When Nazi Criminals Were Tried To Death

JAKARTA - After World War II ended, the Nazi elite responsible for war crimes, minority massacres and other crimes against humanity were put on trial. It was the first time in history that trials for war crimes, humanity and the threat of world peace were held.

The trial was held in Nuremberg, Germany from 1945 to 1946. And right on this day October 1, 74 years ago or in 1946, 12 Nazi officials were sentenced to death by the international war crimes tribunal in Nuremberg.

Citing History, among those sentenced to death by hanging were Joachim von Ribbentrop, the Nazi foreign minister, Hermann Goering, the founder of the Gestapo and head of the German air force, and Wilhelm Frick, the minister of the interior. In addition, seven other people received prison terms ranging from 10 years to life including Rudolf Hess, Adolf Hitler's former deputy.

The 10-month trial was represented by war-winning nations including the United States, Soviet Union, France and Britain.

On October 16, 10 Nazi elites were hanged one by one. Hermann Goering, who was dubbed the mastermind of the suppression program against Jews, committed suicide by consuming poison just the night before his execution. Nazi party leader Martin Bormann was also sentenced to death.

According to the explanation on the Encyclopedia of the Holocaust page, most of the defendants admitted to the crimes they were accused of, although most said they were only following orders from their superiors. Those directly involved in the massacre received the heaviest sentences. Meanwhile, those who were involved in the massacre of the Jews --Holocaust-- received shorter prison terms or were not punished at all.

The Nazi ruler, the most guilty of the Holocaust, was not present at the trial. Meanwhile, Adolf Hitler, who was the supreme leader of the Nazis, committed suicide in the last days of the war, as did a number of his closest aides.

There are many other criminals who have never been tried. Some of them fled Germany and lived abroad, including hundreds who entered the United States.

Trials of Nazis continued both in Germany and in many other countries. Simon Wiesenthal, a Nazi hunter, discovered the location of Adolf Eichmann in Argentina. The man who helped deport millions of Jews, was tried in Israel.

Accounts of hundreds of witnesses, many of whom were survivors throughout the world. Eichmann was later found guilty and executed in 1962.