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New York’s Met Museum Sued for Selling Van Gogh Painting Allegedly Looted by Nazis From Jewish Couple
View of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Met, founded in 1870, the largest art museum in the Americas, New York City. Photo: IMAGO/robertharding via Reuters Connect
The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City is being sued for selling a Vincent van Gogh painting that was allegedly seized by the Nazis from a Jewish couple during World War II.
The iconic museum acquired “Olive Picking” (1889) in 1956 for $125,000 from the Knoedler Gallery and sold the artwork to a Greek collector in 1972, according to the lawsuit, which was first reported by The New York Times. The suit, reportedly filed Monday in the Federal District Court in Manhattan, argues that The Met should never have had possession of the painting because it allegedly belonged to Hedwig and Frederick Stern, a Jewish couple who lived in Munich, Germany, until December 1936, a year after they purchased the artwork.
The Sterns fled Germany with their six children to save themselves from Nazi persecution during the Holocaust. They were unable to take the Van Gogh painting with them because Nazi officials considered the artwork “German cultural property,” according to the lawsuit. After the painting was sold, the funds were put in a “blocked account” and later seized by the Nazis.
“In the decades since the end of World War II, this Nazi-looted painting has been repeatedly and secretly trafficked, purchased and sold in and through New York,” claimed the lawsuit filed by Judith Anne Silver, the heir of the Stern family. She also argued that The Met curator who bought and later sold the painting, Theodore Rousseau Jr., should have known the Van Gogh artwork was likely looted by the Nazis because he was “one of the world’s foremost experts on Nazi art looting,” noting his tenure as a lieutenant commander in the US Navy during World War II. Rousseau served in the Office of Strategic Services during the war and authored a report for the Art Looting Investigation Unit.
Silver is not only fighting to have the painting returned to her family but also seeking damages “for taking and detaining it,” as well as other fees.
The lawsuit targets The Met as well as the Athens-based Basil & Elise Goulandris Foundation, which is named after the Greek collector who bought “Olive Picking” from the New York institution. The foundation operates two museums – on the island of Andros and in Athens – and the oil on canvas painting is currently on view at the museum in Athens. According to the painting’s provenance listed on the foundation’s website, the Marlborough Fine Art gallery in London purchased “Olive Picking” from The Met before it was sold to the Goulandris private collection in 1972.
Heirs of the Stern family previously sued The Met and the Goulandris Foundation over the same painting in 2022 in California, but a judge dismissed the case. The family has now filed its lawsuit in New York.
‘To this day, the Goulandris Defendants continue to conceal how and when the BEG came into possession of the Painting; the Stern family’s ownership of the painting from 1935 to 1938; and the facts that the Nazis looted the painting from the Stern family, coerced the Sterns into selling it via a Nazi-appointed agent, and confiscated the proceeds of the sale,” the new lawsuit claims.
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US Strikes More Than 90 Iranian Military Targets on Kharg Island, CENTCOM Says
A satellite image shows an oil terminal at Kharg Island, Iran, February 25, 2026. Photo: 2026 Planet Labs PBC/Handout via REUTERS
United States forces executed a large-scale precision strike on Kharg Island in Iran on Friday night, the US Central Command said on Saturday.
“US forces successfully struck more than 90 Iranian military targets on Kharg Island, while preserving the oil infrastructure,” CENTCOM said.
The strike destroyed naval mine storage facilities, missile storage bunkers, and multiple other military sites, the US military said in a post on X.
President Donald Trump threatened on Friday to strike the oil infrastructure of Iran’s Kharg Island hub, unless Tehran stopped attacking vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.
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North Korea Fires Ten Ballistic Missiles Toward the Sea of Japan
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and wife Ri Sol Ju inspect an honour guard before leaving Pyongyang for a visit to China, this January 7, 2019 photo released by North Korea’s Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) in Pyongyang January 8, 2019. Photo: KCNA via REUTERS.
i24 News – North Korea fired roughly ten ballistic missiles toward the Sea of Japan on Saturday, the South Korean military reported, marking a new act of defiance amid Seoul and Washington’s annual joint military exercises.
The launches, originating from the Sunan area near Pyongyang, were detected around 1:20 p.m. local time, according to a statement from the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff.
The missiles were directed toward the East Sea—the Korean name for the Sea of Japan—though details on their range or trajectory were not immediately available. Earlier, the South Korean Ministry of Defense had already confirmed the launch of at least one unidentified projectile in the same area.
The Japanese Ministry of Defense also verified the incident, noting that a suspected ballistic missile had been launched from North Korea.
The launches come amid rising tensions on the Korean Peninsula. Since Monday, the United States and South Korea have been conducting their annual joint exercises, which will continue through March 19 and involve approximately 18,000 South Korean troops alongside an unspecified number of U.S. forces.
Pyongyang has sharply criticized the drills, calling them a rehearsal for invasion. Kim Yo Jong, the influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, warned this week that the exercises could trigger “terrible and unimaginable consequences.”
The missile tests also coincide with fading prospects for inter-Korean dialogue. Kim Jong-un recently dismissed outreach efforts from South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, labeling Seoul “the most hostile enemy.”
The show of force occurred just hours after South Korean Prime Minister Kim Min-seok, during a visit to the United States, mentioned a potential meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un—a meeting Washington still considers possible.
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Dutch Authorities Investigate Explosion at Jewish School Claimed by Extremist Group
Police outside a Jewish school following an explosion that caused minor damages, in Amsterdam, Netherlands, March 14, 2026. Photo: REUTERS/Piroschka van de Wouw
i24 News – An explosion struck a Jewish school on Zeelandstraat in Amsterdam-Buitenveldert during the night between Friday and Saturday, Dutch authorities confirmed. Emergency responders, including police and firefighters, acted swiftly, and officials reported that the building suffered only limited damage. No injuries have been reported.
Mayor Femke Halsema described the incident as a deliberate attack against the Jewish community in the city, emphasizing that the authorities are treating the case “very seriously.” Security camera footage showing the individual who detonated the device is under investigation.
In an unverified online video, previously little-known group identifying itself as Ashab Al Yamim later claimed responsibility for the blast. The group released online footage appearing to show the small explosion followed by a fire outside the school. Its logo was also seen in videos related to an attack on a synagogue in Rotterdam earlier this week.
Dutch investigators are coordinating with the judiciary to determine the full circumstances of the attack and whether additional suspects were involved. Authorities noted that the organization had not been previously known to security services.
The explosion comes amid rising security concerns for Jewish institutions across Europe, following heightened tensions in the Middle East. The group behind the claim has also alleged responsibility for previous incidents targeting Jewish sites in Europe, including attacks in Liège, Belgium, and Rotterdam, though these claims remain unverified.
Jewish schools, synagogues, and community centers across the continent have stepped up security measures in recent weeks amid fears of potential threats to Jewish communities.