Roddie Edmonds

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Roderick 'Roddie' Waring Edmonds (August 20, 1919 – August 8, 1985), was a U.S. Army infantryman renowned for his courageous stand during World War II. As the highest-ranking American non-commissioned officer captured by German forces in December 1944, Edmonds was interned at Stalag IX-A, a prisoner-of-war camp in Ziegenhain, Germany. On January 27, 1945, Edmonds refused an order by German officers to identify Jewish-American soldiers, possibly for separate execution, instead defiantly declaring that "We are all Jews here." The captors relented, sparing the lives of up to 300 Jewish-American prisoners of war. In risking his own life to save his Jewish comrades, Edmonds' actions exemplified profound moral courage and leadership. He was posthumously recognized by Yad Vashem as "Righteous Among the Nations," the only American serviceman to receive this honor. Edmonds' actions are widely recognized as sincere, highlighting the enduring power of individual conscience in the face of structural evil. President Obama praised Edmonds during a speech in 2016 at the Israeli Embassy in Washington. In 2026, he was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor by President of the United States Donald Trump.