 and 1945. ... The   (German for Protective Squadron), abbreviated (Runic) or SS (Latin), was a large security and military organization of the National Socialist German Workers Party (Nazi Party) in Germany. ... The massacre of Fosse Ardeatine took place in Italy during World War II. On 23 March 1944, 33 German soldiers were killed when members of the Italian Resistance set off a bomb close to a column of German soldiers who were marching on via Rasella. ... Nickname: Motto: SPQR: Senatus Populusque Romanus Location of the city of Rome (yellow) within the Province of Rome (red) and region of Lazio (grey) Coordinates: Region Lazio Province Province of Rome Founded 21 April 753 BC Government  - Mayor Walter Veltroni Area  - City 1,285 km²  (580 sq mi)  - Urban 5... is the 83rd day of the year (84th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1944 (MCMXLIV) was a leap year starting on Saturday. ... ODESSA (German: Organisation der ehemaligen SS-Angehörigen, Organization of Former SS Members) is the name commonly given to an international Nazi network alleged to have been set up towards the end of World War II by a group of SS officers. ...

In 1994, 50 years after the massacre, Priebke felt it was safe to talk about the incident and was interviewed by an ABC News reporter. This caused great outrage among people who had far from forgotten the incident, and this was the start of a trial which would last more than four years. Year 1994 (MCMXCIV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display full 1994 Gregorian calendar). ... The American Broadcasting Company (ABC) operates television and radio networks in the United States and is also shown on basic cable in Canada. ... A Female Reporter A reporter is a type of journalist who researches and presents information in certain types of mass media. ...

History

The massacre of Fosse Ardeatine took place in Italy during World War II. On 23 March 1944, 33 German soldiers were killed when members of the Italian Resistance set off a bomb close to a column of German soldiers who were marching on via Rasella. This attack was led by the Partito d'Azione. Action Party (1942-1947) // Italian political party of the anti-fascist opposition, in the tradition of Mazzini and the Risorgimento. ...

Adolf Hitler is reported but never confirmed to have ordered that within 24 hours, ten condemned Italians were to be shot for each dead German. Commander Herbert Kappler in Rome quickly compiled a list of 320 prisoners -- all of them already facing death sentences for partisan activities -- whose executions were to be hurried. Kappler voluntarily added ten more names to the list when the 33rd German died after the Partisan attack. The total number of people executed at the Fosse Ardeatine was 335, most Italians. The largest cohesive group among the murdered were the members of Bandiera Rossa (Red Flag), a non-mainstream Communist (Trotskyist) military Resistance group. Hitler redirects here. ... Herbert Kappler (23 September 1907 - 9 February 1978) was an SS-Obersturmbannführer of Nazi Germany. ... The Bandiera Rossa Association (Associazione Bandiera Rossa) is an association of members of the Communist Refoundation Party (PRC) in Italy. ...

On the 24 March, led by SS officers Erich Priebke and Karl Hass, the victims were transported to the Ardeatine caves in groups of five. They were led into the caves with their hands tied behind their back and then shot in the neck. Many were forced to kneel down over the bodies of those who had been killed before them. During the killings, it was found that by a mistake five more people than were supposed to have been taken to the caves had been brought there, but they were killed -- some say in order to prevent news of the retaliation from spreading, though that seems irrational, since the retaliation could only have an impact if it were known as a retaliation. Karl Hass, born October 5, 1912, in Kiel, Germany – died April 21, 2004, in Geneva, Switzerland, was a Nazi war criminal and mass murderer. ...

Popular perceptions of the Fosse Ardeatine are numerous. The foremost among these is the notion that the Partisans who attacked in via Rasella should have turned themselves in; this stems from a popularly-held notion that the Nazis gave warning to the Roman public that a retaliation was imminent. The concept of "ten Italians for one German" is also frequently applied to this argument, as if the Partisans could or should have realized that their attack would cost 330 Italians their lives. There were arguments among the Nazi leadership in Rome and between Hitler and his command over whether 50, 30, or 10 Italians should be killed for every German. Anyway, 5 more people than implied by the "ten to one" rule have been killed in the Fosse Ardeatine massacre, and indeed Priebke's trial was strongly focused on these 5 extra killings because that rules out any possible justification for Priebke's behaviour on the basis of alleged "obedience to official orders".

