In a long-running legal fight over Jewish religious texts seized in the early 20th century, a Washington, D.C., federal judge heard arguments last week on whether to levy civil contempt sanctions against Russia for refusing to obey an order to return the texts.
There were two sides arguing in court last week, but neither was the Russian government. The plaintiffs, the Chabad-Lubavitch movement, won a judgment in 2010 that the texts belonged to them but have since unsuccessfully tried to get them back. The U.S. Department of Justice argued last week against sanctions, telling U.S. District Chief Judge Royce Lamberth that such an order would run afoul of the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act and threaten U.S. foreign policy interests.
