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The American military forces delivered Szombathelyi to the Hungarian government as awar criminal, so that he could answer for his actions during the war before the People's Court ofBudapest. The People's Court, after a four day open trial, sentenced Ferenc Szombathelyi to tenyears imprisonment. It is worth quoting some details from the reasons adduced:"In the reannexed Southern Territories, as has been stated in the verdict against PrimeMinister Bardossy, the Serbian rebels threatened public security; treacherously murderedHungarian soldiers and security officials. The situation deteriorated to such a point, that thelocal security organizations proved insufficient for the restoration of order. For this reason theMinister for Home Affairs pleaded for military reinforcements. Bardossy, put in charge theMinister of National Defence, directing the military forces to clear the South of the rebels incooperation with the civilian administration.General Szombathelyi ordered the commanding general of the South, (the commander ofthe army corps of Szeged), General Feketehalmy-Czeydner, to head the operation aimed at therestoration of order in Bacska. For his assistance, he asked them to form a commission, whichthe Minister for Home Affairs rejected, claiming that there are the Lord Lieutenants for thispurpose. He succeeded in having Representative Popovics appointed next to Feketehalmy-Czeydner as an adviser with the consent of the Minister for Home Affairs. <strong>This</strong> time it wasFeketehalmy-Czeydner who rejected it, because he regarded the person in question as proGerman. In spite of his instructions, he completely ignored the Lord Lieutenants. The accusedhad no special intentions concerning the South; from the military point of view, mopping up wasnot necessary.In connection with the events in Zabalj, he received reports of a serious battle fromFeketehalmy-Czeydner. He began to think that after all there was a military operation going on.After finishing the mopping up operation in Zabalj, the Minister for Home Affairs thought itnecessary to extend the mopping up to Novi Sad as147well. For this purpose he asked for army units again from the Minister of National Defense.Granting the request, the accused once again appointed Feketehalmy-Czeydner as Commander.According to his defence, if he had known what had happened in Zabalj, he would not havegiven armed forces for the mopping up operation at Novi Sad.He was misled by false reports from Feketehalmy-Czeydner. Before his activity in Novi Sad,Feketehalmy-Czeydner had received the instructions in Budapest from the Minister for HomeAffairs, the Minister of National Defense, and from the accused, but had not received any specialinstructions. His reports, did not mention the cruelties of the armed forces. It was only onJanuary 22, 1942, that the accused was informed by the Prime Minister that there had beenchildren among the casualties at Novi Sad. He demanded an explanation from Feketehalmy-Czeydner, who denied this completely, and again depicted the local situation unrealistically tothe accused.General Szombathelyi categorically forbade cruelties in his telegram to the commander. Theperson in question, in spite of all this, and with the aim of arousing the battle spirit and lust formurder, organized an artificial guerilla fight that produced "wounded casualties". He orderedMayor Miklos Nagy to supply the soldiers with tea spiked with rum, reasonimg that the weatherwas cold; blood and alcohol had their effect. The massacre continued in disastrous proportions;
in January 1942, in Zabalj and Novi Sad, the total number of civilian corpse was 3,309,including 147 children and 299 aged people.Feketehalmy-Czeydner continued denying the attrocities, even after the events at NoviSad. The accused, according to his defense, believed him, because he would not expect suchbaseness from an old, well known army comrade. At any rate, he asked him for a written report.However, both his official and prosecutor's reports were uninformative. The official diaries ofthe army units did not contain any information either. He asked for a judicial enquiry, fromthese sources he could not gain a clear picture of the events. Altough the judicial enquiryentirely exposed the terrible atrocities of the soldiers, he presented a plea for barring theindictment to the Regent. The reason was that the politicians refused to back the case, and theGerman military attache implied, that Germany did not want a great affair made of the matter.When the Kallay Government undertook the political clarification of the events in Bacska, theRegent ordered the reopening of the case, the accused entrusted a special court with148the legal procedings. He appointed the members of the court with special care to guarantee theuncovering of the truth. He did not order the arrest of the principal criminals, in spite of thedemands of his prosecutor, judge-advocate Mr. Babos. According to his defense, he did notbelieve that generals of high rank would escape. He trusted them even more, whenFeketehalmy-Czeydner and Grassy announced how glad they were to be able to clear themselvesof the unfounded accusations. These in question escaped after all with German help, andreturned only after the German invasion of Hungary on March 19, 1944. They were reappointedto the corp of generals, plus there was an order barring indictment and a total rehabilitation.The accused denied his guilt concerning the events in the South, though essentially heconfessed to know the facts.In connection with the statements of facts in the second article, the People's Court foundreasons to believe, that the accused sent