Although it would be expected - and indeed it is frequently claimed - that the victims of the Fosse Ardeatine were predominantly Jewish, this is not so; 75 of the 335 victims were Jewish. Even if this was among the criteria for the massacre, the first goal was to fill the number quota; many of the prisoners at via Tasso and Regina Coeli who happened to be available at the time were sent to their deaths by the Nazis at the Fosse Ardeatine. Some of these prisoners had simply been residents of via Rasella who were home at the time of the bombing; others had been arrested and tortured for Resistance- and anti-fascist-related activities. Not all of the Partisans who were killed were members of the same Resistance group. Members of the GAP, the PA, and Bandiera Rossa, in addition to the Clandestine Military Front were all on the list of those to be executed. Furthermore, the scale and even the occurrence at all of this retaliation was unprecedented. Since Nazi occupation of Rome in 1943, anti-Fascists and members of the Resistance had been practicing guerilla warfare against their occupiers and oppressors.

The cultural and political fallout from the Fosse Ardeatine, and more generally from the Fascist movement after WWII, continues today. Alessandro Portelli's The Order Has Been Carried Out is an important work on the action in via Rasella and the Fosse Ardeatine.

In the spotlight

In 1994, reporter Sam Donaldson filmed a report about Priebke for the ABC Television newsmagazine Primetime Live. Priebke spoke openly about his role in the massacre. He also justified his actions by saying that he only followed orders from the Gestapo chief of Rome, Obersturmbannführer (equivalent to Lieutenant Colonel) Herbert Kappler. When testifying after the war, Kappler explained that Priebke had been ordered to make sure that all the victims were brought to the caves and executed and to check the list of people which were to be killed. Samuel Andrew Donaldson (born March 11, 1934 in El Paso, Texas) was a news anchor for ABC News, known for his persistence in questioning senior government officials up to and including the President of the United States. ... The American Broadcasting Company (ABC) operates television and radio networks in the United States and is also shown on basic cable in Canada. ... Primetimes logo Primetime is a general-interest American news magazine show which debuted on ABC in 1989 with co-hosts Sam Donaldson and Diane Sawyer and originally had the title Primetime Live. ... This article or section includes a list of works cited or a list of external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. ... Herbert Kappler (23 September 1907 - 9 February 1978) was an SS-Obersturmbannführer of Nazi Germany. ...

A free man

In post-WWII trials, Priebke was also set to be tried for his role in the massacre, but he managed to escape from a British prison camp in northeastern Italy in 1946. Two years later he resurfaced in Argentina where he lived as a free man for 50 years. Year 1946 (MCMXLVI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full 1946 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Priebke told Donaldson that the victims - from 14 year old boys to 75 year old men - were nothing but terrorists. He admitted that it was he who compiled the lists of those who were going to be executed. In addition to the massacre, Priebke is thought to have participated in the deportation of 6,000-7,000 Jews from Italy to Auschwitz concentration camp, and to have tortured political prisoners. Auschwitz, in English, commonly refers to the Auschwitz concentration camp complex built near the town of Oświęcim, by Nazi Germany during World War II. Rarely, it may refer to the Polish town of Oświęcim (called by the Germans Auschwitz) itself. ... It has been suggested that Internment be merged into this article or section. ... Torture is defined by the United Nations Convention Against Torture as any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, is intentionally inflicted on a person for such purposes as obtaining from him or a third person information or a confession, punishing him for an act he...

The trials

The extradition of Priebke

Donaldson's news report showed how openly Priebke could live in Argentina, and how little remorse he felt for his actions. This caused strong reactions by many people. Argentinean authorities arrested Priebke. Because of his old age and poor health, he was at first not imprisoned, but rather held in house arrest at his home in Bariloche, the ski resort where he had lived since 1949. In justice and law, house arrest is the situation where a person is confined (by the authorities) to his or her residence. ... View of the Nahuel Huapi Lake, Bariloche San Carlos de Bariloche in Argentina is situated on the foothills of the Andes, surrounded by lakes (Nahuel Huapi, Gutiérrez, Moreno and Mascardi) and mountains (Tronador, Catedral, López). ...

The extradition of Priebke had several delays - his lawyers used tactics like demanding all Italian documents be translated to Spanish, a process which could have taken two years. The Argentinean court eventually denied the process, but appeals and other delays caused the case to take more than a year. His lawyers made arguments that the case was expired since murder cases expire after 15 years. Extradition is the official process by which one nation or state requests and obtains from another nation or state the surrender of a suspected or convicted criminal. ... In law, an appeal is a process for making a formal challenge to an official decision. ...

