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RIGHTEOUS AMONG THE NATIONS – Here is the story of America’s only soldier to receive Israel’s highest honor for non-Jews who risked their lives to save Jews during the Holocaust. On this day, 77 years ago, he and his men showed incredible bravery and strength when they stood up to evil, despite the risk of being executed.

US Army Master Sergeant Roddie Edmonds, from the 422nd Infantry Regiment, 106th Infantry Division, was captured by German forces during the Battle of the Bulge. A 25-year-old native of Knoxville, Tennessee, Edmonds had only been on the front lines for five days when his unit was overrun.

Edmonds was taken to Stalag IX-A, a POW camp in Germany, where he became responsible for 1,275 American soldiers. On January 27, 1945, the camp's German commander ordered Edmonds to gather all the Jewish-American soldiers to separate them from the others.

In response, Edmonds assembled all the 1,275 POWs.

Angrily, the German officer approached Edmonds, placed a gun to his head, and demanded he point out the Jewish soldiers. Edmonds, who was a strong Baptist, boldly responded, “We are all Jews here.” He warned the officer that if he wanted to kill the Jewish soldiers, he’d have to kill everyone. He also threatened to have the officer prosecuted for war crimes when Germany lost the war. Edmonds reminded the officer that the Geneva Conventions stated that POWs only had to give their name, rank, and serial number—not their religion.

The officer backed down.

Thanks to Edmonds’ brave stand, 200 Jewish-American soldiers were saved from being murdered. Edmonds survived 100 days as a POW and returned home after the war. He never spoke about the event at the camp, keeping it to himself. Later, Edmonds served in the Korean War.

It wasn’t until Edmonds died in 1985 and his son reviewed his diaries that the story came to light. Jewish-American POWs, including Sonny Fox, who later worked for NBC, confirmed the story. In 2015, Israel honored Edmonds as “Righteous Among the Nations.”

Today, on International Holocaust Remembrance Day, we remember the 6 million Jews and 11 million others who were killed during the Holocaust. We also honor all Allied veterans who helped end the tyranny of the Third Reich. Master Sergeant Edmonds and the 1,275 American soldiers who stood with him are part of that history. We are grateful and take a moment to thank them.

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