Throughout the world, thousands of Holocaust survivors might just be even closer to finding out what exactly happened to their loved ones who were killed at the hands of the Nazis YM”S. Diplomats from 11 countries have just agreed to bypass legal obstacles and begin distributing electronic copies of the documents and make them available.

The United States, France and Germany, have pledged to donate hundreds of thousands of dollars cover the costs for scanning all the documents.

The documents contain the names of more than 17 million victims, and fill 16 miles of shelves.

The documents were initially seized by the Allies from Nazi concentration camps and offices after WWII, but were then closed under a 1955 agreement to protect the privacy of survivors and the reputation of the dead who may have undergone humiliating medical experiments or been falsely accused of crimes.

Last year’s amendments to the 1955 accords, reached after years of negotiation and resistance by several members, stipulated that some privacy guarantees remain. A single copy of the documents would be available for each of the 11 member states to be used “on the premises of an appropriate archival repository.”

Each government was expected to take into account “the sensitivity of certain information” the files may contain, the new agreement said.

In addition to the United States, Israel and France indicated they also would seek copies.