Facts and Stories from WWII That We Won’t Find in History Books

39. The Heroic Last Stand

Despite her deportation to the infamous camp, Zimetbaum was spared the gas chambers, assigned instead as an interpreter due to her linguistic prowess. Despite her privileged status, she never succumbed to corruption, instead using her position to aid fellow prisoners. Risking her life, she circulated vital information, smuggled food, and warned of impending selections.

Mala’s courage shone brightest in her daring escape attempt with her lover Edek Galinski. Though recaptured, her defiance endured to the end. Facing execution, she chose to defy her captors, sacrificing herself as a symbol of resistance against the inhumanity of Auschwitz with her final words being, “I will die a heroine while you’ll die as a pig.”