Estonian gas company uses Auschwitz to advertise products

Website publishes photograph of the Nazi death camp, apparently referring to a Hitler joke

JTA — An Estonian gas company used a photo of Auschwitz to advertise its products.

The website of GasTerm Eesti published on Thursday a photograph of the front gate of the Nazi camp Auschwitz bearing the infamous inscription “Arbeit macht frei,” or “Work makes you free.” The caption of the photo read: “Gas heating — flexible, convenient, and effective.”

The next day the photo was removed from the company’s website and an apology was posted.

Company director Sven Linros said, according to the DzD.ee news portal, “Hitler killed himself because he got a gas bill… a lot of people laugh at this, but I do not. I visited Auschwitz with dread. I feel sorry for the victims and their families. The picture was intended for a narrow group of people. We wanted to clarify that the CH₄ gas is not toxic and can be used to heat buildings, even those with such a sad history.”

This is not the first case of Auschwitz pictures being used in an advertisement. In January, a gym in Dubai used an image from Auschwitz with the tag line “Kiss your calories goodbye.”