Emil Rühl was a German Sicherheitsdienst (SD) officer who worked in the occupied Netherlands during the Second World War. He became known for his harsh and often violent role in the fight against the Dutch resistance.
Rühl was based mainly in Amsterdam, where he took part in tracking down resistance members, hidden Jews, and people who refused to follow German orders. He worked closely with other well-known SD officers such as Willy Lages, Friedrich Viebahn, and Maarten Kuiper. Together they caused fear across the city.
One of the cases where his name appears clearly is the arrest of Jan Bonekamp in June 1944. Bonekamp was wounded after an attack on a collaborator in Zaandam. Rühl tried to force information out of him while he was lying in the hospital, and the names he managed to obtain helped the SD locate several resistance members.
Survivors later described Rühl as a cruel interrogator. Many resistance fighters did not survive their time under his questioning. His actions contributed to deportations, executions, and the destruction of resistance groups.
After the liberation in 1945, Rühl was arrested by the Dutch authorities. He was put on trial and found guilty of war crimes because of his role in torture, arrests, and killing of civilians.
Today, Emil Rühl is remembered as one of the German officials who helped enforce the terror of the occupation. His story shows how the SD operated in the Netherlands and the damage they caused to so many lives.
