Hitler's Jihadis

Muslim Volunteers of the Waffen-SS

The story of tens of thousands of Muslims from as far away as India who volunteered to wear the SS double lightning flashes and serve alongside their erstwhile conquerors

As the West finds itself embroiled in conflict with radical Islam, it is fascinating to hear the echoes of militant Islam from World War II. This history gives insight into the prewar politics that inspired these Islamic volunteers, who for the most part did not survive. Those who did survive the war and the bloody retribution that followed saw the reputation of the units in which they served berated as militarily inept and castigated for atrocities against unarmed civilians. Firsthand accounts and official records peel away the propaganda to reveal the complexity that lies at the heart of the story of Hitler's most unlikely "Aryans."