The German state of Bavaria has stripped an 86- year-old former SS officer of his German citizenship, opening the way for him to be deported to the Czech Republic.
Czechoslovakia sentenced Anton Malloth in absentia to death in 1948 for killing prisoners at the Theresienstadt Ghetto.
After World War II, Malloth moved to southern Italy, and since 1988, he has lived in a senior citizens center near Munich, Germany. The Bavarian Interior Ministry said it stripped Malloth of his citizenship to show that it would not stand in the way of the prosecution of a wanted Nazi war criminal.
The decision means the Czech Republic can now ask for the extradition of the former SS officer.
The case has received considerable media attention in Germany. Prosecuting attorneys have long investigated the case but said they do not have enough evidence to issue an arrest warrant.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
