Eduard Krebsbach

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Eduard Krebsbach at the Mauthausen Trial

Eduard Krebsbach (8 August 1894 – 28 May 1947) was a German physician and SS officer who served as the SS-Sturmbannführer (major) and the chief medical officer in the Nazi concentration camp of Mauthausen during World War II. Krebsbach is known for his involvement in the Nazi human experiments and the mass murder of prisoners through lethal injections, actions for which he was later tried and executed.

Biography

Eduard Krebsbach was born in 1894 in Hohenstein, Germany. He studied medicine and graduated with a degree in medicine. Before joining the Nazi Party and the SS, Krebsbach had a career as a civilian physician. His transition to a role within the SS marked a dark period in his professional life, aligning with the Nazi ideology and its brutal policies.

In 1941, Krebsbach was appointed as the chief medical officer at Mauthausen concentration camp. During his tenure, he was responsible for the health and welfare of the camp's inmates, a role he exploited to conduct deadly experiments and mass executions. One of his notorious methods of killing was the administration of lethal injections directly into the hearts of prisoners, a practice that earned him the nickname "Dr. Spritzbach" (Dr. Injection).

War Crimes

Krebsbach's actions at Mauthausen were part of the larger framework of Nazi war crimes and the Holocaust. He was directly involved in the selection process for those to be executed or subjected to medical experiments. His willingness to use prisoners as subjects in deadly medical experiments without their consent was a clear violation of medical ethics and human rights.

After the war, Krebsbach was captured by the Allied forces and stood trial for his crimes. He was convicted for his role in the murder of thousands of prisoners at Mauthausen. On 28 May 1947, Eduard Krebsbach was executed by hanging, held accountable for his contributions to the atrocities committed during the Holocaust.

Legacy

The legacy of Eduard Krebsbach is a stark reminder of the perversion of medical ethics and the role of physicians in the atrocities of the Nazi regime. His actions at Mauthausen concentration camp exemplify the darkest aspects of human experimentation and genocide. The trial and execution of Krebsbach and other Nazi officials underscore the international community's commitment to justice and the prosecution of war crimes.