Extermination camp

The term “extermination camp” refers to a series of concentration camps established during World War II for the systematic murder of European Jews, Sinti and Romani. In addition to the death camps in the Generalgouvernement (Bełżec, Sobibór, Treblinka) and the camp in Chełmno near Lodz, the concentration camps Auschwitz and Majdanek were such “death factories”. More than 3 million people were murdered in the extermination camps with exhaust fumes, poison gas or by shooting. The direct perpetrators came primarily from the ranks of the SS, but numerous state institutions such as the Reichsbahn and private companies that were involved in the preparation and organization were also jointly responsible.