New York, NY, March 15, 2005 … The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) welcomed the extension of an interagency working group on Nazi war crimes which works to unveil previously classified information about the history of Nazi persecution and the relationship of the U.S. government to war criminals after the war.

The mandate of the Nazi War Crimes and Japanese Imperial Government Records Interagency Working Group was to have expired at the end of March, with more information yet to be disclosed.  The U.S. House of Representatives yesterday voted 391 to 0 to continue its mandate for an additional two years, clearing the way for the release of thousands of additional documents on former Nazis.

"We owe it to the victims and to the American people to do everything in our power to bring the truth to light, no matter how uncomfortable these revelations may be," said Abraham H. Foxman, ADL National Director.  "We welcome this important step by Congress, and commend Rep. Carolyn Maloney and Sen. Mike DeWine for their efforts to ensure the effective implementation of this law."

The working group was created by the Nazi War Crimes Disclosure Act of 1998, which opened to the public hundreds of thousands of pages of FBI, CIA, and U.S. Army Intelligence records related to Nazi and other World War II war crimes and perpetrators.  Following reports that the CIA was reluctant to open some files, ADL urged the CIA to abandon its more narrow reading of what information it would have to release.  The agency has since pledged to be forthcoming and provide the additional documentation sought by the working group.

The Anti-Defamation League, founded in 1913, is the world's leading organization fighting anti-Semitism through programs and services that counteract hatred, prejudice and bigotry.