Svein Blindheim
 Svein Blindheim    (officer, whistleblower) | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 29 August 1916 |
| Died | 17 March 2013 (Age 96) |
| Nationality | Norwegian |
| Alma mater | Norwegian Military Academy |
| Exposed | Norway/Stay Behind |
| Interests | Ivar Johansen |
Resistance hero who later revealed Stay Behind activities, and was convicted to prison for it. | |
Svein Lavik Blindheim [1]) was a Norwegian military officer, known for his resistance work during World War II and later for exposing stay behind activities.
In 1978 he was convicted to 75 days imprisonment for revealing that the Norwegian intelligence agencies in cooperation with the CIA in the 1950s had trained Finnish Nazis and sent them on missions into the Soviet Union from Finland without the knowledge of Finnish authorities.
The sentence came despite that the revealed information had been made public by Finnish agents in a Finnish newspaper years before Blindheim.[2] He himself claimed that he was convicted because of his outspoken criticism of NATO and Norwegian nuclear policy.
Personal life
Blindheim was born in Voss as a son of educator Severin Nicolai Blindheim (1890–1925) and teacher Ragna Lavik (1891–1976).[3] Before the Second World War he took education in Askim, and competed in middle distance running and skiing for the local sports club Askim IF. He took military education at Terningmoen.
Career
He participated in the Battle of Fossum Bridge of the Norwegian Campaign, and was later a member of the Special Operations Executive branch Norwegian Independent Company 1. In 1944 he initiated and was the first leader of the sabotage group Aks 13000. He was decorated with the [War Cross with Sword[3][4] and the War Medal with one Star for his war contributions.
After the war he was one of the founders of the Linge Club, which consisted of veterans who had served in the Special Operations Executive branch under Martin Linge.
After the war, Blindheim served in the Norwegian Brigade in Germany, before in 1949 he was ordered to the Defense Staff's intelligence service, where he took part in the organization of Stay Behind groups. In 1953, he trained Finnish agents, and sent them on intelligence missions into the Soviet Union.
He quit his military career in 1966, after being dissatisfied with Norwegian policy in respect of nuclear weapons. After retirement, he worked as a teacher at the university, and became increasingly outspoken in his critique of NATO and military policy. Politically he aligned with the Liberal Party in the post-war period. [4]
Blindheim was one of the few veterans of the Resistance movement who wrote works on the subject of history and military affairs, and authored many critical articles about the war and the occupation.
