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Holocaust

Introduction

History is full of incidence of brutality and cruelty, some of which are reported and recorded while the others go unreported and unrecorded. However, there are a some incidences that can neither be ignored nor overlooked, as their amplitude and after effects grant them the position of being unforgettable and at times, unforgivable too. Such incidences are always remembered and taken as an example of wrong doing in the history of humanity. It should be noted that when it comes to examples of brutality and cruelty, Holocaust is the first most prominent incident that has to be remembered.

Discussion

Holocaust was the systematic and bureaucratic mass murder of Jews, which was sponsored by the state and was a part of the Jew genocide, aiming at complete removal of Jews from the face of planet earth. During holocaust, approximately six million Jews were harshly and viciously killed by the Nazi regime, assisted by its collaborators. In fact, the term Holocaust is a Greek term meaning 'sacrifice by fire', and genocide was launched by the German Nazis who believed that they were racially superior while the Jews were believed to be inferior, and in addition, they were also believed to be a threat to the German racial community.

Holocaust can be characterized as the most spiteful and pitiless era in the history of humanity, and during that period the German authorities targeted other groups as well that were considered to be racially inferior by them. These groups included the Roma (Gypsies), the disabled individuals, and a few Slavic individuals including the Russians, Poles and the others as well. Holocaust officially begun in 1933 when the Jewish population of Europe was close to nine million and majority of the Jewish population was present in the areas that Nazi Germany was planning to occupy. At the advent of 1945, the Nazis had already killed around two million of the Jews, which implies that every two of three Jews were killed as this was considered to be the final solution by the Nazi. In addition to the Jews, the victims of Holocaust also included around 200, 000 Gypsies and a same number of mentally and physically retarded individuals, who were killed under the Euthanasia Program.

It is eminent to mention here that the Holocaust was not one step process, as it was properly planned and well 0065ecuted, out was carried out in several steps (Godfrey, 2007, Pp: 152). The first step was 5the implementation of laws that ensured removal of Jews from Germany, with Nuremberg Laws being the most prominent and important ones. These laws were implemented in Germany way before the outbreak of Second World War. Moreover, another major feature of the Holocaust was establishment of Concentration Camps, where the prisoners were subjected to slave labor as well as torture until they died of the pain and suffering, 7unable to survive the extreme conditions. In addition, Einsatzgruppen were also established in the German territory: these were the specialized units in which the Jews ...