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By the spring of 1944, Nazi extermination camps had annihilated
more than a third of the Jewish population in Europe. Yet there was one
large Jewish community remaining - in Hungary. The Jewish population here
added up to about 700 000 people . In March 1944, Adolf Eichmann entered
Budapest behind the German Army during its occupation of Hungary. Eichmann
had direct orders from Adolf Hitler to round up and oversee the
deportation of Hungary's Jews. Germany had been defeated in Stalingrad and
USSR was occupying large areas of land and began to approach Hungary.
Hitler's aims concerning European Jews were not completed and consequently
the holocaust was hurried up. But during this time the world had started
to realise the extent of Hitler's "final solution". A variety of
international agencies began to look for someone to attempt to save the
remaining Hungarian Jewish community. United States President, Roosevelt,
decided to establish the War Refugee Board (WRB) on 22 January 1944. The
purpose of the WRB was to attempt to save as many threatened people as
possible, especially Jews, in the occupied territories in Europe. The WRB
contacted several neutral governments, including the Vatican, Spain,
Switzerland, Sweden, Portugal and Turkey, requesting help in organising
rescue procedures. Sweden was approached through the Swedish Trade Union
Confederation (LO). The result was an operation led by Raoul Gustav
Wallenberg. He arrived in the Hungarian capital, Budapest, on Sunday 9
July 1944, with the mission of saving as many Jews possible from Nazi
extermination camps. Despite the chaotic situation in Budapest and the
lack of time, Wallenberg and his team managed with the heroic effort to
save thousands of lives.
Yet in the month of January 1945, at the
very end of the war, when his task seemed to have reached completion,
Wallenberg was arrested by Soviet troops. Ever since, his fate has
attracted the attention and imagination of many people around the globe.
Much focus has been directed towards the mysterious disappearance of
Wallenberg after his arrest and imprisonment, which is a question that
probably will remain a mystery. An interesting fact that may appear as
dimmed as the disappearance is the reason behind the Soviet arrest on
Wallenberg. This Extended Essay is an attempt to establish why Wallenberg
was captured using a variety of sources including recently discovered
evidence. |
