Africa News 24 Pretoria Bureau
WASHINGTON, US — The US National Archives and Records Administration has released approximately 2,200 files, totalling over 63,000 pages, related to the 1963 assassination of President John F. Kennedy Tuesday evening in a move long anticipated by historians, researchers, and conspiracy theorists alike. The release marks a significant step in the ongoing effort to provide transparency about one of the most shocking events in American history.
The newly disclosed documents are part of a vast collection of over 6 million pages of records, photographs, motion pictures, sound recordings, and artefacts related to the assassination. While the majority of these materials had already been made public, the latest release includes previously classified memos, CIA cables, and FBI records that offer fresh insights into the events surrounding Kennedy’s death and the geopolitical climate of the Cold War era.
President Donald Trump, who had pledged during his 2016 campaign to release the remaining JFK files, announced the move on Monday while visiting the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington. “We have a tremendous amount of paper. You’ve got a lot of reading,” Trump told reporters, estimating the release at around 80,000 pages.
The release comes more than five decades after Kennedy was fatally shot on November 22, 1963, during a motorcade in Dallas, Texas. Lee Harvey Oswald, a 24-year-old former Marine who had defected to the Soviet Union before returning to the U.S., was arrested and accused of firing the shots from the sixth floor of the Texas School Book Depository building. Two days later, Oswald was himself shot and killed by nightclub owner Jack Ruby while in police custody.
The Warren Commission, established by President Lyndon B. Johnson to investigate the assassination, concluded in 1964 that Oswald acted alone and that there was no evidence of a conspiracy. However, the findings failed to quell widespread scepticism and a proliferation of alternative theories about the involvement of organised crime, foreign governments, or even U.S. intelligence agencies.
What’s in the files?
The newly released documents include detailed accounts of Oswald’s activities in the months leading up to the assassination. One CIA memo reveals that Oswald visited the Soviet and Cuban embassies in Mexico City in September 1963, just weeks before the assassination. According to the memo, Oswald phoned the Soviet Embassy to request a visa to visit the Soviet Union and also sought a travel visa to Cuba.
Another memo, dated the day after Kennedy’s assassination, describes an intercepted phone call in Mexico City in which Oswald allegedly communicated with a KGB officer during his visit to the Soviet Embassy. These records provide a glimpse into the tense geopolitical environment of the time, particularly in the aftermath of the Cuban Missile Crisis, which had brought the U.S. and the Soviet Union to the brink of nuclear war.
The release also includes administrative records from the Warren Commission, drafts of its final report, and artefacts such as photographs and recordings. Many of these materials are now available online through the National Archives Catalogue offering researchers and the public unprecedented access to primary sources about the assassination.
A long road to transparency
The push to release the JFK files dates back to the early 1990s, when Congress passed the President John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection Act. The law mandated that all assassination-related documents be housed in a single collection at the National Archives and released to the public by 2017, unless the president deemed specific records exempt for national security reasons.
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While Trump initially promised to release all remaining files, he ultimately held back some records, citing potential risks to national security. The Biden administration has continued the process of declassification, though a small number of documents remain withheld.
Last month, the FBI announced the discovery of approximately 2,400 new records related to the assassination, which are now being transferred to the National Archives for inclusion in the declassification process.
A Legacy of intrigue
The release of the files is unlikely to put an end to the enduring fascination with Kennedy’s assassination. For decades, the event has captivated the public imagination, spawning countless books, films, and conspiracy theories.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the nephew of JFK and son of Senator Robert F. Kennedy, who was assassinated in 1968, has been among those sceptical of the official narrative. A prominent anti-vaccine activist, Kennedy has said he is not convinced that Oswald acted alone.
As researchers and history buffs dive into the newly released documents, the hope is that they will shed further light on one of the most pivotal moments in American history—and perhaps answer some of the questions that have lingered for nearly 60 years.
For now, the files offer a window into a bygone era, revealing the fears, tensions, and complexities of a nation grappling with the loss of a beloved leader and the shadow of the Cold War.
To explore the newly released documents, visit the National Archives website at www.archives.gov/research/jfk/available-online
