U.S. Wants Hungarian Holocaust Suit Tossed
Tuesday June 29, 2004 4:31 AM
By CATHERINE WILSON
Associated Press Writer
MIAMI (AP) - The United States bears no responsibility for the lost riches that Hungarian Jews say were plundered by the Army after the collapse of Nazi Germany, the Justice Department said in asking a federal judge to throw out their lawsuit.
The government acknowledged ``the immeasurable and tragic losses'' suffered by Jews in the Holocaust but minimized the holdings of Hungarian Jews on the Nazi ``Gold Train'' intercepted by U.S. forces in 1945.
The papers filed Friday were the government's response to claims of Army wrongdoing and a decades-long cover-up alleged in the lawsuit filed three years ago.
The dismissal request claims, among other things, that the Hungarian government assumed responsibility for the claims in two treaties and the claims are too old to pursue in court.
Sam Dubbin, attorney for Hungarian Holocaust survivors and their families, responded Monday that the government ``is callously blaming the victims and using legal technicalities that our nation has opposed all over the world when it comes to justice for Holocaust survivors.'' A written response by the plaintiffs is due July 23.
The families claim $50 million to $120 million in gold, jewels, art and other valuables was taken from 800,000 Hungarian Jews by Nazi Germany - and later by the U.S. Army, from generals on down - from the train that wound its way through Hungary and Austria.
The American government had denied the train even existed until a 1999 report on Holocaust assets by a commission named by President Clinton.
The government's renewed move to erase the claims comes weeks before a Washington attorney is due to launch mediation. It also comes in the wake of a request in May by a bipartisan group of 17 U.S. senators urging ``a fair and expeditious resolution.''
Justice spokesman Charles Miller had nothing to add Monday to the government's court filing.
About 30,000 Hungarian Jews and their survivors seek a trial on class-action claims of large-scale looting and official denials about the train.
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RomanK
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