On October 18th, 1942, Hitler issued an order to all German forces, known as the Commando Order, stating that all Allied commandos encountered in battle should be killed, “annihilated,” immediately, without being taken prisoner. The order, which was issued in secret, made it clear that failure to carry out this edict would be considered an act of negligence, and punishable under German military law.
Such was the reality of all OSS and SOE agents, that, if caught, surely meant an interrogation, which the agent knew would involve torture at the hands of ruthless people. Agents were issued a “Q” pill which was a glass vial, filled with cyanide … enough for a “quick” death.
Some key points of the SI Field Training Manual are shown: