BRUSSELS, Feb. 14 (UPI) -- A group of Belgian historians has concluded that Belgium collaborated with the Nazi party in the deportation of Jews during World War II.
Historians from Brussels' Center for Historical Research and Documentation on War and Contemporary Society said Belgium actively assisted in deporting all Jewish residents during the German occupation, Deutsche Welle reported.
"The Belgian state adopted a docile and cooperative attitude in some very diverse, but crucial domains providing collaboration unworthy of a democracy, with a policy that was disastrous for Belgian and foreign Jews," the historians said.
The report represents the first detailed take on Belgium's involvement with the Nazis, and alleges the nation went along with its occupier's plans for legal, economic and ideological reasons.
Of the nearly 50,000 Jews who had been living in Belgium prior to World War II, nearly half were killed by the Nazis at sites like the Auschwitz concentration camp.
The report alleges that by summer 1942, Belgian officials still did not know of the fate awaiting those they were deporting.