In March 1995, after nine months of delays, the president of the Jewish organization B'nai B'rith was promised, by among others the Argentinean president Carlos Menem, that the case would soon be closed, and that Priebke was to be transferred to Italy by the end of the month. In spite of these promises, the Argentinian supreme court decided that the case was to be transferred to the local court in Bariloche where the case was originally brought up. This opened the possibility for years of delays from future appeals, while Priebke could live at his home. Year 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full 1995 Gregorian calendar). ... Bnai Brith Membership Certificate, 1876. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ...

In May 1995, a federal judge accepted the Italian demand for extradition on the grounds that cases of crimes against humanity could not expire. But there were more appeals and rumors that the court might change the ruling. Year 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full 1995 Gregorian calendar). ... This article is in need of attention. ...

In August of the same year, it was judged that Priebke was not to be extradited because the case had expired. To put pressure on the Argentinean government, Germany demanded extradition the same day. The Italian military prosecutor, Antonio Intelisano, argued that FN agreements which Argentina were part of, express that cases of war criminals and crimes against humanity can not expire. In the context of war, a war crime is a punishable offense under International Law, for violations of the laws of war by any person or persons, military or civilian. ...

After seventeen months of delays, the Argentinean supreme court decided that Priebke was to be extradited to Italy. He was put on a direct flight from Bariloche to Ciampino, a military airport close to the Ardeatine caves, where the executions had been carried out many years earlier. Ciampino is a town in the province of Rome, Lazio, Italy. ...

Priebke in court

In court, Priebke declared himself not guilty. He did not deny what he had done, but he denied any responsibility. He blamed the massacre on the Italian terrorists who were behind the attack in which 33 young German soldiers were killed. The order came directly from Hitler, and he thought it was a legitimate punishment. Almanac · Categories · Glossaries · Lists · Overviews · Portals · Questions · Site news · Index Art | Culture | Geography | Health | History | Mathematics | People | Philosophy | Science | Society | Technology Wikipedia is an encyclopedia written by its users in over 200 languages worldwide. ...

During the trial it became clear that Priebke had personally shot two Italians. This was also in his testimony from 1946 before he managed to escape.

Around noon on March 24, 1944, between 80 and 90 men went to the Ardeatine Caves, Rome. All were tied with their hands behind their backs and their names were read out loud. Five and five went into the caves. Priebke went inside together with the second or third group and shot a man with an Italian machine pistol. Towards the end he shot another man with the same machine pistol. The executions ended when it got dark that night. After the shootings, explosives were used to shut the caves. is the 83rd day of the year (84th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1944 (MCMXLIV) was a leap year starting on Saturday. ...

Priebke was ruled not guilty, because the case was judged to be expired. In criminal law, an acquittal is the legal result of a verdict of not guilty, or some similar end of the proceeding that terminates it with prejudice without a verdict of guilty being entered against the accused. ...

On August 1, 1996 orders were given for the immediate release of Priebke. The Italian minister of justice later told that Priebke might be arrested again, depending on whether or not he was going to be extradited to Germany, where he was charged with murder. The courts were blocked by demonstrators for over seven hours after Priebke's trial. is the 213th day of the year (214th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1996 (MCMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display full 1996 Gregorian calendar). ... For other uses, see Demonstration. ...

The judges voted two against and one for sentencing the 83 year old Priebke for taking part of the massacres, which he himself had admitted, but he was released because he was following orders.

There were strong reactions from family members of the victims, who claimed that the judges put no value on human lives. Shimon Samuels, the leader of the Simon Wiesenthal Center said that with this ruling, Italy was permitting crimes against humanity. The Simon Wiesenthal Center The Simon Wiesenthal Center is an international Jewish organization that declares itself to be a human rights group dedicated to preserving the memory of the Holocaust by fostering tolerance and understanding through community involvement, educational outreach and social action. ...

The appeal

The case was appealed by the prosecutors. The day after, Germany asked Italy to keep Priebke imprisoned until their demand to have him extradited was processed, as they wanted him put on trial for the murders of two people that he had personally shot.

Outside the courthouse there were demonstrations, but when it became known that Priebke had been rearrested, these calmed down. Many people later went to visit the Ardeatine Caves to honor the victims.

The Italian supreme court decided that the court that had freed Priebke was incompetent and the appeal went through. Among other things it was questioned why the Nuremberg trials were not taken up earlier, since it had been concluded that an individual has personal responsibility for his actions. The reason that Priebke had been released was that he followed orders. He claimed that if he had not obeyed, he would have been executed himself, but the appeals would not accept this. The Süddeutsche Zeitung announces The Verdict in Nuremberg. ...

In March 1997 it was decided that Priebke could not be extradited to Germany. The reason for this was that he was now going through a trial which was for the same things that Germany wanted him tried for. He was not to be tried for the same crime twice. Year 1997 (MCMXCVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1997 Gregorian calendar). ... For other uses, see Double jeopardy (disambiguation). ...

