Two former German policemen who were eyewitnesses to the operations of a special SS wartime unit in Mogilew in occupied Russia testified today that Adolf Harnischmacher, a former high ranking SS officer, personally participating in mass killings of Jews.
Georg Koberowski, one of the former policemen, testified that Harnischmacher not only took part in the mass shootings but also instigated them. The witness told the court that the former SS officer “gave orders to the firing squad and also used a machine-gun himself.” He testified also that “at each execution of 200 to 300 Jews, Harnischmacher were a coat to protect his uniform from the blood of his victims. He used to carry a whip at all times, with which he beat the Jews before they were shot.”
Karl Kaettner of Berlin, the other former policeman, gave corroborating evidence. The two witnesses had been ordered in 1942 to assist Harnischmacher’s Unit 8 in Mogilew.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
