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The Killing Process: “Operation T4” and “Operation Reinhard”

Operation T4

Operation Reinhard

1. Sorting:
Victims undergo extensive sorting prior to arrival; sorting continues at the killing installation itself.
Victims who had not survived the trip are removed and disposed of separately
Living victims are divided according to sex, registered, and photographed
Victims then receive a medical examination (usually about 3 minutes), to establish victim’s identity; The victim’s illness is recorded; some are chosen for later dissecting.
Certain victims are exempted from the process (senile persons, decorated war veterans, and foreigners can be released).Remaining victims (always over 95%) are stamped with a number, to help with later identification

1. Sorting:
The sorting process is much simplified, but follows essentially the same pattern as in “Operation T4”:
The dead are removed at the entrance to the camp, after the prisoners have been unloaded from
The living divided according to their ability to walk;
Ambulatory victims are segregated according to sex;
Here too, certain victims are exempted from the killing process: at Treblinka, Sobibor, Belzec, and Chelmno the number of prisoners “reserved” for maintenance work in the camp is witheringly tiny.
At Auschwitz, the number of prisoners reserved for labor fluctuates: in principle, Jews are sent directly to their deaths,

2. Plunder:
In “Operation T4,” plunder overlaps in space and process with sorting and murder: just before medical exam, nurses take victims’ clothing and valuables; plunder continues after gassing, when gold fillings are removed.

2. Plunder:
In all the Killing Centers, a special space is devoted to the plunder phase; in the Operation Reinhard camps, this phase also overlaps with the murder stage:
Sex-segregated groups of victims are herded through a “cashier” barracks, where valuables are collected;
Victims are herded through disrobing barracks, where they deposit all clothing
Plunder continues past the murder phase, after which gold fillings are removed

3. Murder:
This phase was the simplest: Victims are given soap and a towel, and are herded into an airtight “Shower Room,” which is then filled with carbon monoxide gas. Corpses are removed after 10-20 minutes’ gassing and about ½ hour’s ventilation.

3. Murder:
From a procedural point of view, murder phase is only slightly more complicated in Operation Reinhard than it was in Operation T-4. Most victims are herded into a separate and enclosed “killing precinct,” where they were gassed with carbon monoxide or hydrocyanic acid in airtight chambers. In the Operation Reinhard camps, victims too feeble to walk are shot.

4. Body Disposal:
Remains are incinerated in specially-built crematoria; ashes are stored in yet another chamber, in the event that family request his/her remains

4. Body Disposal
In the Operation Reinhard camps, bodies are initially buried; when burial pits fill, the corpses are exhumed and incinerated; from then on, the bodies of all victims are incinerated in specially-built crematoria; ashes are scattered at various sites in and around the camp.

Operation T4	Operation Reinhard
1. Sorting: Victims undergo extensive sorting prior to arrival; sorting continues at the killing installation itself. Victims who had not survived the trip are removed and disposed of separately Living victims are divided according to sex, registered, and photographed Victims then receive a medical examination (usually about 3 minutes), to establish victim’s identity; The victim’s illness is recorded; some are chosen for later dissecting. Certain victims are exempted from the process (senile persons, decorated war veterans, and foreigners can be released).Remaining victims (always over 95%) are stamped with a number, to help with later identification	1. Sorting: The sorting process is much simplified, but follows essentially the same pattern as in “Operation T4”: The dead are removed at the entrance to the camp, after the prisoners have been unloaded from The living divided according to their ability to walk; Ambulatory victims are segregated according to sex; Here too, certain victims are exempted from the killing process: at Treblinka, Sobibor, Belzec, and Chelmno the number of prisoners “reserved” for maintenance work in the camp is witheringly tiny. At Auschwitz, the number of prisoners reserved for labor fluctuates: in principle, Jews are sent directly to their deaths,
2. Plunder: In “Operation T4,” plunder overlaps in space and process with sorting and murder: just before medical exam, nurses take victims’ clothing and valuables; plunder continues after gassing, when gold fillings are removed.	2. Plunder: In all the Killing Centers, a special space is devoted to the plunder phase; in the Operation Reinhard camps, this phase also overlaps with the murder stage: Sex-segregated groups of victims are herded through a “cashier” barracks, where valuables are collected; Victims are herded through disrobing barracks, where they deposit all clothing Plunder continues past the murder phase, after which gold fillings are removed
3. Murder: This phase was the simplest: Victims are given soap and a towel, and are herded into an airtight “Shower Room,” which is then filled with carbon monoxide gas. Corpses are removed after 10-20 minutes’ gassing and about ½ hour’s ventilation.	3. Murder: From a procedural point of view, murder phase is only slightly more complicated in Operation Reinhard than it was in Operation T-4. Most victims are herded into a separate and enclosed “killing precinct,” where they were gassed with carbon monoxide or hydrocyanic acid in airtight chambers. In the Operation Reinhard camps, victims too feeble to walk are shot.
4. Body Disposal: Remains are incinerated in specially-built crematoria; ashes are stored in yet another chamber, in the event that family request his/her remains	4. Body Disposal In the Operation Reinhard camps, bodies are initially buried; when burial pits fill, the corpses are exhumed and incinerated; from then on, the bodies of all victims are incinerated in specially-built crematoria; ashes are scattered at various sites in and around the camp.