On April 14, 1997 the new trial began. Priebke was sentenced to fifteen years in prison, while another man who also was part of the massacre, Karl Hass, was sentenced to ten years. Because of an amnesty which was given a few years earlier, Priebke had to do five years, while Hass was released. Additionally Priebke got some time subtracted because of the time he had spent in house arrest and in custody in Italy. The sentence thus was to be 2-3 years. April 14 is the 104th day of the year (105th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 261 days remaining. ... Year 1997 (MCMXCVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1997 Gregorian calendar). ... Karl Hass, born October 5, 1912, in Kiel, Germany – died April 21, 2004, in Geneva, Switzerland, was a Nazi war criminal and mass murderer. ... Look up Amnesty in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

Priebke's appeals

Priebke denied any responsibility, and therefore appealed the case. At the appeals it was decided that Hass and Priebke had committed cruel murders of the first degree and that they should be put away for life. ^[1]

Priebke himself claimed that he was the victim of intense hatred, and that he was blamed for all atrocities done during WWII. "I gave Argentina 50 years of my life, and they don't want me. (...) I fought for Germany during the war, now they want me put to trial for obeying orders."

Priebke appealed the case to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, where he claimed he had no choice but to obey Hitler's orders, a defense which has been ruled invalid ever since the Nuremberg Trials. Moreover, it's been underlined by many that in the massacre of the Fosse Ardeatine 335 died, 5 more than required by the order "10 Italians executed for each German killed". These 5 extra victims are a responsibility of Erich Priebke alone, since he was given the duty of checking the list. European Court of Human Rights building in Strasbourg The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), often referred to informally as the Strasbourg Court, was created to systematise the hearing of human rights complaints against States Parties to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, adopted by... City flag City coat of arms Location Coordinates Time Zone CET (GMT +1) Administration Country Region Alsace Department Bas-Rhin (67) Intercommunality Urban Community of Strasbourg Mayor Fabienne Keller  (UMP) City Statistics Land area¹ 78. ... The Süddeutsche Zeitung announces The Verdict in Nuremberg. ...

On March 20, 2004, Priebke was 91 years old, the oldest prisoner in Europe. 80 Nazi and fascist sympathizers gathered in a room of the Centro Lettarario in Trieste to show their support for the man. He is currently under house arrest because of his old age, and on June 12, 2007 he received authorization to leave his home for working reasons, being now expected to work at his lawyer's office in Rome.^[2] This led to angry protests from Jewish groups and the judge decision was overturned.^[3] is the 79th day of the year (80th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Fascism (in Italian, fascismo), capitalized, was the authoritarian political movement which ruled Italy from 1922 to 1943 under the leadership of Benito Mussolini. ... Trieste (Italian: Trieste; Slovenian, Croatian and Serbian: Trst; German: Triest) is a city and port in northeastern Italy right on the border with Slovenia. ... In justice and law, house arrest is the situation where a person is confined (by the authorities) to his or her residence. ...

Trivia

• In 2007 two stamps printed by the Post of Finland, sent by Erich Priebke to his son, caused some quarrel in Argentina. In Finland it is possible to buy stamps with your own picture on it, and according to the post officials, nobody knew that the man in the image was a Nazi war criminal. ^[4]

• In June 2007, Erich Priebke had his work permit revoked by an Italian magistrate after a day of protests. The magistrate cited that Priebke had failed to adequately communicate his movements. He was supposed to be working in his lawyer's offices as a clerk and a translator, given his knowledge of German, Spanish, English and French languages. The issue of a work permit to the former Nazi SS captain sparked outrage, particularly in the Italian Jewish community.^[5]

Posti, or, in full, Suomen Posti Oyj (Finnish for The Finnish Post), is the Finnish state-owned postal service. ...

See also

• Ex-Nazis and List of living Nazis

Ex-Nazis are those who were once Nazis and resigned from the party. ... This is a list of Second world war era Nazis that are still alive and presumed/considered war criminals. ...

References

Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... January 15 is the 15th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... is the 163rd day of the year (164th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... is the 163rd day of the year (164th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... is the 170th day of the year (171st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... February 17 is the 48th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... is the 170th day of the year (171st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

External links

• Interview with Erich Priebke by Antonella Ricciardi, 3rd July, 2004
• Remembering evil - Reason.com
• The Massacre at the Ardeatine Caves, 24 March 1944
• Erich Priebke 2005-2007 in a Finnish stamp, 12th December 2005