FROM NAZI SS OFFICER TO ISRAELI DEFENSE FORCES SOLDIER

Coming into this world, a child needs a parent’s love and support to grow up with a sense of themselves. Ulrich Schnaft grew up feeling abandoned, inadequate and yearning to belong, to be a part of something bigger than himself. He struggled to find his special place in the world and to prove his self-worth. Throughout his life he would seek out circumstances he believed would fulfill those needs and then worked harder than everyone else to ensure his success. Unfortunately, his choices always led to his failures.

WHO WAS ULRICH SCHNAFT

Ulrich Schnaft was born in Konigsberg, Germany in 1923, to an unwed mother who abandoned him on the steps of a state orphanage. His birth certificate did not list his father’s name. A German working-class family eventually adopted him.

Nazism was spreading throughout Germany like wildfire during his teen years. After graduating from trade school in 1941, where he had studied mechanical engineering, he joined the Waffen SS. He was convinced he would finally realize his dream of becoming important. Focused and determined, he became an officer and engaged in battles in Yugoslavia and on Germany’s dangerous Eastern front.

HE WAS CAPTURED BY THE ALLIES

By 1944, Germany was losing the war. Schnaft was sent to Italy, where he was captured by the Americans. He spent the next two years in a prisoner of war camp. In 1947, he returned to a defeated and broken Germany. Stunned by the conditions and suffering of the German people, he reflected on all his efforts to advance in life that had gotten him nowhere. He was alone, broke and without options.

HE TAKES ON A NEW IDENTITY

He moved to Munich where he shared a tiny apartment with a Holocaust survivor. It is unlikely his roommate knew of his background. His roommate seemed to be getting along fine while Schnaft was destitute. The roommate revealed that Jewish displaced persons were being supported by Jewish Humanitarian organizations and several international establishments. They provided both financial and food assistance. He made a bold decision that would alter the course of his life forever. He decided to pose as a Holocaust survivor named Gavriel Zisman. Almost immediately, he reaped the benefits reserved for concentration camp survivors, not the people who sought to kill Jews. His life suddenly improved and he realized the benefits and potential of his secret identity.

LEARNING OF ZIONISM

After learning about Zionism and the desire of many Jewish people to settle in Palestine, he thought that this may be where his future lay. Mossad LeAliyah Bet, the underground immigration network arranged illegal immigration to Israel. Schnaft was able in 1947 to convince Jewish aid organizations to help him get on one of the boats with a group of Jewish refugees preparing to leave.

SENT TO A PRISON CAMP FOR JEWS

The boat was seized by the British navy who rigorously enforced strict limits on Jewish immigration to Palestine. He and his fellow travelers were sent to a detention camp in Cyprus. There ironically, he found himself trapped in a prison camp for Jews. While imprisoned, he learned Hebrew and became a member of the Haganah, the Zionist paramilitary organization. The original mission of the Haganah was to protect Jewish settlements in Palestine. It grew into a clandestine military force prior to Israeli statehood. After Israel was established, the organization became the Israel Defense Force (IDF).

DEPORTED TO HAIFA

After the Israel Declaration of Independence, the British freed most of the prisoners in Cyprus and deported them to Haifa. Schnaft ended up on a kibbutz and learned to farm. In 1949, he joined the IDF. Few of the immigrants had papers, so Schnaft’s disturbing background was never checked. During the Arab-Israeli war, he excelled in battle and impressed his commanders with his surprising military expertise.

He was clever and talented, rising quickly up the ranks. After three years of focused hard work, he pursued a permanent officer’s post in 1952. This required a background check. This check revealed that he had no known history before 1947.

A ROWDY NIGHT OUT TO CELEBRATE

Believing he would receive the commission, he chose to have a rowdy night out with his comrades. He became extremely drunk. In his inebriated state, he jumped onto a table and took out a photo of himself in his SS uniform. He boasted to his fellow soldiers that he used to kill Jews. When word got back to his commanders, he was interrogated about the disturbing admission. He insisted it was a Purim costume. This coupled with his lack of history persuaded no one. He was immediately terminated from the IDF.

FOR A SECOND TIME HIS SUCCESS DISAPPEARED

Once again, after working hard to find his place in this world, his plans fell apart. He leased a room from an elderly German Jewish man and his young Christian spouse in Ashkelon. Disappointed, lost and experiencing emotionally upheaval, he now turned his hatred towards Israel.

His landlord threw him out when he discovered Schnaft was sleeping with his wife. To the landlord’s disbelief, his wife left with Schnaft. With West Germany experiencing rapid regrowth that provided many new opportunities, he decided to once again start anew. This time, as Ulrich Schnaft accompanied by the landlord’s Germany wife.

TRAVELING TO GERMANY

They took a ship to Italy intending to journey across the border into Germany. Having an Israeli passport, he was denied entry. Due to the Holocaust, Israel did not allow its citizens to travel to Germany. It was not until 1952, with a reparation agreement in place that the  Israeli government recognized Germany. His girlfriend had a German passport and being fed up with the situation, she continued on to Germany alone. Trapped, he decided to go back to Israel, but they would not allow Schnaft back in.

SCHNAFT BECOMES AN EGYPTIAN SPY

Disgruntled and once again out of options, he went to the Egyptian consulate in Genoa. If they could get him back into Germany, he would reveal high level secrets of Israel’s military. His deal was gladly accepted. He was sent to Cairo, given false papers and an apartment. He shared every last detail of what he had learned about the Israeli military machine. They requested he go back to Israel as a spy. He agreed but told them he wanted some time in Germany first. Going back to Germany, he started to rebuild his life once again, but things never went as planned for Ulrich Schnaft.

ISRAELI LEARNS OF HIS DECEPTION

His former girlfriend reunited with her husband and shared everything Schnaft had told her about his life. Wanting revenge for stealing his wife, the man wrote a letter to the Israeli secret service, Mossad describing all Schnaft’s crimes and deceptions. In 1955, Israeli intelligence decided he would be returned to Israel to stand trial.

A TRAP IS SET

A trap was set. A female Mossad agent met Schnaft at a night club and befriended him. She arranged to introduce him to someone who wanted intelligence on Israel. A Mossad intelligence officer posing as an Iraqi officer, Captain Adnan was actually Shmuel Moriah, an Iraqi born Jew who was both a Mossad and Shin Ben operative. While Mossad operates outside of Israeli, Shin Ben operates within the country. Captain Adnan met Schnaft several times. Schnaft bragged about everything he had done. In exchange for a considerable amount of money, he agreed to return to Israel and spy.

SCHNAFT RETURNS TO ISRAEL

With a forged passport under the name of David Weisberg, Schnaft flew to Israel. Leaving the airport, he got into what he thought was a taxi. Two intelligence officers entered the car after him. He was driven to the Shin Bet interrogation center where he confessed. He was tried and sentenced to seven years in prison for espionage. He was released in 1961 after five years and deported to Germany.

HIS LATER LIFE

The story becomes a little cloudy after his return to Germany. Some reports claimed he became a Lutheran minister, others contend he became a fundraiser for Israel, still others state he worked in a pharmacy. Shmuel Moriah, the Mossad agent who tricked Schnaft into returning to Israel has stated that he married and had a family. He returned twice to Israel as a tourist. The second time to bring his daughter to pray at the Wailing Wall. He died in 2013 at the age of 89.

On June 4, 2023, Israel declassified its dossier on Ulrich Schnaft.