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Daily Mail
18 hours ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
The forgotten story of WWII's baby-faced assassins who, aged just 14 and 16, seduced Nazis in bars before luring them to their deaths
Sisters Freddie and Truus Oversteegen blew up bridges and railway tracks with dynamite, smuggled Jewish children out of concentration camps and executed as many Nazis as they could, using a firearm hidden in the basket of their bike. They were only teenagers at the outbreak of World War II, but they soon used their harmless appearance to gain the trust of the officers before luring them to their deaths. Now, their stories are back in the spotlight after being shared on Instagram, with fans calling for their heroic acts against the face of evil to be made into movies, bemoaning the 'seven million Spider-Man or Batman reboots' viewers get instead. Freddie and Truus joined the Dutch resistance at the ages of 14 and 16, respectively, after witnessing horrifying violence by the Nazis, who invaded their home nation, The Netherlands, in 1940. Truus, born on 29 August 1923, in Schoten, had been protecting Jewish children, dissidents and homosexuals in safe houses across Haarlem, near Amsterdam, during the Second World War. But aged 16 she saw a baby battered to death in front of its family by a Nazi - and following the terrifying moment, she and her younger sister Freddie turned to killing all the soldiers they could. Truus recalled in Sophie Poldermans' Seducing and Killing Nazis: Hannie, Truus And Freddie: Dutch Resistance Heroines Of World War II: 'He grabbed the baby and hit it against the wall. 'The father and sister had to watch. They were obviously hysterical. The child was dead,' the resistance fighter said, according to the New York Post. Truus claimed she aimed her gun at him and fired, adding she did not regret slaying the 'cancerous tumours in our society'. Alongside her sister Freddie, born in Haarlem, near Amsterdam on September 6, 1925, and raised by their communist mother, and their law student friend Hannie Schaft, the trio became played a clandestine role in the resistance. The team had a routine: first approach the Nazi men in bars, and, having successfully seduced them, ask if they wanted to 'go for a stroll' in the forest, where, as Freddie herself put it, they would be 'liquidated'. 'We had to do it,' she told one interviewer. 'It was a necessary evil, killing those who betrayed the good people.' When asked how many people she had killed or helped kill, she demurred: 'One should not ask a soldier any of that.' Freddie acted as a courier for the resistance to begin with but was soon drafted into seducing Nazis with bright-red lipstick and pretending to be drunk alongside her sister and a 20-year-old Hannie. The law student, who had red hair and crystal-white teeth, through herself into the role by learning German and perfecting casual conversations with the soldiers. After luring them into the woods, she or a male companion would quickly shoot the unassuming officer. Author Ms Poldermans explained: 'They were killers, but they also tried hard to remain human. They tried to shoot their targets from the back so that they didn't know they were going to die.' The sisters have never revealed how many people they killed and despite Ms Poldermans being friends with them for 20 years, it does not feature in her book. But Truus did confess to breaking down in tears or fainting after killing someone, adding 'I wasn't born to kill.' Freddie - who died on September 5, 2018, one day before her 93rd birthday - was the last surviving member of the Netherlands' most famous female resistance cell, who dedicated their lives to fighting Nazi occupiers and Dutch 'traitors'. The female members of the Dutch resistance are often overlooked, and it was and still is often thought of as a man's effort. However, this kind of thinking proved to be a fatal mistake to many Nazi men, who did not recognise the threat posed by the Oversteegen sisters as they rode their bikes around Haarlem, scouting out targets or acting as lookouts for other executions. Both Oversteegen sisters survived the war. Truus found work as an artist, and was inspired to write a memoir and based on her experiences in the resistance. She died in 2016. Freddie told Vice that she coped with the traumas of the war 'by getting married and having babies.' She married Jan Dekker and their three children survive her, as do her four grandchildren. However, speaking after his mother's death in 2018, Freddie's son Remi Dekker told the Observer: 'If you ask me, the war only ended two weeks ago. 'In her mind it was still going on, and on, and on. It didn't stop, even until the last day... She shot a few people, and these were the real, real bad guys. But she hated it, and she hated herself for doing it.' In the years leading up to her death, Freddie suffered from several heart attacks at the nursing home in Driehuis where she lived - about five miles outside Haarlem. The Oversteegen siblings' friend Hannie Schaft, a onetime law student with fiery red hair, was captured and executed by the Nazis just weeks before they surrendered. 'Hannie was her soulmate friend. Freddie could never understand why the Nazis killed her just before the end of the war. She always took red roses to her grave,' revealed Manon Hoornstra, after the youngest Oversteegen sister shared many of her war time memories with the documentary maker. In Hannie's honour, Truus founded the National Hannie Schaft Foundation in 1996. Freddie served as a board member. 'Schaft became the national icon of female resistance,' said Jeroen Pliester, the foundation's chairman. Her story was taught to Dutch children and retold in a 1981 Dutch film, 'The Girl With the Red Hair'. For the sisters, their work with the resistance wasn't something they would ever regret, but it left its emotional scars. They both dealt with 'post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), enduring severe nightmares, screaming and fighting in their sleep,' revealed human rights activist Ms Poldermans to Time magazine in 2019. The author added: 'These women never saw themselves as heroines. They were extremely dedicated and believed they had no other option but to join the resistance. They never regretted what they did during the war.' 'It was tragic and very difficult and we cried about it afterwards,' Truus said, about the feeling of having killed somebody. 'We did not feel it suited us - it never suits anybody, unless they are real criminals. One loses everything. It poisons the beautiful things in life.' Their mother gave Truus and Freddie only one rule, 'always stay human', the sisters once recalled. The Dutch newspaper IJmuider Courant, reported that Freddie once told an interviewer: 'I've shot a gun myself and I've seen them fall. And what is inside us at such a moment? You want to help them get up.' During the later years of her life, Freddie strived for more acknowledgment of her role, and both sisters eventually received the Dutch Mobilization War Cross in 2014, before a street was named after each of them. 'So many years after doing their work in the shadows, they were glad for the public recognition,' Ms Poldermans told the publication. 'They wanted their stories to be known - to teach people that, as Truus put it, even when the work is hard, 'you must always remain human.''
