Page 38 of The Righteous
WHILE JULIA AND Theresa were making their arrangements, Carl Lutz was flying back to Budapest from Bern, where he had traveled to discuss Hungary’s current state with Swiss officials.
The disappearance of Horthy, the appearance of Eichmann, and the arrival of German troops was an unmistakable sign that Hungarian independence was nearing an end.
Carl had gone to Bern seeking guidance and the extent of Swiss knowledge concerning Hitler’s intentions where Hungary was concerned.
He also discussed what he had learned in his first and second meetings with the man he now knew as Bernhard, the man in the black fedora.
Bernhard’s first meeting had been the group meeting with Theresa, Julia, and the other Budapest community leaders.
The second meeting, just between Carl and Bernhard, had concluded right before Carl boarded the plane to Bern.
That meeting only heightened Carl’s urgency.
But Carl’s Swiss superiors believed that Jews were relatively unharmed in Hungary, and they had admonished Carl that it was not his job or the embassy’s job to defend the enemies of the German Reich.
He and the embassy must remain neutral and not take sides in the war or in territorial disputes.
However, Carl believed that Swiss human values were not neutral and were well known, and most countries would expect to witness Swiss humanitarian efforts.
Even Germany would not expect Switzerland to be indifferent where human lives were concerned.
After discussing this matter for a day and a half, Carl returned to Budapest. When he landed, he called Julia and Theresa as he had promised and invited them to join him at the embassy office. Each of them had something important to discuss with Carl as well.
“Before we get started,” Carl said, “I want you to know what happened in Bern. I had a meeting with my superiors, and there was a mixed reaction. Some of them were proud that I was taking a humanitarian stand, but others felt that I was taking sides and getting involved where I shouldn’t, in violation of Swiss neutrality policy. ”
Julia shook her head.
“I felt the same way,” said Carl. “I cannot stand by and watch this cruel inhumanity take place and do nothing. I told them about my second, private meeting with Bernhard, the one you couldn’t attend.
But I only told them part of the report.
The other part I kept secret because I was afraid that my superiors would give me a strict order to be silent.
So I kept it to myself. Bernhard revealed to me that Chelmno, Majdanek, and Auschwitz-Birkenau were not only concentration camps but were killing centers. ”
“That’s not news to me,” Julia said. “The Dutch were sent there to die. Even the little babies. We knew that.”
“But that’s not the whole story. Bernhard told me that he knew that prisoners were killed by carbon monoxide fumes from a car exhaust,” Carl said.
“Then he told me that large internal combustion engines were built in German labs, and they were designed to pipe huge volumes of exhaust through large pipes into sealed chambers at the camps. Chelmno, on the outskirts of ? ód?, Poland, was the first to incorporate these machines at its camp. It was the first of the extermination camps designed to kill as many as possible as quickly as possible. That part I kept to myself. I had asked Bernhard if there was proof, and he told me in secret that there were two escapees who were writing a report, and it would be released soon. Until then, it was better to keep quiet.”
“I had heard a rumor about prisoners being killed with carbon monoxide exhaust in Lithuania, but I had never heard of the internal combustion machines piping gas into large rooms to kill hundreds,” Martin said.
Carl nodded, and then his face became very serious.
“At one point in our conversation, Bernhard became very quiet, and a severe expression covered his face. ‘Now there is an even quicker, deadlier gas,’ Bernhard told me. ‘It is known only to a few outside the Chelmno, Majdanek, and Auschwitz camps. It is called Zyklon B. It was developed by German scientists, and it is quick and deadly. Thousands of Jews are killed in this way every day.’ Then Bernhard said, ‘But you have sworn not to publicize this information before there is objective proof, not just the word of someone such as I. Germany would find a way to deny it, and other countries in the world wouldn’t believe it without proof. Anyway, it is enough for you to know that Jews are being murdered in the camps every day.’ Then Bernhard told me that two escapees are preparing a report and I should wait for that.
I agreed that I would not publicize his information,” said Carl.
“It is indeed enough to know that Jews are systematically being murdered in large groups in the camps.”
“I think that governments all over the world should know about the Zyklon B gas,” Julia said. “Maybe that would change the minds of those who support Nazi Germany. Public opinion, maybe even Germans, would turn against Germany. Then maybe this war would end more quickly.”
