Eichmann Trial -- Session 52 -- Testimony of Pinhas Freudiger

The footage begins in the middle of the proceedings with witness testimony from Pinhas Freudiger. Freudiger gives an account of his escape to Romania and from there to Palestine. Defense attorney Dr. Robert Servatius poses questions to Freudiger about the ban on railway travel for Jews. He is asked who issued the orders to set up the Kistarcsa camp, as well as about arrests and the severity of anti-Jewish legislation in Hungary and Germany (00:04:14). Freudiger is further cross-examined by Servatius about a report he wrote with Alexander Diamant and Yohanan Link describing Hungarian anti-Jewish legislation (00:08:55) and the level of brutality of the Hungarian gendarmerie (00:15:02). Servatius attempts to shift blame from Eichmann by suggesting that the fate of Hungarian Jewry was the responsibility of Laszlo Endre, an official with the Hungarian Interior Ministry (00:18:57). Judge Raveh asks Freudiger how he came up with his statistics of the number of deported Hungarian Jews (00:21:32). Examination of the witness then turns to the report, created by two Slovaks who had escaped Auschwitz. Freudiger testifies about the subsequent attempts by Rabbi Weissmandel and himself to send warnings about the extermination of the Jews throughout Europe and abroad. He explains how they asked the British and American armies to bomb Auschwitz (00:26:15). Judge Halevi questions the witness about his meetings with Eichmann concerning ghettoization in Hungary (00:27:12). Freudiger is asked to read from testimony given by Wisliceny stating that Eichmann hated Freudiger and had planned for his deportation and how Wisliceny aided Freudiger in escaping. Testimony continues with Freudiger recounting how difficult it was to pass information about Auschwitz to the outer provinces of Hungary (00:39:42). Attorney General Gideon Hausner submits a report discussed earlier in the proceedings and Freudiger tries to identify the document (00:42:14). There is some confusion about the statistics presented in the report and Freudiger is only able to verify two pages of the document. Freudiger completes his testimony and leaves the stand. Judge Landau calls a recess and all stand as the judges exit (00:54:11). Eichmann is escorted out of the booth. There are various shots of the lawyers packing and talking to one another as well as views of the audience leaving the courtroom. The footage cuts out from 00:55:58 to 00:56:35 and resumes with defense attorney Dr. Robert Servatius and an unidentified man in glasses conferring by the defense table. The man leaves and Servatius takes notes. An unidentified man enters and sits at the prosecution table (00:57:40). There is a close up of Servatius taking notes and a pan to the empty booth. Various shots of the courtroom, the prosecution and defense tables. The unidentified man returns and confers with Servatius.