Yahoo
a day ago
- General
- Yahoo
‘He died 3 times': Community rallies for Pasco deputy's recovery after flood rescue
PASCO COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) — A Pasco County deputy who nearly died in the line of duty is being honored by his community as he continues a long and difficult recovery from a near-fatal flood rescue. Deputy Buddy Allman was surveying neighborhoods in Dade City during hurricane conditions in October 2024 when the ground beneath his Humvee collapsed. The vehicle plunged into rising waters and flipped at a steep angle, trapping him inside. 'I turned down one road, and as I turned down the road, the road disappeared underneath me,' Allman said. 'The road caved in beneath me and it put the Humvee at a bad angle where the door was against the asphalt.' Allman's passenger, a Dade City police officer, escaped. But Allman was submerged. 'I ended up drowning,' Allman recalled. 'I was under between six and eight minutes.' Two bystanders and a sergeant pulled him from the water and performed CPR. He was rushed to Lakeland Regional Health, where he coded multiple times. 'At Lakeland Regional, I died two more times,' Allman said. 'Through the use of the ECMO machine and the phenomenal people at Lakeland Regional Hospital, I was able to pull through this.' Months later, Allman remains in recovery. He is currently receiving two-thirds of his salary, and his wife has left her job to become his full-time caregiver. Retired Pasco Sheriff's Office Major Brett Landsberg helped organize Saturday's fundraiser to help the family with expenses. 'He's only on two-thirds salary, and she has had to give up her job to care for him full-time,' Landsberg said. 'Yes, workman's comp covers things, but there are expenses that they have to pay for. That's why I wanted to hold this for them.' Landsberg said it was an easy decision. 'We have to take care of our own,' he said. 'We have an officer who gives the ultimate sacrifice he dies three times serving the citizens of Pasco County. We need to do something to help him and his family.' A GoFundMe campaign has also been launched to support the family, helping with medical bills, travel to appointments, and home accommodations for Allman's long-term care. To donate, click here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Marine restrains man allegedly trying to open plane's emergency exit during flight
A U.S. Marine heading back to the states from Tokyo, Japan, quickly stepped in and slammed a man to the ground and restrained him with zip ties after he allegedly grabbed the emergency exit door in the middle of a flight, according to reports. NBC reported Sergeant Major Jody Armentrout was on Flight 114 from Tokyo to Houston when he saw a man acting suspiciously. Armentrout, who has been in the Marines over 20 years, is stationed in Japan, and he told the media company he witnessed a suspicious man take his backpack to one bathroom before going from bathroom to bathroom. "He came out of that one and began pacing up and down the aisle, so that just threw my radar on," the 50-year-old Marine reportedly said during a phone interview. American Airlines Passenger Restrained, Knocked To Floor While Barging Into Cockpit: Video Armentrout said the man was looking at the emergency exit door next to him, and that's when the Marine quickly got up and placed himself between the man and the door. Read On The Fox News App The suspicious man turned around and ran around the plane before darting to an exit door on the opposite side of the aircraft. Armentrout told the station he only had seconds to act. Woman Climbs Onto Wing Of Alaska Airlines Plane At Seattle Airport Due To 'Anxiety' "He grabbed a strap around the door, pulled it off and about that time is when I took him and slammed him, put him on the ground," he said. "And then there was an older gentleman sitting on that side that woke up, and he got up and kind of helped me." Flight attendants also stepped in and handed the marine zip ties, which he reportedly used to restrain the man's wrists and secure him to a seat. For the remainder of the flight, Armentrout sat next to the man. The flight was diverted to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. Enraged Passenger Unloads Flurry Of Punches On Airport Worker, Wild Video Shows "His eyes … you could definitely tell there was something going on," Armentrout said. FBI Seattle confirmed the incident, saying it, along with the Port of Seattle Police Department, responded to All Nippon Flight 114 Saturday morning. "The flight was diverted to Seattle due to a passenger attempting to open the exit doors mid-flight," FBI Seattle said. "The crew and passengers restrained the individual, who was transported to a local hospital for medical evaluation after the flight landed. The FBI also said a second individual was removed from the flight after becoming frustrated with the flight diversion and punching a bathroom door. American Airlines Passenger Who Helped Restrain Unruly Traveler Says Situation Was 'Fight Or Flight' The flight continued to its destination after its stop in Seattle and landed in Houston without further incident. No charges have been filed in the incident, the FBI said. Prosecutors are reviewing reports and witness statements to determine if the case is appropriate for federal prosecution. All Nippon Airways told Fox News Digital the flight was diverted due to an "unruly" passenger. "While on the tarmac in Seattle, a second passenger became unruly," the airline said. "Both were removed from the flight by the Port of Seattle Police. "The safety of our passengers and crew are our top priority, and we applaud the efforts of local law enforcement for their support."Original article source: Marine restrains man allegedly trying to open plane's emergency exit during flight
