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Lawsuit Targets Saddam, Iraq

The Washington Times
Published: October 10, 2001

By Brian DeBose

Summary: Some of the former hostages seeking damages for financial and emotional injuries were in U.S. District Court yesterday, as their trial against Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein got underway. The 150 American victims, represented by lawyers Michael D. Lieder and Daniel Wolf of Sprenger + Lang, have no courtroom opposition because Iraq has chosen not to appear. Even so, the case will not be open-and-shut because District Court Judge James P. Jackson will hear testimony from victims and expert witnesses for four days before deciding on a formula for damages. "We have not come up with an exact dollar amount based on our formula, but we are expecting something in the high eight figures," Mr. Lieder said. Mr. Wolf was instrumental in getting the Sovereign Immunities Act passed after the Supreme Court ruled in 1993 that it had no jurisdiction to hear the case involving his client, Scott Nelson, against Saudi Arabia. Mr. Nelson and several other Americans were held hostage and tortured by the Saudi government during the late 1980s. "The victims I am representing now are not seeking or advocating claims from U.S. Treasury dollars, but from the reported $2 billion in frozen Iraqi assets," Mr. Wolf said. "The reason why the assets were frozen in the first place was because of Iraq's human-shield policy during the war, using American citizens in an attempt to compel the U.S. not to interfere with the Kuwaiti takeover." None of the hostages in Iraq was killed during their detainment, but they were mistreated. Many witnessed the bombings and deaths of people around them firsthand, and two women were sexually assaulted, Mr. Lieder said.