Nathan Baskind

Nathan 'Nate' B. Baskind (1916 – June 23, 1944) was a Jewish-American officer in the United States Army's 899th Tank Destroyer Battalion who served during World War II. He was killed in action near Cherbourg, Normandy, 17 days after the D-Day landings. Baskind's remains were unidentified for decades until advances in DNA technology led to his identification, after eighty years, in 2024. He was reburied with military and Jewish honors at the Normandy American Cemetery in June 2024, the cemetery’s first full military honors and burial in complete compliance with Jewish law.

Early life and background Baskind was born in 1916 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to a Jewish family of Eastern European immigrants who settled in Pittsburgh. Baskind was drafted in the United States Army during the early years of World War II. He served in the 899th Tank Destroyer Battalion, commanding a platoon of M10 tank destroyers.

Military service and death Baskind was drafted in the Army in 1942.

Identification process The team of German, French, and American experts who exhumed his remains from the mass grave faced significant challenges. Among thousands of bones, American and French anthropologists and forensic experts identified potential remains of Baskind based on bone lengths. Samples of those bones were analyzed by Bode Technologies in the US through mitochondrial and Y-chromosome DNA testing. Relatives, including his great-niece Samantha Baskind, provided DNA samples for comparison. By February 2024, the identification was confirmed by Bode, and official US government confirmation was subsequently confirmed by the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA).

Reburial ceremony and legacy On June 23, 2024, 80 years to the day after his death, Baskind was reburied at the Normandy American Cemetery in Colleville-sur-Mer, under a headstone marked with the Star of David. His reburial was one of the rare new interments at the cemetery and the first conducted in accordance with Jewish traditions.

The ceremony was attended by military officials, dignitaries, and Baskind's family. A rosette was placed next to Baskind's name on the memorial wall of the cemetery to indicate he was no longer missing. This was the first time in the cemetery’s history that next of kin, Samantha Baskind, rather than cemetery staff, placed the rosette next to a fallen soldier’s name.

June 5, 2025, General Dirk fulfilled a commitment to honor 1st Lt. Nathan B. Baskind at the Marigny German War Cemetery. The German War Graves Commission installed an interactive knowledge board about many of the soldiers buried in this WWII German war cemetery, including the story of Nathan B. Baskind. More significantly, they created a small designated theater with a movie about Nathan Baskind including and especially his Jewish roots.

Family Baskind's great niece, Samantha Baskind, wrote an opinion piece on the event for CNN.