"Iraq to pay $400m to settle abuse claims by Americans" by Rebecca Santana, Associated Press | September 11, 2010
BAGHDAD — Iraq has agreed to pay about $400 million to Americans who say they were abused by Saddam Hussein’s regime, US and Iraqi officials said yesterday.
The agreement, recently signed by US and Iraqi officials, represents a significant step forward for Iraq and could bring an end to years of legal battles by Americans who claim to have been tortured or traumatized under Hussein’s regime.
It looks like a significant step back to me.
Why should they have to pay for what the previous government did anyway?
But the deal is likely to anger Iraqis who consider themselves the victims of both Hussein and the 2003 US invasion, and who wonder why they should pay money for wrongs committed by the ousted dictator....
I'm WITH THEM on that one!!
A senior Iraqi government official confirmed that the deal has been signed, and said Iraq agreed to pay about $400 million. He said the money will be given to Americans who were affected by the Iraqi invasion of neighboring Kuwait in 1990.
Hussein’s government held hundreds of Americans hostage during the run-up to the Gulf War, using them as human shields in hopes of staving off an attack by the United States and its allies.
Many of the Americans pursued lawsuits for years against Hussein’s government. The Americans kept up their legal fight after Hussein was overthrown in 2003 and a new government came to power. CBS News correspondent Bob Simon, who was held for more than a month during the Gulf War, was one of the people suing Iraq....
So much for unbiased and objective reporting.
“This agreement is related to the invasion of Kuwait during the former regime time. Saddam detained US citizens as human shields, and he did torture,’’ said the official, who did not want to be named due to the sensitivity of the issue.
So when are we going to have to pay the piper because that is what we have done to Iraqis.
The settlement, which was first reported by the Christian Science Monitor, could help Iraq shake off UN sanctions imposed after Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait.
AmeriKan MSM scooped again.
Baghdad would need the help of the United States to remove the sanctions, and the settlement may remove what has been a stumbling block between the two sides....
What do you mean REMOVE SANCTIONS?
Why are they STILL ON 7 YEARS AFTER the overthrow, huh?
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And the Iraqis must still pay for crimes even further in the past?
"Iraq OK’s $400m for litigants in US; Deal to appease those abused by Hussein regime" by Sameer N. Yacoub, Associated Press | September 17, 2010
BAGHDAD — The Iraqi Cabinet unanimously approved a $400 million settlement for Americans who say they were abused by Saddam Hussein’s regime, the government’s spokesman said yesterday.
The agreement represents a significant step forward for Iraq and could bring an end to years of legal battles by Americans who claim to have been tortured or traumatized under Hussein’s regime dating back to the 1990 Iraqi invasion of Kuwait.
The deal is likely to anger Iraqis who consider themselves the victims of both Hussein’s regime and the 2003 US-led invasion, and they wonder why they should pay money for wrongs committed by the ousted dictator....
Then it isn't a step forward.
The settlement needs to be approved by the Iraqi parliament, a big hurdle, given the likely public outcry over the deal and the fact that the legislature has met only once since the March 7 elections....
Ali al-Dabbagh, a government spokesman, emphasized the importance of the deal with the Americans, noting it could pave the way to persuading the UN to lift sanctions imposed after the Kuwait invasion. The sanctions include the freezing of Iraqi assets abroad.
I really do not understand why 7 years after the overthrow of Hussein the killing and crippling sanctions are still be applied.
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Also see: Kept safe in US, Iraqi royal statue heads home
A front-page, feel-good feature that almost makes one forget the invasion forces decided to protect the oil ministry while Iraq's (and the world's) antiquities were looted.
Say what you want about Hussein, but he did take care of those historical relics.