a telegram to Feketehalmy-Czeydner on January 22,1942, saying that "striking injustices are to be avoided"; this cannot be confirmed. The pertinentpart of Grassy's testimony cannot be accepted as substantial proof in itself, because the person inquestion cannot be regarded as an unconcerned party. What is more, he had been one of thecentral figures of the events. It is evident that he tried to exonerate himself by all possible means,and shift the responsibility at least partially upon somebody else.According to the testimony of witness Imre Suhay, which he made on the basis of conscientiousperusing the pertinent documents, there was no such telegram among the documents, onlytelegram that forbid cruelties categorically. Even if there had been such a telegram, it issophistry to misinterpret it as a disguised instigation to permitt excesses. The killing of childrenis a "striking injustice" beyond doubt. The murdering of children would have been forbidden,even by the telegrammed order containing the prohibition. Such an instigation cannot be foundeven with the distortion of the meaning of the telegram.In connection with the Southern events, the responsibility of the accused as eitherinstigator, culprit or participant cannot be substantiated. According to the decisive statement offacts, the accused was informed of the massacre after it had taken place. <strong>This</strong> had been decidedin relation with the verdict of the People's Court against Bardossy. It is also true in the case ofthe accused, who learned of the events only from Bardossy on January 22, 1942. Instigation,
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Library of Congress Catalogue Card
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Mutilation of the hands or feet wit
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they wanted to belong. On the annex
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individuals, then shooting them by
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the Russians and under their protec
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22PEOPLE OF BEZDAN1.On a May aftern
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26that those people all fell victim
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ack a 13 year-old boy to the soccer
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Russian officers cursed and told th
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Jani was set free for he had been a
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There were some people who, in spit
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March 12, 1945. The relatives of th
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Ferenc Csapo, 33 Mihaly Miovacs, 18
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Having heard about the advance of t
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"On November 3, I got up at five in
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The vicar would come every night. H
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hand. Raising it to his mouth, he d
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"24th October, 1944. Yesterday was
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"I have only one chance to be sacri
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The data, which shows that on the s
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all the captured Serbs, as neither
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Before and during World War II, the
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would order fire in an instant. Wit
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Our house looked out over the main
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He had just arrived home after thre
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28. Jozsef Pasztor, 34 56. Albert G
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The OZNA officer, who exhumed a mas
Page 58 and 59: 7917 year old Karoly and 8 year old
Page 60 and 61: 82FROM SZENTFULOP TO THE GAKOVA CAM
Page 62 and 63: My mother died on January 4, 1946.
Page 64 and 65: Jozsi, the leader of our committee
Page 66 and 67: his own grave, then machine gunned
Page 68 and 69: driving a wheelbarrow on the sidewa
Page 70 and 71: "Now that's exactly what we needed
Page 72 and 73: 15 Istvan Polyakovics, Zenta, 18861
Page 74 and 75: idge was built (from several rows o
Page 76 and 77: There is a common opinion among the
Page 78 and 79: The Catholics of the village were o
Page 80 and 81: and their supporters. On one occasi
Page 82 and 83: "My younger brother, Bandi, was tak
Page 84 and 85: two young instructors staying in he
Page 86 and 87: In Tunderes (Vilova) there was no o
Page 88 and 89: weeks spent starving, laying on str
Page 90 and 91: 121PACSERAt Pacser sixteen Serbians
Page 92 and 93: piece of land, there are three rows
Page 94 and 95: "I understood that through the OZNA
Page 96 and 97: took the priest under their protect
Page 98 and 99: "We set off from Hadikliget on Octo
Page 100 and 101: everyone to the front! The Party us
Page 102 and 103: 137REPORT OF LOSSESIn addition to o
Page 104 and 105: 141Source: Zlocini okupatora u Vojv
Page 106 and 107: well as in words, that there had be
Page 110 and 111: culpability or participation are th
Page 112 and 113: The accused did not make use of his
Page 114 and 115: the spirit of revenge among the Hun
Page 116 and 117: considered all the claims of Hungar
Page 118 and 119: The People's Court of Budapest just
Page 120 and 121: From then on all hell breaks loose.
Page 122 and 123: Recommended readingeRudolf Kiszlion
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