U.S. Opposes Money for American Troops Jailed in Iraq

[Catt03]

Another example of 'Iraq first'. 


By PHILIP SHENON

Published: November 10, 2003


WASHINGTON, Nov. 9 — The Bush administration is seeking to
block a group of American troops who were tortured in Iraqi
prisons during the Persian Gulf war in 1991 from collecting
any of the hundreds of millions of dollars in frozen Iraqi
assets they won last summer in a federal court ruling against
the government of Saddam Hussein

In a court challenge that the administration is winning so far
but is not eager to publicize, administration lawyers have
argued that Iraqi assets frozen in bank accounts in the United
States are needed for Iraqi reconstruction and that the
judgment won by the 17 former American prisoners should be
overturned. 

snip

But they say the case cannot be allowed to hinder American
foreign policy and get in the way of the administration's
multibillion-dollar reconstruction efforts in Iraq — an
argument that federal appeals courts seem likely to accept

more
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/11/10/international/middleeast/10POWS.html?hp
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[Paschall]

1. Interesting

This story was reported some time ago. Glad to see it hasn't been "disappeared."

[jonoboy]

2. "Iraq first " ?..shouldn't that be "Haliburton first"