Accused Nazi to Be Extradited to Israel
WASHINGTON — A man accused of being a former Nazi death camp guard will be extradited to Israel to stand trial, a Justice Department official said Friday.
A federal appeals court rejected an effort by John Demjanjuk to avoid being sent to Israel to stand trial, said Neal Sher, head of the Justice Department’s Office of Special Investigations.
Demjanjuk, identified by Israel as “Ivan the Terrible” and reportedly linked to the deaths of 900,000 Jews, is accused by the United States of concealing his activities as a guard and gas chamber operator at Sobvobor and Treblinka.
Demjanjuk, who denies the charges, would be the first person extradited by the United States as an accused war criminal at Israel’s request.
Sher said the U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati upheld late Thursday the U.S. order of extradition to Israel, where Demjanjuk faces execution if found guilty.
Demjanjuk, 65, a retired auto worker from the Cleveland suburb of Seven Hills, was ordered extradited last April 15.
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