Content area
Full Text
Nazis on the Run Nazis auf der Flucht. Wie Kriegsverbrecher über Italien nach Übersee entkamen (Nazis on the Run: How War Criminals Escaped Overseas via Italy), by Gerald Steinacher, Stuthen Verlag, 2008, 380 pp. [German]
Reviewed by Wolfgang G Schwanitz
Gerald Steinacher, a historian from the West Austrian town of Innsbruck, is known for his solid research on the federal state of Tyrol under the Third Reich. His new book reconstructs how Nazis fled from Europe via Italy to South America after the end of World War II. The author also claims that his research proves that stories about a secret organization of former SS members are nothing more than a myth. According to this thesis, ODESSA, the Organisation Der Ehemaligen SS Angehörigen (Organization of Former SS Members), did not exist. Before dealing with this finding in the context of the Middle East, an overview of the book is in order.
Steinacher first discusses the southern escape route via Rome to Genoa and other Italian towns. He then explores the mechanism of obtaining a new identity through Red Cross papers, and details how Vatican circles provided assistance. The reader learns all about the "Rat Run" from Germany through Italy and finally to the safe haven of Argentina. Italy, Steinacher notes, was Europe's backyard. But it was also, like Spain and Portugal, the Middle East's front yard.
Three major organizations helped the Nazis escape from Europe. The Catholic Church believed this effort would contribute to the "reChristianization" of Europe and feared the threat to Europe of paganism and communism. In the pursuit of its political and spiritual interests, it was quick to forgive Nazi war criminals. The CIA, in the context of the Cold War, was eager to do business and assist former Nazis, such as Klaus Barbie. In addition, the International Red Cross demonstrated great sympathy for war criminals and issued some twenty -five thousand identity documents. Steinacher deals with all this, but some earlier organizations for helping Nazi fugitives are missing such as Edelweiss, Spinne, and Sechsgestirn.
Steinacher also defines three Nazi groups: those who (a) committed suicide at the war's end or later, (b) were indicted or punished, or (c) fled overseas, mostly to Argentina. The real numbers are not available. The author...