The US National Archives published all previously classified materials of the case of the assassination of the 35th American President John F. Kennedy on Wednesday.
Earlier, US President Donald Trump signed the relevant decree, announcing that about 80 thousand pages will be published. In the release of the National Archives – 1123 documents.
The release says that all records will be published as they are digitised. They will be accessible both online and in person, in print or analogue, at the National Archives building in Maryland.
Some of the documents relate to information that is held under judicial classification or classified for grand jury confidentiality. Some of the materials contain information about tax returns subject to the Internal Revenue Code’s (IRS) confidentiality clause or records given to the government from a private individual.
John F. Kennedy was shot and killed two years after being elected President of the United States, on November 22, 1963, while on an official visit to Dallas, Texas. As the motorcade drove through the streets of the city, shots were heard – the president was shot twice. Kennedy died half an hour later, despite the efforts of medics.
Former Marine Lee Harvey Oswald was arrested on suspicion of murder. He was shot three days later by nightclub owner Jack Ruby, who later died in prison.
Since 1992, the American authorities have been gradually declassifying the materials of the investigation into the assassination of President Kennedy. The decree on this is issued by the President of the United States. The number of classified materials is unknown, according to some estimates, 97% of the materials have been disclosed. The CIA said in 2018 that it had declassified more than 99% of its information on the case.
Trump noted that under a 1992 executive order, all documents from the investigation into President Kennedy’s assassination were to be made public in 2017. However, both the Republican and his predecessor Joe Biden have repeatedly extended the secrecy status to review the materials.
The Republican said some documents remain undisclosed because the potential damage to US national security, law enforcement or foreign affairs is “so serious that it outweighs the public interest in immediate disclosure.”
Almost immediately after his inauguration, Trump ordered the preparation of a plan to release the remaining classified material on the assassinations of John F. Kennedy, his brother, former US Attorney General Robert and preacher Martin Luther King. According to the Republican, this is “in the public interest.”
