Nazi denies slaughter charges

AN 86-year-old Nazi war crimes suspect charged with the murders of 164 Slovak villagers during the Second World War denied he was involved in the shootings of women or children as his trial opened in Germany yesterday.

Ladislav Niznansky is accused of having headed the Slovak section of a Nazi unit code-named Edelweiss, which hunted resistance fighters and Jews after the Germans crushed an uprising against Slovakia's Nazi puppet government in 1944.

He faces 164 counts of murder for taking part in the killings, including giving the order to shoot 18 Jewish civilians.

Niznansky's lawyer, Steffen Ufer, argued in the Munich court that Niznansky was under orders from Nazi superiors and not present when the bulk of the shootings happened.

"He never gave an order to move against women and children, nor did he personally lift his hand against such persons," said Ufer.

Outside the courtroom, Niznansky flatly told reporters: "I am not guilty."

Now a German citizen, Niznansky was arrested at his Munich home in January.

He could face life in prison if convicted.