Chabad Pushes for Fine Over Russian Art Grab
The Chabad-Lubavitch movement asked a U.S. judge to fine Russia for refusing to hand over confiscated Jewish scriptures, but the U.S. Justice Department opposed the move.
According to the Associated Press, Chabad lawyer Seth Gerber last week asked Chief Judge Royce Lamberth of the U.S. District Court in Washington to fine Russia for not transferring tens of thousands of religious books and manuscripts about the group’s core teachings from its state library and military archive.
U.S. Justice Department lawyer Joel McElvain said the U.S. government has made progress, albeit “slow and halting,” on the matter. He said that fines would amount to a substantial step backward.
Lamberth ordered the institutions to give up the items in 2010, five years after Chabad sued for their return. Russia has not recognized the authority of the U.S. court and is refusing to give up the artifacts, saying they are important to Russian national heritage.
The report did not say when Lamberth, who made no ruling during last week’s session, is expected to give his decision.
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.
In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.
At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.
Readers like you make it all possible. Right now, we’re in the middle of our Passover Pledge Drive and we need 500 people to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Our Goal: 500 gifts during our Passover Pledge Drive!
