U.S. Judge Finds Soviet Arrest of Wallenberg Illegal
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WASHINGTON — The Soviet Union violated international law 40 years ago by seizing Raoul Wallenberg, the Swedish diplomat credited with saving 100,000 Jews from extermination by the Nazis, a federal judge ruled today.
U.S. District Judge Barrington D. Parker found against the Soviets in a suit filed on behalf of Wallenberg’s half brother, Guy von Dardel, and his legal guardian, Sven Hagstromer, who charged that the seizure and detention of Wallenberg in 1945 violated the laws and treaties of the Soviet Union, the laws of the United States and the law of nations.
They sought either Wallenberg’s release from the Soviet Union or, if he is dead, the return of his remains for a hero’s burial.
The Soviets were served notice of the suit through the State Department after it was filed Feb. 2, 1984, but returned all documents to the U.S. Embassy in Moscow on April 19 of that year with a note asserting absolute sovereign immunity.
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