Army apologizes after posting image of Nazi war criminal on Battle of the Bulge’s 75th anniversary
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The U.S. Army is apologizing Tuesday for posting an image of a Nazi war criminal on some of its social media accounts during Monday’s 75th anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge.
The colorized photo of Joachim Peiper – a Nazi Waffen-SS officer whose unit was responsible for mowing down 84 Americans during the battle, in a war crime that became known as the Malmedy massacre – had been posted on the Facebook pages of the Department of Defense, the Army’s XVIII Airborne Corps and the 10th Mountain Division, according to the Military Times.
The image was intended to be the start of a photo narrative in commemoration of the famed World War II battle, but was later yanked down Monday following an uproar.
“We regret the use of the photograph of Joachim Peiper,” the XVIII Airborne Corps posted Tuesday on Twitter. “The intent was to tell the full story of the Battle of the Bulge, which will continue here, by explaining the incredible odds that were stacked up against the American Soldier by the time the reserve was called in on 18 Dec.”
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The image of Peiper had drawn swift condemnation from Lt. Col Brian Fickel, an Army public affairs officer.
“I am dumbfounded by the decision to prominently display a Nazi on military social media on the 75th anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge,” he had tweeted.
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In a post that The Independent newspaper says was deleted from the XVIII Airborne Corps’ Facebook page, a user wrote: “This photo looks like you admire the SS – if that is not your intention please move it to later in the article and provide a caption (other than ‘Coloured by Tobias Kurtz)”
The Corps, in response to the comment, reportedly said “sometimes in movies, the movie will create a sense of tension by introducing a bad guy. It is a technique of effective storytelling.”
