The 13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar was one of the most controversial formations of the Waffen-SS during the Second World War. Recruited primarily from Bosnian Muslims under the direction of Heinrich Himmler, the division was created in 1943 as Nazi Germany struggled to contain the growing Yugoslav resistance. Following the German invasion of Yugoslavia in April 1941, Bosnia became part of the Independent State of Croatia, ruled by Ante Pavelić’s Ustaša regime. Persecution, ethnic violence and competing resistance movements devastated the region. The Yugoslav Partisans, led by Josip Broz Tito, challenged the German occupation, while Chetnik forces and other armed groups pursued their own objectives. Against this background, Nazi recruiters promised Bosnian Muslims protection for their families and communities. Thousands joined Handschar, which eventually numbered approximately 20,000 men. But the division’s history would be marked by internal rebellion, desertion and serious crimes against civilians. This World History documentary examines the division’s formation, its training in occupied France, and the extraordinary September 1943 mutiny at Villefranche-de-Rouergue. It explores the roles of Halim Malkoč and Willfried Schweiger, the consequences for rebellious soldiers, and the connection to Neuengamme concentration camp. The documentary follows Handschar’s return to Yugoslavia in 1944, its operations against Tito’s Partisans, atrocities in Serbian and Bosnian villages, and its relationship with the SS Division Skanderbeg. It also examines the leadership of Karl-Gustav Sauberzweig and Desiderius Hampel, the collapse of German control in the Balkans, and the growing wave of desertions. Finally, discover how the division disintegrated during Germany’s retreat towards Austria, what happened to its commanders, and how Yugoslav courts brought former members to account after the war. A story of Nazi collaboration, wartime persecution, divided loyalties and the consequences of serving the Third Reich.
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