X Troop - The Strangest Elite Unit of WW2
10,022On July 17, 1944, Erwin Rommel’s car was strafed by British aircraft after leaving his headquarters. The Field Marshal was seriously wounded and hospitalized with severe head injuries that took him out of World War 2.
The Normandy landings had taken place just a month before, and the British had suspected that Germany had mined the beaches of Northern France, a devastating ploy that could foil their landing efforts. Thus, British Army officer George Lane was sent to gather intelligence.
Lane was captured after having completed two successful missions. He expected to be executed according to Hitler’s Commando Order, but instead, he was blindfolded and taken to a secret location where he met Rommel face to face.
The clever Jewish soldier managed to charm the Desert Fox and hide the fact that he was German and Jewish, and he was then sent to a prisoner camp.
While there, Lane shared Rommel’s location with the other inmates, and after confirming the specific château through a book in the camp’s library, they relayed the information to London via a smuggled wireless radio.
Rommel would be intercepted by British aircraft weeks later, one of many extraordinary accomplishments carried out with the help of German Jewish operatives of the legendary X Troop, whose brave actions would significantly shape the fate of the war…
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