Thieves steal sign from death camp

OSWIECIM, Poland (AP) — Thieves stole the notorious sign bearing the cynical Nazi slogan “Work Sets You Free” from the entrance to the former Auschwitz death camp Friday, cutting through rows of barbed wire and metal bars before making their escape through the snow.

The brazen seizure of one of the Holocaust’s most chilling symbols brought worldwide condemnation.

“The theft of such a symbolic object is an attack on the memory of the Holocaust and an escalation from those elements that would like to return us to darker days,” Yad Vashem Chairman Avner Shalev said in a statement from Jerusalem.

The 16-foot sign bearing the German words “Arbeit Macht Frei” — “Work Sets You Free” — spanned the main entrance to the Auschwitz death camp, where more than 1 million people, mostly Jews, were killed during World War II.

Working under the cover of darkness and timing their theft between regular security patrols, the culprits unscrewed the 90-pound steel banner on one side and tore it off on the other, then carried it 300 yards to an opening in a concrete wall.

The opening, which had been left intentionally to preserve a poplar tree dating back to the war, was blocked by four metal bars, which the thieves cut. Footprints in the snow led to the nearby road, where police believe the sign was loaded onto a vehicle.

The sign disappeared between 3:30 a.m. and 5 a.m., a police spokeswoman said. Authorities were reviewing footage from a surveillance camera that overlooks the entrance gate and the road beyond.However, Auschwitz memorial director Piotr Cywinski told reporters the camera broadcasts live images on the Internet, and the footage is not recorded. He announced a $34,000 reward for information leading to the sign’s recovery and the apprehension of the culprits.

The slogan “Arbeit Macht Frei” appeared at the entrances of other Nazi camps, including Dachau and Sachsenhausen, but the long, curving sign at Auschwitz is the best known.