Heinz Kessler

Heinz Kessler or Heinz Kebler (26 January 1920 – 2 May 2017) was a former East German communist politician, military officer and a convicted felon. He is known for his role in political repression in East Germany prior to the communist regime's downfall in 1989.

Armeegeneral Heinz Kessler
Heinz Kessler in 1988
Minister of Defence of German Democratic Republic
In office 3 December 1985 – 18 November 1989
President	Erich Honecker
Prime Minister	Willi Stoph Hans Modrow
Preceded by	Heinz Hoffmann
Succeeded by	Theodor Hoffman
Personal details
Born	(1920-01-26)26 January 1920 Lauban, Province of Lower Silesia, Weimar Germany
Died	2 May 2017(2017-05-02) (aged 97) Berlin, Germany
Political party	German Communist Party (since 2009)
Other political affiliations	Communist Party of Germany (1945-1946) Socialist Unity Party of Germany (1946-1989) Party of Democratic Socialism (1989-1990)German Communist Party (1990–present)
Spouse(s)	Ruth Kessler (died 2013)
Awards
Military service
Allegiance	Nazi Germany (1940-1941) Soviet Union (1941-1945) East Germany (1950-1989)
Years of service	Wehrmacht (1940-1941) Soviet Army (1941-1945) National People's Army (1950-1989)
Rank	Armeegeneral
Commands	Commander-in-chief of the Kommando LSK/LV Ministry of National Defence
Battles/wars	World War II Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia Angolan Civil War

In East Germany, he held the rank of Armeegeneral in the National People's Army (Nationale Volksarmee) and was Minister of Defense of the GDR, a member of the Politbüro of the Central Committee of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED), and a deputy of the GDR's Volkskammer (parliament).

Convicted for his role in the crimes of the communist regime, he was sentenced to seven-and-a-half years in prison after German reunification, and served his sentence in a Prison. He was removed from prison in 1998 after serving only five years.

Kessler was expelled from the Party of Democratic Socialism in 1990. In 2009, he joined the German Communist Party (DKP). He was a DKP candidate in the Berlin state election, 2011. Kessler died 2 May 2017 at the age of 97.^[1][2]