“I know, and I agree with you,” Carl said, “but I didn’t want to discuss it at the meeting in Bern.
We have to find a way to disclose the poison gas so that it will have the greatest effect, and I don’t want it traceable back to Bernhard.
I gave my word. He is a valuable source.
He told me that a report would be issued soon, and I hope he is right. ”
“What else happened in Bern that you think I should know about?”
“Well, I told you that my government criticized me for taking sides, but I told my superiors that I cannot sit idly by and watch Adolf Eichmann and his henchmen carry out Operation Reinhard in Hungary.” Carl was firm.
“If indeed it is their plan to arrest all the Jewish citizens of Hungary and send them to killing centers, I will employ every defensive measure at my disposal to prevent that from occurring, and I will actively support the rescue of as many refugees as possible.” Carl paused and cleared his throat.
“I know I just said if , but I also believe it’s only a matter of time until they try.
Operation Reinhard is now taking its orders from Eichmann’s headquarters in the Majestic Hotel north of Castle Hill. ”
“When you say ‘actively support,’ what did your government leaders tell you that you can do?” Julia asked. “What support can we expect?”
“Well, they warned me to use caution. They said that our first rule is to remain apolitical, a neutral nation. We must always retain our Swiss neutrality. Otherwise, our effectiveness is gone. All lines of communication with the German government, or the Axis nations, or even Hungary will be cut if Switzerland does not remain politically neutral. Our embassy itself would be at the mercy of the Nazis. There is some truth to that. It has to be handled diplomatically, but that does not mean that we should turn our backs on innocent people. Where possible, Swiss letters of protection may be freely used, but again, with caution. They must continue to be genuine documents, distributed according to Swiss law. Otherwise, they will be considered fake, and they won’t be honored by Eichmann or the Germans. ”
“How many letters can we hope to distribute?” Theresa asked.
“There is no set cap, but each letter must be numbered, registered, and issued to a specific person. We can’t do it en masse. So obviously, there is a physical limitation on how many we can create, prepare, and distribute.”
“In our telephone call,” Julia responded, “John Pehle acknowledged that there would be a physical limitation on how many Swiss letters of protection could be circulated, and he urged us to locate and use other neutral governments for additional letters of protection. He mentioned Sweden.”
Carl nodded. “We discussed that as well, and Swiss officials are in agreement. They also want us to reach out and coordinate with other groups that are experienced in rescue operations. They talked about Ira Hirschman in Turkey. They mentioned the Aid and Rescue Committee. They mentioned the Bratislava Working Group.”
“That is just what John Pehle suggested,” Julia said.
“The WRB is familiar with the Aid and Rescue Committee. John confirmed that Ottó Komoly was the president and Israel Kasztner was the vice president. He also said that Joel Brand and his wife, Hansi, were involved, but he wasn’t sure exactly how.
He knew they were active in Slovakia, but again, he didn’t know the details.
So, Theresa and I are in the process of trying to set up a meeting with Joel.
He is a close friend of Theresa’s brother. ”
“Now that you mention Slovakia, Bernhard brought up the subject as well. He couldn’t discuss everything he wanted us to know at the public meeting with Solomon and the rabbi, but he did at the confidential meeting he had with me.
Do you remember that he was about to tell us something important about Slovakia, but Solomon kept interrupting him, and soon afterward, Bernhard left? ”
“I do remember,” Julia said. “Bernhard became frustrated and left. That was a shame.”
“At my second meeting with Bernhard,” Carl said, “I found out about Eichmann and Slovakia. And surprisingly, it also involved your friend Joel Brand.”
“Joel Brand in Slovakia?” Theresa said. “I heard a rumor that he was involved with another rescue committee in Slovakia. Did Bernhard tell you about that?”
Carl nodded and held his hand up for Theresa to slow down.
“First of all, Bernhard finished telling me about Eichmann’s early history, which is important to know.
Remember, he said that Eichmann’s father got him a job working for an Austrian oil company, and Adolf would roam across Austria selling oil products. ”
“And finding locations to set up gas stations,” said Julia.
“Right. Eichmann didn’t like that job, so in 1933, he quit.
He left Austria for Germany to find another job.
But by then, Adolf’s father couldn’t help him.
