The US National Archives released the final batch of documents related to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy on Tuesday, more than 60 years after his death. This release follows an executive order issued by President Donald Trump in January, directing the unredacted release of remaining files concerning the assassinations of Kennedy, his brother Robert F. Kennedy, and civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.
In a statement, the Archives confirmed that all records previously withheld for classification under the President John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection are now available to the public. The move ends a long process of gradual disclosure that has spanned decades.
While millions of pages have been released since the investigation began, thousands of documents had been kept back at the request of agencies like the CIA and FBI, citing national security concerns. The Warren Commission, which investigated Kennedy’s assassination in 1963, concluded that former Marine Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone in shooting Kennedy. However, this conclusion has not quelled the conspiracy theories that have persisted since that fateful day in Dallas, Texas.
Kennedy scholars believe the newly released documents are unlikely to reveal any major new findings or settle ongoing conspiracy debates. Many of the records previously released were raw intelligence reports, including numerous FBI follow-ups to unsubstantiated leads. Some documents have already shed light on CIA plans to assassinate Cuban leader Fidel Castro, but the files have done little to settle questions about the true motivations behind Kennedy’s assassination.
Oswald was himself killed by nightclub owner Jack Ruby just two days after Kennedy’s death, fueling further speculation. Over the years, numerous theories have implicated Cold War adversaries, the Mafia, and even Kennedy’s vice president, Lyndon Johnson, as potential masterminds behind the assassination.
The final release follows a 1992 Congressional act that mandated the full disclosure of these records 25 years later. Despite the release of millions of documents, the question of whether they will ever fully resolve the mysteries surrounding Kennedy’s death remains unclear.
