US President Donald Trump signed an executive order to declassify the last secret files related to the assassination of former president John F Kennedy, a case that continues to fuel conspiracy theories more than 60 years after JFK’s death on Thursday.

The order woulod also release documents concerning the 1960s assassinations of Robert F Kennedy, JFK’s younger brother, and civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.

“That’s big one, huh? A lot of people have been waiting for this for years, for decades,” Trump told reporters as he signed the order in the Oval Office of the White House.

“Everything will be revealed.”

After signing the order, Trump passed the pen he used to an aide, saying “Give that to RFK Jr,” JFK’s nephew and the current president’s nominee to become secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services.

The order Trump signed requires the “full and complete release” of the JFK files, without redactions that he accepted back in 2017 when releasing most of the documents.

“It is in the national interest to finally release all records related to these assassinations without delay,” the order said.

The US National Archives has previously released tens of thousands of records pertaining to the November 22, 1963 assassination but retained thousands more due to national security concerns. As of December 2022, the archives reported that 97 per cent of the Kennedy records—totalling five million pages—had been made public.

The Warren Commission, which investigated JFK’s assassination, concluded that former Marine Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone in the shooting. However, this finding has not quelled speculation about possible conspiracies surrounding Kennedy’s murder in Dallas, Texas. The gradual release of government files has only intensified various conspiracy theories.

Trump’s move to declassify such documents appears to be a gesture towards prominent conspiracy theorist Robert F Kennedy Jr. In 2023, RFK Jr claimed there was “overwhelming evidence” of CIA involvement in his uncle’s assassination and “very convincing” evidence linking the agency to the murder of his father who was killed while campaigning for the Democratic presidential nomination. Sirhan Sirhan, a Palestinian-born Jordanian, was convicted of RFK’s murder.

RFK Jr, an anti-vaccine activist, was considered for a position in Trump’s cabinet after he dropped his independent presidential bid and supported the Republican. However, he now faces a challenging nomination process.

Conspiracy theories

During Trump’s first term, thousands of documents related to the Kennedy assassination were released from the National Archives, but some were withheld for national security reasons. President Joe Biden noted in December 2022 that a “limited” number of files would still be held back at the request of unspecified agencies, including the CIA and FBI.

Kennedy scholars believe that the remaining documents are unlikely to contain significant revelations or resolve ongoing conspiracy theories surrounding the assassination of the 35th president. Lee Harvey Oswald, who had defected to the Soviet Union, was killed two days after JFK’s assassination by nightclub owner Jack Ruby.

The conspiracy narrative has been fueled by numerous books and films, including Oliver Stone’s 1991 movie “JFK,” which implicates various parties, including Cold War adversaries, the Mafia, and even Vice President Lyndon Johnson.

Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in April 1968, with James Earl Ray was convicted of the crime. However, King’s children have previously expressed doubts about Ray’s guilt.

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