87 Command Staff - Operation Reinhard (Aktion Reinhard & Einsatz Reinhard also used) (Holocaust: Reinhard)
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This article is from the Holocaust FAQ, by Ken McVay kmcvay@nizkor.org with numerous contributions by others.
87 Command Staff - Operation Reinhard (Aktion Reinhard & Einsatz Reinhard also used) (Holocaust: Reinhard)
Globocnik, Odilo - Appointed by Himmler as SS- und Polizei-fuehrer of
the Lublin District of the General Government, in late (Oct-Nov) of
1941. Commanded Operation Reinhard.
Ho"fle, Hans - (Hauptsturmfuehrer), appointed by Himmler as Globocnik's
Chief of Operations, in charge of organization and manpower.
Himmler assigned the following tasks to his new Reinhard commander:
1. Overall planning of deportations
2. Construction and operation of the death camps
3. Co-ordination of the deportations from each of the five
districts of the General Government (Warsaw, Lublin, Radom,
Krakow, and Lvov.)
Globocnik had a team of 450 Germans at his disposal - at their core
was a group of 92 men, headed by Christian Wirth, who had been
assigned to Globocnik for the euthanasia program.
It was this group from which key staff were selected for Reinhard,
including the camp commanders. Each camp was allotted 20-30 German
staff. [Arad, who wrote the Reinhard section of the Encyclopedia,
which is paraphrased here, used '20 to 35' in the epilog to his book
on the subject, quoted earlier in this document. knm]
Also recruited was a special auxillary unit, consisting of Ukrainian
volunteers, most of them Soviet POW's. They were billetted in an SS
training camp (Trawniki) where they were issued black uniforms and
weapons. They were organized into platoons and companies, and
received brief training. Their unit commanders were German. Each
camp was allotted from 90 - 120 of these "Trawniki's," who were also
used in deportation and escort capacities. (Encyclopedia, I, 14-15)
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