AESTHETIC DERMATOLOGY
Marvin E. Klein M.D.
Details Released
On Swiss Accounts
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Brussels (JTA) — Swiss bankers
released details in Bern of their
plan to return accounts of Holo-
caust victims to their rightful
heirs.
The announcement came as
world Jewish leaders held a con-
ference at the European Parlia-
ment in Brussels to discuss issues
on the agenda of European Jew-
ry, specifically questions of resti-
tution.
"We are seeking to write the
closing chapter on the tragic his-
tory of the Holocaust," said Elan
Steinberg, executive director of
the World Jewish Congress.
The European Jewish Con-
gress and the World Jewish
Restitution Organization co-spon-
sored the meeting at the Euro-
pean Parliament, the legislative
arm of the European Union. Par-
liament leaders also were to at-
tend the conference.
Jewish officials were scheduled
to meet with the Swiss Bankers
Association "to begin delibera-
tions on the necessary next steps"
to return funds held in Swiss ac-
counts, Mr. Steinberg said in an
interview.
At a news conference, Swiss
bankers said they have found
tens of millions of dollars in their
vaults that could be from secret
accounts of Jews killed in the
Holocaust.
In a survey of a dozen banks
this year, 893 pre-1945 accounts
that belonged to Holocaust vic-
tims may have been found, the
bankers association said.
The bankers association re-
portedly added that the accounts,
which need further investigation,
are worth $34 million, after the
addition of interest and reduc-
tions for fees and taxes.
Others have estimated higher
totals, peaking at nearly $7 bil-
lion.
The Swiss banks' premium on
privacy and the difficulty of pro-
ducing proof of ownership of an
account that once belonged to a
Holocaust victim have made it
difficult for descendants to iden-
tify or claim assets.
Other steps taken by the
bankers association include the
following:
* The association will set up an
office under the independent
Swiss banking ombudsman to as-
sist with searches.
* Banks will refrain from in-
voking Switzerland's 10-year
statute of limitations on dormant
accounts.
The association made no ref-
erence to deposits made by Nazis
who stole assets from Jews and
other Nazi victims.
Earlier this year, Switzerland
formally apologized for the first
time for its treatment of Jews
during World War II.
In addition to seeking a reso-
lution to the Swiss bank accounts
issue, Jewish groups are seeking
"broad-based, forceful support on
efforts of restitution" from Cen-
tral and Eastern European na-
tions, Mr. Steinberg said.
The United States has been ex-
emplary in its support of the
restitution effort, he said.
Palestinians
Serving Time
Jerusalem (JTA) — For the sec-
ond time in as many months, the
Palestinian Authority has re-
fused an Israeli request to extra-
dite two men suspected of killing
Jews.
In the latest incident, a Pales-
tinian court in the self-rule en-
dave of Jericho in the West Bank
sentenced two men to jail who are
wanted in Israel for the July
killings of two Israelis, Ohad
Bachrach and Uri Shahor, in
Wadi Kelt, a popular hiking spot
in the Judean desert.
Israel suspects that the men,
cousins Shaher Ali Al-Ra'i and
Yousef Muhammad Al-Ra'i were
involved in the Wadi Kelt mur-
ders.
Both are members of the Pop-
ular Front for the Liberation of
Palestine, a Palestinian group
that opposes the peace process.
A third suspect in
the murders is being
held by Israel.
According to Khaled Al-Kidra,
the self-rule authority's general
prosecutor, a Palestinian military
tribunal sentenced each of the
men to 12 years in prison. The
convictions effectively blocked
their extradition to Israel.
They were convicted of dis-
turbing the public order and of
incitement against the peace
process. But the charge sheet
made no mention of the murders.
A third suspect in the murders
is being held by Israel.
This incident raised anew
questions over whether the Pales-
tinian Authority has allowed Jeri-
cho to be turned into a safe haven
for terrorists.
Under the terms of the self-
rule accord, Israel can request the
extradition of suspected terror-
ists who carry out attacks on Is-
raeli-controlled territory, on the
condition that the suspects are
not already in Palestinian jails