Gestapo Terror in Norway: The Rise of Gerhard Flesch
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April 9 1940 — under the codename Operation Weserübung, Nazi Germany invades Denmark and Norway. While Denmark surrenders within hours, Norway resists for two months before falling under occupation. In the years that follow, the Gestapo tightens its grip on the country through terror, torture, and executions. Its most feared figure is Gerhard Flesch, an SS-Obersturmbannführer who led the Security Police and SD in Trondheim. Responsible for the persecution of Norwegian Jews and the brutal suppression of the resistance, Flesch became known as the Gestapo’s most dangerous man in Norway. Tried after the war for murder and torture, he was executed by firing squad in 1948—still defiantly shouting “Heil Hitler!” before the shots were fired.
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