Watching: The Trial of Klaus Barbie

Overview

On May 11, 1987, the trial of Klaus Barbie, former head of the Gestapo and the first Nazi officer to be tried in France for crimes against humanity, began in Lyon. Tracked down and identified by Beate and Serge Klarsfeld, he was extradited from Bolivia through intergovernmental agreements. The charges centered on three major crimes: the roundups on Rue Sainte-Catherine, the roundup of the children of Izieu, and the final deportation convoy of August 11, 1944. During 37 hearings, filmed in their entirety, the survivors’ testimonies reveal a relentless and cruel torturer. Barbie, absent on the advice of his lawyer Jacques Vergès, was sentenced on July 4, 1987, to life imprisonment. This verdict marked a key milestone in the fight against impunity for Nazi criminals. Barbie died in 1991.