High Ranking Fascist Collaborators: Politicians
Hungarian Prime Minister Behind the Deportation of 440,000 Jews: Döme Sztójay
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In March 1944, after Nazi Germany occupied Hungary, Döme Sztójay became Prime Minister and aligned the country closely with the Third Reich. Under his government, Hungarian Jews were forced to wear yellow stars, confined to ghettos, and deported to Auschwitz-Birkenau.
Between May and July 1944, nearly 440,000 Hungarian Jews were deported, making it the deadliest period in the history of Auschwitz. Most were murdered shortly after arrival.
This story examines Sztójay’s rise to power, his role in implementing Nazi policies in Hungary, the response of Regent Miklós Horthy, and the tragic consequences of the German occupation.
After the war, Sztójay was captured, convicted of war crimes, and ultimately faced justice in Budapest in 1946.
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