Leonard George Siffleet was born on 14th January 1916. He was born in Gunnedah, New South Wales. While he wasn’t so much of an outdoor person, he enjoyed swimming and performing activities that didn’t require much physical movement, like knitting.
He moved to Sydney in the late 1930s in search of a job. The police rejected him as a result of his poor vision. When the war began, his eyesight was not so much of an issue as he was called up for the militia in August 1940.
He served at the Richmond Air Force Base and was released three months later to resume civilian life. His mother died in 1941, leaving him and his younger sister to the task of raising their younger brothers.
He joined the AIF in September 1941. He was posted to the 1st Division Signals Company at Ingleburn. He eventually took a course on specialist signals at Melbourne Technical College.
In September 1942, he joined the Z Special Unit as a volunteer for particular duties. He went to the Z Experimental Station in Cairns, where Special Operations Australia trained its operatives in October.
During his training, the Dutch section of the Inter-Allied Services Department was planning a mission to establish a coast-watching station in the hills above Hollandia in Dutch New Guinea that the Japanese had recently occupied.
Leonard George Siffleet was chosen as the operation’s radio operator. In May 1943, he was promoted to sergeant and transferred to M Special Unit. At that time, he and his teammates were hiking along New Guinea’s mountainous spine en route to the north coast.
They were discovered in mid-September by New Guinean natives. More than 100 locals surrounded them. Siffleet shot one of the attackers, injuring him and successfully broke free. He didn’t go far before he and his teammates were caught and taken to the Japanese.
His captors took him to Malol near Aitape. Here he was beaten and interrogated. He was then imprisoned for two weeks before being moved to Aitape.
On 24th October 1943, he and two other prisoners were taken to Aitape beach. They wore blindfolds and were made to kneel before a large crowd. Here, they were beheaded and buried as the Vice-Admiral Michiaki Kamada of the Imperial Japanese Navy ordered.
Yasuno Chikao, the officer who killed George Siffleet, asked to be photographed in the act. This photograph of Siffleet’s execution was eventually discovered on the body of a dead Japanese major by American troops in April 1944. It was published by LIFE and became one of the war’s most iconic photos.
