Switzerland has released a 200-page intelligence dossier on Nazi war criminal Josef Mengele, providing new historical material about the Auschwitz doctor who carried out brutal medical experiments on prisoners during World War II. The file was published by Switzerland’s Federal Intelligence Service on September 10.

The dossier had remained classified for decades and was originally scheduled to stay restricted until 2071. Its release followed a legal challenge by historian Gérard Wettstein, who sought access to the documents to investigate whether Swiss authorities had information about Mengele after the war.

Mengele became notorious for conducting medical experiments on prisoners, including children, at the Auschwitz concentration camp. After World War II, he escaped Europe using a false identity and eventually lived in South America. He died in Brazil in 1979

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The newly released documents contain information suggesting that Swiss authorities had indications that Mengele might have been in Switzerland or intended to enter the country under a false identity. Some sections remain redacted to protect confidential sources and personal information.

Switzerland’s decision to make the historical intelligence material publicly available is expected to provide researchers with additional evidence about post-war efforts to locate Nazi fugitives and the information available to European authorities at the time.

The release also demonstrates the continuing importance of opening historical intelligence archives when doing so can help researchers understand how governments responded to major international crimes.