By 0700 on 17 December 1944 , Peiper 's '' Kampfgruppe '' had seized the American fuel dump at Büllingen . At 1330 that same day , at a crossroads near Malmedy , men from Peiper 's LSSAH formation shot and killed at least 68 United States POWs , in what became known as the Malmedy massacre . By the evening of 17 December , the leading element of the LSSAH was engaged with the 99th US Division at Stavelot . Mohnke 's division was behind schedule by at least 36 hours by the end of the second day . The retreating U.S. troops blew up important bridges and fuel dumps that Mohnke and Peiper had counted on taking intact , further slowing the German advance . With each passing day , enemy resistance stiffened and by 24 December the advance was halted . On 1 January 1945 , the Luftwaffe launched a series of attacks on Allied airfields but the operation was very costly for the Germans . They suffered losses which could not be replaced . By this time , the Allies had regrouped their forces and were ready to repulse any attacks launched by the Germans . The operation formally ended on 27 January 1945 , and three days later Mohnke was promoted to SS - '' Brigadeführer '' . A short time later the LSSAH and I SS Panzer Corps were transferred to Hungary to try and bolster the crumbling situation there . Mohnke was injured in an air raid where he suffered , among other things , ear damage . He was removed from front-line service and put on the Führer reserve
Malmedy massacre
Malmedy massacre
Wilhelm Mohnke