It was the Depression, and his father wasn’t doing well.
Within a short time, his father lost most of his money.
He was financially ruined. That embittered Adolf and left a scar that he will carry his entire life.
Adolf didn’t have any money or property either, so you might say that the Nazis bailed him out.
Money has always been an obsession with Adolf.
Because he didn’t have any, he felt inferior, insecure.
He always had his uniforms perfectly tailored, pressed every day, and his braided cap always sat perfectly on his head.
He chose to hang around with the Nazi elite—Heydrich, Himmler, Kaltenbrunner.
He volunteered to do the jobs that no one else wanted to do. ”
“Like organizing deportations of innocent people to concentration camps from conquered countries? That’s what he did in Holland.”
“Correct. One of those conquered countries was Slovakia. That is what Bernhard wanted to tell us about. In 1942, Eichmann was sent to Belgium, France, Holland, and also Slovakia. It was in Slovakia that Joel Brand came in contact with Eichmann. Do you remember we discussed that Brand had brought Slovakian Jews into Hungary?”
“Right. He smuggled his wife’s family out of Slovakia. He did that while he was with the Aid and Rescue Committee,” Theresa said. “Along with Ottó Komoly and Israel Kasztner.”
“Correct again. But when Brand was in Slovakia, he became good friends with Gisi Fleischmann and her committee, the Bratislava Working Group. She had managed to save thousands of Slovak Jews who would otherwise have been killed. She managed to take them from Slovakia into Hungary. Hungary was safe for Jews, but Slovakia was not. Thousands of those Jews are now living in Hungary. The Bratislava Working Group, which was mostly an alliance of Zionists and ultra-Orthodox Jews, raised money to pay bribes. Then they came up with an enormous scheme they called the Europa Plan. It was presented to Eichmann’s deputy.
The offer was to pay $200,000 as a down payment, which would stop all the deportations to concentration camps.
Then they talked back and forth about paying a ransom for the prisoners’ release. ”
Julia was stunned. “Are you telling me that they were bribing Eichmann?”
“Yes, but not directly. He’s too clever for that. They negotiated with Dieter Wisliceny, an SS captain who was Eichmann’s deputy. For a certain amount of money, they could buy the right to take Jews over the border into Hungary.”
“That’s why Bernhard wanted us to know that information,” Julia said. “Does he think that Eichmann is corruptible? Can he be bought off?”
“That’s what Bernhard believes, and he knows it for a fact.”
“That’s crazy,” Theresa said. “How much money would it take to buy the freedom of one million Jews?”
Carl spread his hands. “At one point, it was $2 million.”
“Oh my God,” Theresa said. “Where were they going to get that much money?”
Carl shrugged. “Supposedly from Jews in the free world who were charitable. But the money couldn’t be put together, and the deal fell apart. I just think that Bernhard told us to show that Eichmann is corruptible and that Joel Brand knows it. What he does with that information is anybody’s guess.”
Theresa shook her head. “Amazing. I think we should talk to Joel, and I have a way to do it. My mother is holding a family dinner, and my brother, Sammy, is coming. He knows Joel very well. They have been friends for years. My family knows Ottó Komoly as well, and my father can contact him.”
“I am familiar with Ottó Komoly myself,” Carl said.
“Ottó is a well-known personality throughout Budapest. He was a lieutenant and a decorated soldier in the Austro-Hungarian Army in the First World War. He has a nice home here in the city, and he works as an engineer. He enjoys a status level that most Hungarian Jews cannot attain. The recent antisemitic restrictions imposed by the Horthy government don’t apply to him.
And he is on speaking terms with most community and government leaders. ”
“Does he have experience in rescuing refugees?” Julia asked.
“I told you about the thousands of Jews rescued from Poland by the Aid and Rescue Committee, remember? They were brought to Hungary under Ottó’s supervision,” Carl said.
“He not only has the knowledge of rescuing refugees, he also has the experience. He is highly respected all over Hungary. You talk about letters of protection granting immunity—Ottó’s status gives immunity to him. ”
“We are hoping that Sammy can put us in touch with Joel Brand,” Julia said. “We see that as a first step to getting close to the Aid and Rescue Committee.”
“I have to go now,” Carl said. “As you might imagine, there is much work to be done.”