Terror Suit Against Drugmakers Draws US Supreme Court Inquiry
The justices directed their request Monday to U.S. Solicitor General D. John Sauer, the administration’s top Supreme Court lawyer.
Victims and police response
The companies say they contracted with the ministry at the encouragement of the U.S. government.
The drugmakers said the suit didn’t allege a sufficiently close connection between their transactions with the ministry and specific acts of terrorism.
The companies also contended the law requires a showing that a defendant intended to help a terror attack succeed.
In urging the Supreme Court to reject the appeal, the victims said the companies knew their bribes financed attacks and yet continued paying for years.
Shooting investigation
They told the Supreme Court that, even if true, the allegations against them weren’t sufficient to let a lawsuit go forward under the U.S. Anti-Terrorism Act.
A federal appeals court in Washington ruled the suit could go forward, saying the complaint adequately alleged that the companies repeatedly structured their transactions in an unusual and illegal manner that facilitated Jaysh al-Mahdi’s activities.
The Supreme Court ruled unanimously in 2023 that the Anti-Terrorism Act couldn’t be used to hold social media companies responsible for a 2017 shooting in an Istanbul nightclub.