Fox News
2 days ago
- General
- Fox News
Marine restrains man allegedly trying to open plane's emergency exit during flight
A U.S. Marine heading back to the states from Tokyo, Japan, quickly stepped in and slammed a man to the ground and restrained him with zip ties after he allegedly grabbed the emergency exit door in the middle of a flight, according to reports. NBC reported Sergeant Major Jody Armentrout was on Flight 114 from Tokyo to Houston when he saw a man acting suspiciously. Armentrout, who has been in the Marines over 20 years, is stationed in Japan, and he told the media company he witnessed a suspicious man take his backpack to one bathroom before going from bathroom to bathroom. "He came out of that one and began pacing up and down the aisle, so that just threw my radar on," the 50-year-old Marine reportedly said during a phone interview. Armentrout said the man was looking at the emergency exit door next to him, and that's when the Marine quickly got up and placed himself between the man and the door. The suspicious man turned around and ran around the plane before darting to an exit door on the opposite side of the aircraft. Armentrout told the station he only had seconds to act. "He grabbed a strap around the door, pulled it off and about that time is when I took him and slammed him, put him on the ground," he said. "And then there was an older gentleman sitting on that side that woke up, and he got up and kind of helped me." Flight attendants also stepped in and handed the marine zip ties, which he reportedly used to restrain the man's wrists and secure him to a seat. For the remainder of the flight, Armentrout sat next to the man. The flight was diverted to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. "His eyes … you could definitely tell there was something going on," Armentrout said. FBI Seattle confirmed the incident, saying it, along with the Port of Seattle Police Department, responded to All Nippon Flight 114 Saturday morning. "The flight was diverted to Seattle due to a passenger attempting to open the exit doors mid-flight," FBI Seattle said. "The crew and passengers restrained the individual, who was transported to a local hospital for medical evaluation after the flight landed. The FBI also said a second individual was removed from the flight after becoming frustrated with the flight diversion and punching a bathroom door. The flight continued to its destination after its stop in Seattle and landed in Houston without further incident. No charges have been filed in the incident, the FBI said. Prosecutors are reviewing reports and witness statements to determine if the case is appropriate for federal prosecution. All Nippon Airways told Fox News Digital the flight was diverted due to an "unruly" passenger. "While on the tarmac in Seattle, a second passenger became unruly," the airline said. "Both were removed from the flight by the Port of Seattle Police. "The safety of our passengers and crew are our top priority, and we applaud the efforts of local law enforcement for their support."
BBC News
3 days ago
- General
- BBC News
Men who saved family from submerged car in Nuneaton get award
Two men who "saved the lives" of a family from a submerged car have been recognised for their Gill and Steve Elston were honoured for their "extraordinary bravery and decisive actions" after rescuing one adult and two young children in Nuneaton on 5 March, the council pair, who work for Currys and were driving between jobs, had spotted a vehicle upside down and partially submerged in water after being flagged down by a member of the Gill jumped into the lake and forced the car door open, rescuing a baby first, who he passed to Mr Elston who was on the riverbank. Mr Gill then rescued a second child from the rear passenger seat, before returning to help pull the adult driver County Council said Mr Elston had also organised a human chain with two other people who had stopped to help get them to men have been presented with the Chief Fire Officer's Commendation Award by Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service (WFRS).Chief fire officer, Ben Brook, praised their "courageous actions" after coming across the car."Their quick thinking and decisive actions, helping one adult and two young children to get out of the vehicle, has saved lives," he Gill said the incident was a "very emotional day" he would never forget."I don't feel like a hero, I just did what was necessary," he said."A scary day, it makes you think about life differently," added Mr Elston. Follow BBC Coventry & Warwickshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
