EXCLUSIVE: German general honored for helping restore identities of fallen Jewish soldiers

Operation Benjamin, an organization dedicated to restoring the Jewish identities of fallen American Jewish soldiers, awarded its first Order of the Marble Star of David to retired German General Dirk Backen. Backen, Secretary General of the German War Graves Commission, was honored for his efforts in identifying and correctly marking the graves of Jewish soldiers.

• Backen played a crucial role in the recovery and reinterment of 1st Lt. Nathan Baskind, a Jewish American officer killed in WWII, whose remains were mistakenly buried in a German mass grave. Shalom Lamm, co-founder of Operation Benjamin, recounted Backen's commitment, stating, "Let’s bring this boy home."
• Following this, Backen initiated "Operation Levi," a collaboration with Operation Benjamin, to identify German Jewish soldiers from WWI mistakenly buried under crosses and replace them with Stars of David. This initiative has identified 1,307 such soldiers, with over 50 markers already replaced.
• The award, a 9-inch marble Star of David, was presented during Operation Benjamin's June mission to France, which also saw the replacement of markers for American and German Jewish soldiers.
• Lamm praised Backen as "one of the righteous gentiles of the world," highlighting his work as an effort to confront and correct historical injustices.