Holocaust survivors in US sue Hungary, state railways

The lawsuit accused the Hungarian state and its two rail companies, MAV and Rail Cargo Hungaria (legal successor of MAV Cargo), of confiscating Jewish property and transporting Jews to concentration camps in Poland and Ukraine where many hundreds of thousand perished.

    "The Jewish victims of the Hungarian Holocaust seek only what is due them -- compensation and restitution for the atrocities they suffered at the hands of the defendants," the lawsuit filed in the US District Court for the District of Columbia said.

    The lawsuit seeks class-action status and unspecified damages and says at least 300 survivors have been identified as possible members of the class but there could be more than 5,000.

    The plaintiffs are residents of the US, Canada, Australia and Israel. Their lawyer, Chuck Fax said the claim totals several tens of millions of dollars and possibly more. He said the lawsuit was still timely because Hungary had not yet compensated the survivors and their family members, and their properties had not been returned to them.