Djelfa was located near Algiers in Algeria. At the time of the French-German armistice, many European Jews were stranded in North Africa. Those Jews who had volunteered to serve in the French army were put in hard labor camps along the route planned for the Trans-Saharan railway which was to be built by the Vichy regime. The Jewish prisoners were dispersed over thirty camps, of which Djelfa was the largest holding 700 to 1,000 prisoners. These camps were administered by former officers of the French Foreign Legion who made no effort to hide their dislike of the Jews or sympathy for the Nazis.
Below are thumbnails of the front and back of a cover from a prisoner at Djelfa, Walter Wachs, to the International Red Cross in Geneva, Switzerland. This cover is postmarked May 20, 1942. Please click on the thumbnail to see the full image, and then click your back key or "Postcard" in the left frame to return.
Copyright © 2002 Edward Victor