_DIRECT EXAMINATION_
* * * * *
MR. MCHANEY: Witness, I had just asked you whether or not you know
anything about experiments conducted at Buchenwald with the phosphorous
content of incendiary bombs.
WITNESS KOGON: * * * As far as I can recall, I was told by Dr. Ding in
the spring of 1944 that he had been given orders by Professor Dr.
Mrugowsky in collaboration with the firm of Madaus & Co. at
Dresden-Radebeul to carry out experiments on human beings with regard to
the effect of a drug against the contents of phosphorous-caoutchouc
incendiary bombs. I had the impression that the idea for this experiment
had come from Dr. Ding and had been given to Dr. Mrugowsky by him, and
then he had obtained permission to carry out this experiment. On the
part of the firm Madaus, negotiations were led by a certain Dr. Koch. He
had a drug which he called R 17 and which was used by the German
population after attacks in which incendiary bombs were dropped.
By way of Obersturmbannfuehrer Dr. Koch and the higher police leader of
the Dresden sector, the contents of phosphorus incendiary bombs were
sent to Buchenwald, and four experimental subjects from Block 46, who
had survived other experiments, had this phosphorus liquid applied to
their forearms. The whole mass was then ignited and was then treated in
various manners. In the case of one experimental subject, water was used
in order to wipe off the liquid, and in other cases a damp rag was
applied, and in the last case R 17 was applied. Several experiments were
carried out on these four subjects.
In one instance the drug R 17 was applied immediately after the mass had
been ignited; in another instance, after approximately five minutes, and
in yet another case, after thirty minutes. After the mass had burned the
arm, serious burns developed which were observed for two weeks
afterwards. The experiment was conducted by the Special Section 5 at
Leipzig, and photographs were taken of the wounds. Previously
experiments on animals had been carried out in Block 40 on rabbits.
These experiments were conducted in the same manner, and the various
results were also photographed, and the photographs were compared with
each other. Then they were put into an album with exact descriptions and
the results were sent to Berlin—two copies. One was sent to Professor
Mrugowsky, and the other was sent to Oberfuehrer Poppendick, but I am
not quite sure about that. I believe that Oberfuehrer Poppendick must
surely have received a report on this matter because Dr. Ding intended
to write an article about this in a German medical journal.
Q. Now, you have mentioned an album report. Did you see this report?
A. I personally made the report after having it dictated to me by Dr.
Ding.
Q. I will ask you if the document which I will now have handed to you,
and which is Document NO-579, is the report on these incendiary bomb
experiments which you have described.
MR. MCHANEY: I will ask that the original of this document be passed up
to the Tribunal.