As of Wednesday, approximately 2,200 files consisting of over 63,000 pages related to the assassination were released. Only a day after US President Donald Trump’s statement on the matter, around 63,000 pages of documents related to the assassination of John F. Kennedy (JFK) on November 22, 1963 in Dallas have been made public. All the documents on the website of the US National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) will have their secrecy removed in the near future. The records could shed light on various details including former US President JFK’s mistrust of the intelligence agency CIA and the surveillance of the assassin Lee Harvey Oswald in Mexico City. On Monday, Trump informed reporters at the Kennedy Center that “all the Kennedy files” would be released, stating, “We have a lot of documents. You have a lot to read. We will not censor anything.” According to ABC News, Trump’s statement caused “chaos” at the Justice Department. The department’s attorneys were standing around the clock on Monday night scanning hundreds of pages of documents. “NOTHING CHANGING THE ESSENTIAL STORY”

Philip Shenon, the author of “A Cruel and Shocking Act” detailing the history of the Kennedy assassination, mentioned that after reviewing the first 1,100 disclosed files, he did not see much that would change the understanding of the incident. Speaking to The Washington Post, Shenon expressed that many pages were illegible and filled with many unknown names and pseudonyms of potential significance. To Shenon, anyone who is not a specialist in the subject may struggle to compare new uncensored documents with partially or entirely censored previous files. “We’ve seen almost all of these documents before as censored, but I can’t tell you what’s new here right away. There could always be something sensational, but nothing here so far rewrites the basic truth of what happened that day. Understanding what’s in these documents will take days, weeks, and months for a serious researcher.”WHY IS TRUMP INTERESTED IN THE KENNEDY FILES?

The Kennedy assassination files have been a topic of interest for Trump even before his first term, and even earlier. During his initial presidential campaign, Trump proposed a conspiracy theory on Fox News alleging that Senator Ted Cruz’s father had met Oswald before the assassination. Additionally, JFK’s nephew, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., is also among Trump’s close allies. Kennedy Jr. currently serves as the US new health minister. The minister, who distanced himself from a large part of his family due to his anti-vaccine activism, said he does not believe that a lone gunman was responsible for JFK’s assassination. “NEW RECORDS CONTRADICT THE OLD NARRATIVE”

Historian Jefferson Morley, who studies the Kennedy assassination, believes a significant portion of the new material contradicts the initial narrative from the 1960s. The Warren Commission’s 1964 decision led by Judge Earl Warren stated that Oswald, a former Marine and a Marxist, acted alone. The 7-member panel found no evidence that the suspect acted with others or another country. However, according to Morley speaking to The Washington Post, the records released over the years bring out a different story. “The lone gunman theory is not right. It doesn’t explain the facts. Doctors trying to save Kennedy’s life say he was shot from two different directions. So what happened? We need a better explanation of what went on.”WHAT WAS THE SUSPECT DOING IN MEXICO?

Both Morley and Shenon express their intention to focus on the Mexico City mystery by analyzing the released and to-be-released documents in more detail. The records have already revealed that Oswald visited the capital of Mexico shortly before the assassination. According to Shenon’s account, US intelligence claimed that the suspect met with Cuban and Russian spies there and even discussed openly with Cuban embassy staff about a plan to kill Kennedy. Shenon said, “Perhaps the new uncensored documents will show additional contacts between Oswald and other individuals who wanted Kennedy dead in Mexico and were willing to help him achieve that. This may not necessarily be a conspiracy as most people think, but it could still be some sort of criminal conspiracy if others knew what Oswald would do or helped him.”KENNEDY ASSASSINATION

The 35th US president, JFK, and his wife Jacqueline Kennedy were greeted by a jubilant crowd and clear sky on November 22, 1963, when they landed in Dallas for their re-election campaign. However, as the convoy completed its ride through the city center, gunshots were heard from the nearby Texas School Book Depository building, fatally injuring the president. Shortly after, the police arrested 24-year-old Oswald positioned in a window on the sixth floor of the depository. Two days later, nightclub owner Jack Ruby fatally shot Oswald in front of everyone while he was being transferred to jail.