The Federal Court has mandated the disclosure of previously withheld sections from a pivotal September 1986 study prepared for a federal commission investigating war crimes. Federal Court Justice Simon Fothergill’s ruling, made public today, directs the government to reveal redacted segments of the study regarding the resettlement of suspected Nazi war criminals in Canada post-World War II. B’nai Brith Canada has persistently sought broader access to the report authored by researcher Alti Rodal.
Earlier this year, in response to B’nai Brith’s information request, Library and Archives Canada released additional parts of the report. Nevertheless, certain sections, such as those detailing the involvement of American intelligence agencies in aiding the settlement of Nazi collaborators in Canada, were still withheld by Library and Archives.
Fothergill’s decision dismissed the federal government’s argument that unveiling specific details could adversely impact Canada’s international relations.