new release of classified documents relating to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy has ignited fresh debate among experts and researchers. While some assert that a thorough examination of the unredacted material fails to provide evidence that challenges the long-standing conclusion that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone, others assert that the documents depict a potentially troubling level of CIA surveillance and complicity.
This week, President Donald Trump ordered the release of a substantial batch of files, totalling 77,000 pages, from the National Archives and Records Administration. The documents, which were made available starting Tuesday night, have been met with a fervent response from historians and conspiracy theorists alike, eager to decode the complexities of one of the most perplexing mysteries in American history.
Philip Shenon, a prominent JFK assassination scholar and author of A Cruel and Shocking Act: The Secret History of the Kennedy Assassination, expressed his initial impression that the released material does not challenge the widely accepted account of Oswald as the lone gunman. “From first glance, there don’t seem to be any bombshells that fundamentally rewrite the history of the assassination in any way,” he stated. Despite the absence of smoking guns, Shenon noted that the files offer detailed insights into the CIA’s operational methods during the Cold War—a time when tension with the Soviet Union was at its peak.
Conversely, expert Jefferson Morley argues that certain revelations within the documents imply a level of CIA awareness regarding Oswald’s activities that could raise questions about agency incompetence or complicity. Morley, who has written extensively on the CIA and the assassination, posits that the newly revealed details about Oswald’s interactions with Soviet and Cuban operatives in Mexico City should have prompted preventative action by authorities. “What we’re learning about the surveillance of Oswald is now much deeper and much more troubling than it was a week ago,” he claims, suggesting that the CIA should have been more proactive given Oswald’s propensity for political violence.
The findings reflect long-standing suspicions about the CIA’s scrutiny of Oswald prior to the assassination. Indeed, Oswald had been in contact with individuals linked to both the Soviet Union and Cuba in the months leading up to November 22, 1963—a time marked by significant international tension heightened by the Cuban Missile Crisis just a year earlier. The House Select Committee on Assassinations also indicated in the late 1970s that while Oswald may have acted alone, other elements of conspiracy could not be entirely dismissed.
The recently declassified files include extensive records of CIA covert operations, particularly regarding activities in Latin America, where the agency was deeply involved in Cold War-era interventions. These documents have been released with no redactions, providing an unprecedented look at the CIA’s internal deliberations and tactics during this turbulent period. One notable memorandum suggested that the CIA was undermining some of Kennedy’s foreign policy efforts, implicating the agency in actions exceeding its official charter.
This level of operational detail and investigation reinforces suspicions amidst ongoing debates regarding the convoluted legacy of the Kennedy assassination. Morley drew attention to this new information, exclaiming, “The new JFK files enable a verdict of complicity.” Morley’s assertions challenge the official narrative and potentially reshape our understanding of the events surrounding Kennedy’s tragic death. As the race continues among researchers to analyse the remaining documents, it remains unclear whether these latest revelations will produce definitive answers or further deepen the enigma.