Instructions to security police and SD officers for screening POWs, including selection of "unbearable elements" (including Jews and senior Communists) for special treatment, and the recruitment of those who could help in the reconstruction of occupied territories

TOP SECRET
B 101
Office IV
Enclosures 2 Berlin, 17 July 1941
Regulations (directives)
for the commandos of the Chief of the Security Police and of the Security Service, which are to be activated in Stalags.
The activation of commandos will take place in accordance with the agreement of the Chief of the Security Police and Security
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Service and the Supreme Command of the Armed Forces as of 16 July 1941 (see enclosure I). The commandos will work independently according to special authorization and in consequence of the general regulations given to them, in the limits of the camp organizations. Naturally, the commandos will keep close contact with the camp commander and the defense officers assigned to him.
The mission of the commandos is the political investigating of all camp-inmates, the elimination and, further "treatment"
a. of all political, criminal or in some other way undesirable elements among them.
b. of those persons who could be used for the reconstruction of
the occupied territories.
For the execution of their mission, no auxiliary means can be put at the disposal of the commandos. The "Deutsche Fahndungsbuch", the "Aufenthaltsermittlungsliste" and the "Sonderfahndungsbuch "UdSSR" will prove to be useful in only a small number of cases ; the "Sonderfahndungsbuch "UdSSR" is not sufficient, because it contains only a small part of Soviet-Russians considered to be dangerous.
Therefore, the commandos must use their special knowledge and ability and rely on their own findings and self-acquired knowledge. Therefore, they will be able to start carrying out their mission only when they have gathered together appropriate material.
The commandos must use for their work as far as possible, at present and even later, the experiences of the camp commanders which the latter have collected meanwhile from observation of the prisoners and examinations of camp inmates.
Further, the commandos must make efforts from the beginning to seek out among the prisoners elements which appear reliable, regardless if there are communists concerned or not, in order to use them for intelligence purposes inside of the camp and, if advisable, later in the occupied territories also.
By use of such informers'and by use of all other existing possibilities, the discovery of all elements to be eliminated among the prisoners, must succeed step by step at once. The commandos must learn for themselves, in every case by means of short questioning of the informers and eventual questioning of other prisoners.
The information of one informer is not sufficient to designate a camp inmate to be a suspect, without further proof; it must be confirmed in some way if possible.
Above all, the following must be discovered:
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Ali important functionaries of state and party, especially
Professional revolutionaries.
Functionaries of the Komintern.
All policy-forming party functionaries of the KPdSU and its fellow organizations in the central committees, in the regional and district committees.
All Peoples-Commissars and their deputies.
All former Political commissars in the Red Army.
Leading personalities of the state authorities of central and middle regions.
The leading personalities of the business world.
Members of the Soviet-Russian intelligence.
All Jews.
All persons, who are found to be agitators or fanatical communists.
It is not less important, as mentioned already, to discover all those persons who could be used for the reconstruction, administration and management of the conquered Russian territories.
Finally, all such persons must be secured who are still needed for the completion of further investigation, regardless if they are police investigations or other investigations, and for explanations of questions of general interest. Among them are all those especially, who because of their position and their knowledge are able to give information about measures and working methods of the Soviet-Russian State, of the communist party or of the Komintern.
In the final analysis, consideration must be given to the nativity in all decisions to be made. The leader of the Einsatz Kommando will give every week a short report by telephone or an expressletter to the Reichs-Security-Main-Office, containing:
1. Short description of their activities in the past week.
2. Number of all definitely suspicious persons, (report of number sufficient)
3. Individual names of all persons found to be functionaries of the Komintern, leading functionaries of the party, Peoples-Commissars, leading personalities and Political commissars.
4. Number of all persons found not to be suspicious informers, with a short description of their position.
A. Prisoners-of-war.
B. Civilians.
On the basis of those activity reports the Reichs-Security-Main-Office will issue immediately the further measures to be applied. For the measures to be. applied on the basis of this successive di-
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rective the commandos are to demand the surrender of the prisoners involved from the camp command.
The camp commandants have received orders from the Supreme Command of the Armed Forces, to approve such requests (see enclosure I).
Executions are not to be held in the camp or in the immediate vicinity of the camp. If the camps in the General-Government are in the immediate vicinity of the border, then the prisoners are to be taken for special treatment, if possible, into the former Soviet-Russian territory.
Should execution be necessary for reasons of camp discipline, then the leader of the Einsatz Kommando must apply to the camp commander for it.
The commandos have to keep lists about the special treatments carried out and must contain:
Current number.
Family name and first name.
Time and place of birth.
Military rank.
Profession.
Last residence.
Reason for special treatment.
Day and place of special treatment (card file).
In regard to executions to be carried out and to the possible removal of reliable civilians and the removal of informers for the Einsatz-group in the occupied territories, the leader of the Einsatz-Kommando must make an agreement with the nearest State-Police-Office, as well as with the commandant of the Security Police Unit and Security Service and beyond these with the Chief of the Einsatz-group concerned in the occupied territories.
Reports of that kind are to be transmitted for information to the Reichs-Security-Main-Office, IV. A 1. Excellent behavior during and after duty, the best cooperation with the camp-commanders, and careful examinations are the duty of all leaders and members of the Einsatz-Kommando.
The members of the Einsatz-Kommando must be constantly impressed with the special importance of the missions entrusted to them.