R & A No. 3113.7 / Principal Nazi Organizations Involved in the ...

- 108 -
SECRET
Evidence too, has been furnished that Untersturmführer Schnittker,
commanding officer of the 10th Company, 3rd Battalion, 19th Panzer Grenadier
Regiment of the 9th SS Panzer Division Hohens^aufert.fordered his troops to
kill all American prisoners of wax; and that Unterscharführer Wolther, aided
by Oberscharführer Werner Ackermanr., carried out this order, Ackermann,
himself is reported to have locked British PW's in a cellar near Arnhem and
blown them up.^ Similarly, according to a statement by an SS FW, members
of the Totenkopf Division were infcrme*d that the Division did no~ take
prisoners of war , * while the l3t SS Panzer Regiment of the 1st SS Panzer
division Leibstandarte-SS Adolf Hitler actually shot 120-150 ?U»a south of
I-'ialmedy on 17 December 1944« Volksfrenadier troops under SS command ap­
pear to have been guilty of-the svre practiced Reasons given soldiers to
.justify such action included the following:
1. To take prisoners is a tactical hinrrance during attacksj
2. Europe is no concern of tl e Americans;
3« Prisoners would cut down the German food supply.
d. The SS-Totenkopfverbfinde (SS Death i.ead Formations)
1. Definition. The SS-ffotenkopfvcrbända (TV) have been defined
by so. .e sources as a part of the Allger,.ein3 Sfc>, by others as a part of the
.%1'fen-SS., Actually, they belonged to neither bub were a self-contained
organization with special assignments. Itf is true, however, that at some
1. War Department, Classified r.essige Center, No. S 75013 on file with WCC.
2. War Department, E 91022; C.i-IN-26262.
3. Ibid.
4. Ibid.
SECRET