World Report

WARSAW, Poland (JTA) -- A 77-year-old man has been charged with Nazi collaboration during the Holocaust in the first such case in Poland in more than 25 years.

Polish prosecutors identified the man only as Henryk M. of Szczecin in northwest Poland, accusing him of "taking part in acts of genocide" at the Chelmno death camp from December 1941 until April 1943.

The man, who denied the charges against him, could face a life sentence if convicted.

It is the first time such a charge has been brought by the government's new National Remembrance Institute, set up earlier this year to investigate Nazi- and Communist-era crimes.

German firms pay a price when outed

BERLIN (JTA) -- More firms have pledged contributions to a fund set up by German companies to compensate survivors of Nazi slave and forced labor after non-participants were "outed" by a television program.

Fund spokesman Wolfgang Gibowski said the new sums ran into tens of millions of dollars, adding to the $1.4 billion raised from German industry.

In a related development, a German foundation created to compensate victims of Nazi slave labor is hoping that pending class-action lawsuits will be lifted this year to allow payments to begin.

Dieter Kastrup, chairman of the committee running the fund, said Thursday he is hopeful that a key hearing before a U.S. court now scheduled for Jan. 24 could be held before Christmas.

Nazi cyber-auctions: No can do, Yahoo!

PARIS (JTA) -- Yahoo! can block French Internet users from accessing Nazi items on its auction sites, a panel of experts recommended to a French court.

The panel was charged with coming up with a solution to block the items in response to a petition by anti-racist groups to enforce a French ban on the sale and trading of Nazi objects.

The court is expected to rule on the issue later this month.

Meanwhile, France's prime minister criticized a U.S. court's decision to hear a lawsuit filed by American Holocaust survivors against French banks.

Speaking Saturday at an annual dinner hosted by French Jewish leaders, Lionel Jospin said the decision could delay France's efforts to make full restitution for wartime assets taken from Jews during World War II.