A Daring Negotiation
In 1938, Truus Wijsmuller, a Dutch resistance fighter, met with Nazi officer Adolf Eichmann in Vienna to negotiate the release of Jewish children. Eichmann mocked her request, but agreed to let her take 600 children out of Austria as a “test,” if she could do it on the Jewish Sabbath. Wijsmuller accepted the challenge.
Organizing the Kindertransport
Wijsmuller quickly coordinated with Jewish community leaders, and within days, she filled the train with hundreds of children. This was the beginning of the Kindertransport, which ultimately brought nearly 10,000 Jewish children to safety in the United Kingdom from Nazi-occupied Europe.
A Lifeline for Refugees
Wijsmuller continued to organize transports for Jewish children, including arranging the escape of many to the Netherlands. When the Nazis occupied the Netherlands in 1940, she helped smuggle Jewish children out of the country and provided food and forged documents to those in hiding.
Recognition and Memory
After the war, Wijsmuller was honored by Yad Vashem as Righteous Among the Nations for her efforts to save Jewish children. She continued to be a voice for those she saved until her death in 1978.
The Dutch Woman Who Saved 10,000 Children from the Nazis 👩👧👦
A Daring Negotiation
In 1938, Truus Wijsmuller, a Dutch resistance fighter, met with Nazi officer Adolf Eichmann in Vienna to negotiate the release of Jewish children. Eichmann mocked her request, but agreed to let her… pic.twitter.com/D2dbH5VgOL— Detective Tiger’s Stories (@TBBOB2) September 2, 2024