Nazi commander Joachim Peiper on trial for war crimes. Image by U.S. Army Signal Corps

By Aiden Pink December 17, 2019

A unit of the United States Army is facing criticism for posting on its Facebook page a photo of a Nazi officer who committed war crimes against American soldiers, The Washington Post reported.

The XVIII Airborne Corps Facebook page stated that it was beginning a series commemorating the 75th anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge, but its status included a photo of German commander Joachim Peiper, who ordered his unit to kill American prisoners of war during the battle. That post was also shared by other military accounts, including the Department of Defense’s Facebook page.

In response to Facebook commenters’ criticism that the original post could be seen as promoting Nazism, the XVIII Airborne Corps account argued that “introducing a bad guy” at the beginning of a series was an effective dramatic technique. “He had a good first day,” the account stated. “Not really his fault that the initial push failed in the North and center (as we’ll see tomorrow).” The posts were later deleted.

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

Army spokesman Lt. Col. Brian Fickel tweeted Monday that he was “dumbfounded” by the decision. On Tuesday, the Corps apologized on Twitter for using the photograph.

The image was Photoshopped to change the original black-and-white photo to color. A watermark on the photo stated that it was “Colorized by Tobias Kurtz.” As noted by journalist Corey Pein, Kurtz appears to be a Slovakian artist who has “favorited” fascist images on social media, including a drawing of Adolf Hitler punching an American soldier.

According to the Washington Post, Army and Pentagon officials haven’t yet explained how the image came to be discovered or approved for publication.

Aiden Pink is the deputy news editor of the Forward. Contact him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter @aidenpink

The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.

This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism you rely on. Make a gift today!

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.

$90 $180

$360

Other amount