Final answer:
Nazi officials at the Nuremberg Trials often claimed they were following orders or attempting to minimize psychological burdens as excuses for their actions. They falsely used the pretext of resettlement for mass executions, as detailed by Otto Ohlendorf.
Step-by-step explanation:
During the Nuremberg Trials, Nazi officials offered various excuses for their involvement in the Holocaust and other wartime atrocities. A common defense was arguing they were merely following orders, a stance encapsulated in the plea "Befehl ist Befehl" (an order is an order).
One notorious pretext used for mass executions was the false claim of resettlement. Jews were rounded up under the guise of being relocated but were instead taken to execution sites. Specific organizational tactics, like the swift transportation to execution sites to reduce the victims' time to process their fate, were part of the calculated cruelty of these operations, as described by Otto Ohlendorf during the trials.