Ruthless Nazi SS officer killed with an axe by Sobibor prisoners - Siegfried Graetschus

Siegfried Graetschus was an SS officer who played a key role in some of the most horrific chapters of the Holocaust. His career in the Nazi regime spanned multiple Operation Reinhard extermination camps, including Belzec, Treblinka, and ultimately Sobibor, where he served as commander of the Trawniki guards and was one of the first to die in the Sobibor uprising. Born in 1916 in Tilsit, Germany, Graetschus joined the SS in 1935 and the Nazi Party in 1936. He began his involvement with mass murder during the T-4 euthanasia program, working at killing centers such as Grafeneck and Bernburg, where thousands of disabled and institutionalized Germans were murdered under the guise of “racial hygiene.” As the Nazis implemented the Final Solution, Graetschus was transferred to the Belzec extermination camp, where he helped transform a vehicle into a mobile gas chamber. He then briefly served at Treblinka, before arriving at Sobibor in August 1942. There, as SS-Untersturmführer, he commanded 90–120 Trawniki men—Eastern European collaborators trained to guard the camp. At Sobibor, Graetschus became infamous for his brutality and role in overseeing the daily operations of mass murder. An estimated 250,000 Jews were killed at the camp. Witnesses recalled his involvement in executions, including the killing of prisoners suspected of theft. He was known to enjoy privileges and luxuries while overseeing unimaginable atrocities. On October 14, 1943, prisoners led by Alexander Pechersky launched a well-planned revolt. Graetschus was lured into a tailor's workshop and killed by inmates Arkadij Wajspapir and Yehuda Lerner using an axe—one of the first Nazis assassinated that day. The uprising led to the escape of around 300 prisoners, though only about 50 survived the war. Graetschus’s life and death are emblematic of the machinery of genocide—and the rare but heroic acts of resistance that arose in the face of annihilation. Disclaimer: All opinions and comments below are from members of the public and do not reflect the views of World History channel. We do not accept promoting violence or hatred against individuals or groups based on attributes such as: race, nationality, religion, sex, gender, sexual orientation. World History has right to review the comments and delete them if they are deemed inappropriate. ► CLICK the SUBSCRIBE button for more interesting clips:    / @worldhistoryvideos   #SiegfriedGraetschus #worldhistory #worldwar2videos #ww2 #holocaust #poland #sobibor #documentaryhistory #wwii #historydocumentary #germanyhistory #holocaustremembrance #concentrationcamps #lublin #thirdreich #warcriminals #warcrimes Siegfried Graetschus biography, Siegfried Graetschus and Christian Wirth, Sobibor concentration camp, Sobibor death camp, Sobibor, Escape from Sobibor, Sobibor uprising, Sobibor revolt, Where is Sobibor, Concentration camp revolt, Concentration camp uprising, Escape from Sobibor true story, Sobibor Poland, Alexander Pechersky, German invasion of Poland, Poland during World War 2, Battle of Poland, Germany attacks Poland, When did Germany invade Poland, Poland WW2, German occupation of Poland, Polish Jews, Holocaust Poland, Jews in Poland, T-4 Program, Operation Reinhard, Germany deportations, Nazi SS, Nazi war crimes, WW2 war crimes, War trials, Nazi criminals, War criminals, War criminals WW2, German war crimes, SS men, SS officer, Concentration camp guards, German guards, SS guards, SS camp, Nazi war criminal, Nazi war criminals executed, Sachsenhausen concentration camp, Sonderkommando, Trawniki men at Sobibor, Siegfried Graetschus and Arkadij Wajspapirs, Siegfried Graetschus and Rudolf Beckmann,