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The British soldier who broke into Auschwitz

A former British soldier and prisoner of war has recalled the horror he felt after swapping uniforms with a Dutch Jew - and breaking into Auschwitz.

Denis Avey, 92, was captured during the Second World War and sent to the IG Farben plant, known as Auschwitz III, where the deadly gas was produced.

But when Mr Avey was told about the mass killings and smelled the horrendous stench from nearby crematoriums he vowed to witness the atrocities for himself.

The brave soldier bribed guards with cigarettes and swapped uniforms with a Dutch Jew who was roughly the same height.

With the risk of almost certain death, he broke into the deadly camp and witnessed for himself the 'vaguely human' corpses piling up each day.

Mr Avey has now for the first time told the incredible story in a book called The Man Who Broke Into Auschwitz.

He recalls using the cigarettes and chocolate from Red Cross packages to bribe guards during weeks of preparation.

Mr Avey twice sneaked into the camp where on both occasions he spent the night alongside Jewish prisoners close to death.

'I did my homework over weeks and weeks, but the common denominator of all that was a tremendous amount of luck,' Mr said....
Read entire article at Daily Mail (UK)