Federal Court orders release of redacted Nazi war criminal report

A Federal Court judge has ordered the Canadian government to release previously redacted portions of a decades-old report detailing how alleged Nazi war criminals and collaborators entered and settled in Canada after World War II. The ruling, issued on September 1, 2026, by Justice Simon Fothergill, marks a significant development in a long-running legal battle for transparency regarding this chapter of Canadian history. The case centers on the Rodal Report, a 1986 study by historian Alti Rodal prepared for the Deschênes Commission of Inquiry on War Criminals. The report examined the circumstances under which individuals accused of Nazi crimes came to Canada. While much of the report has been made public over the years, key sections remained withheld by Library and Archives Canada, citing potential harm to international relations and national security. The withheld material includes passages describing a 1954 discovery by Canadian officials of a covert U.S. intelligence program that allegedly helped resettle former Nazis and collaborators in Canada, often bypassing normal security screenings.