During WWII, who attempted to exterminate the Jews in Europe?

The attempt to exterminate the Jews in Europe during World War II is primarily attributed to Adolf Hitler and the Nazi regime in Germany. This campaign of mass murder, known as the Holocaust, resulted in the systematic annihilation of six million Jews, alongside millions of others deemed undesirable by the Nazis, including Romani people, disabled individuals, and political dissidents.

Hitler promoted an extreme ideology based on antisemitism, which dehumanized Jewish people and falsely accused them of various societal ills. This led to the implementation of discriminatory laws, the establishment of concentration and extermination camps, and mass shootings. The systematic nature of the genocide reflected a chilling policy directed from the highest levels of the Nazi government, making Hitler the central figure in this horrific chapter of history.

The other figures mentioned, such as Stalin, Mussolini, and Franco, were involved in various wartime and political actions during the period but did not carry out a state-sponsored attempt to exterminate Jews on the scale orchestrated by Hitler and the Nazi regime. Stalin focused on consolidating power within the Soviet Union, Mussolini led Fascist Italy with a different focus, and Franco ruled Spain without engaging in a similar genocidal campaign against Jews, although his regime was marked by repression.