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White Buses




White Buses was a humanitarian effort headed by the Swedish count Folke Bernadotte that by the end of the second world war saved thousands of Norwegian and Danish resistance fighters from German Concentration Camps . The name comes from the buses that were used, and that were painted white, with a red cross on the sides and on their roof. The reason for this was to avoid confusion with military vehicles.

Under the umbrella of the Swedish Red Cross the "White Buses" in March and April 1945 saved some 15,000 Scandinavians and other nationalities from German camps, also quite a few Jews. After the German capitulation another 10,000 were also transported to Sweden .

The operation was a huge humanitarian success, saved many lives, and is very much remembered in Norway, Denmark and other countries. It has however also been criticised for being targeted towards Scandinavians and not caring equally for prisoners from other nations. The Norwegian White Buses Association organises excursions to Sachsenhausen and to the sites of other concentration camps, for school classes, in cooperation with time witnesses.


REFERENCES


  • Heger, Wanda Hjort (1984), "Hver fredag foran porten", Gyldendal, ISBN 82-05-14937-2 ("Every Friday at the gate", in Norwegian), German edition (1989) "Jeden Freitag vor dem Tor" Schneekluth, ISBN 3-7951-1132-3

  • Persson, Sune (2002), «Vi åker till Sverige», De vita bussarna 1945. Bokförlaget Fischer & co. ISBN 91-85183-18-0

  • Lomfors, Ingrid (2005), Blind fläck: minne och glömska kring svenska Röda korsets hjälpinsats i Nazityskland 1945. Bokförlaget Atlantis. ISBN 9173530514



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