The Nazi Night and Fog Decree, issued by Hitler on December 7, 1941, was one of the more chilling tactics used by the Nazi regime to silence resistance. The idea behind it was simple but terrifying: people who opposed the Nazis—especially those involved in underground resistance efforts—would just disappear without a trace. No trial, no notice to their families, no record. One day they were there, and the next, gone into the "night and fog."
The decree was carried out mainly in Western Europe. If someone was suspected of helping the resistance, they could be secretly arrested and transported to a concentration camp deep inside Germany. Their families were left completely in the dark, which was exactly the point. The fear of not knowing what happened to someone was meant to scare others into staying quiet. It was a psychological weapon as much as a physical one—intended to crush hope and resistance by making people feel powerless. Those arrested often faced brutal conditions, and many never returned.
Excerpts from the Nacht und Nebel decree:
“These acts will not be judged in occupied territories unless it is probable that death penalties will be handed down against their main perpetrators and if the prosecution and the execution of the death penalties can be carried out with full diligence.”
“Hearings by courts in Germany, given the ‘threats to national security,’ must be carried out behind closed doors and in absolute secrecy.”
In practice, if the German police arrested someone suspected of having contact with “the enemy,” that person could be tried in their own country—but only if the trial could happen within a week and would result in a death sentence. If not, they were secretly deported to Germany, either to await a closed trial or to be imprisoned in a concentration camp. If they died, their families were never informed.
After the war, the Night and Fog Decree was recognized as a war crime. At the Nuremberg Trials, Nazi officials like Wilhelm Keitel, who signed the order, were held responsible and punished.
