HOLY WAR: U.S. court fines Russia $50,000 a day in Chabad-Lubavitch book dispute
WASHINGTON — A federal judge on Wednesday fined Russia $50,000 a day until it complies with his earlier order that the country return historical books and documents the court maintains are the property of the Brooklyn-based Chabad-Lubavitch movement.
Chief Judge Royce Lamberth of the U.S. District Court issued the order a week after a hearing on the case, in which the Justice Department urged him not to issue the civil contempt fines. The department argued that fines won’t help resolve the dispute, would be counterproductive, and would hurt U.S. foreign policy interests.
The disputed library includes tens of thousands of religious books and manuscripts, some hundreds of years old. The documents are held by Russia’s State Library and the Russian military archive.