France agrees Holocaust SNCF rail payout with US
France and the US…announced a $60m (£40m) compensation fund, paid for by the French government, on Friday. Reparations will be paid to [Holocaust victims]...transported by state rail company SNCF to Nazi concentration camps…The rail company moved 76,000 Jews to Nazi camps during the Holocaust. Only about 3,000 survived. However, the company, and some historians, have argued that SNCF was forced by the occupying German army to assist in the deportations. In 2010, the SNCF chief executive expressed "profound sorrow and regret" for the…company's actions…According to US negotiator Stuart Eizenstat, survivors could receive more than $100,000 each, while spouses or heirs could get tens of thousands of dollars. The agreement still needs to be voted on by the French parliament…As part of the deal, the US government will try to end lawsuits and other claims against SNCF that have been made in Maryland, New York, Florida and California.