New York and U.S. officials have re-opened their investigations to determine whether Standard Chartered withheld evidence of Iran sanctions violations, two people familiar with the matter said in October.
The soldiers’ lawsuit follows a verdict in September in a separate terrorism financing case against Jordan’s largest lender, Arab Bank Plc. Jurors found the lender was liable for deaths and injuries of U.S. citizens in about two dozen attacks carried out by Hamas in and near Israel.
Arab Bank said it didn’t intend to conduct transactions for terrorists and was subject to an unfair trial. It’s seeking permission to appeal. Damages haven’t been determined in the case.
Barclays, HSBC and other banks accused of helping terrorists in Iraq “knowingly participated in the conspiracy,” said Gary Osen, a lawyer who represents plaintiffs in that case and the one against Arab Bank. “All of them took steps to make it happen.”
Attacks at issue occurred from about 2004 to 2011 and included an incident on Jan. 20, 2007, when terrorists gained access to a compound where U.S. military officers were meeting with Iraqi counterparts.
Disguised Attackers
Terrorists with the militia group Asa’ib Ahl al-Haq, disguised in U.S.-style military uniforms, arrived at the compound in a convoy of black GMC Suburban trucks, according to the complaint. They detonated explosives, killing one U.S. soldier who jumped on a grenade, and then abducted and murdered four other soldiers, according to the complaint.
The attack was alleged to have been masterminded by a Hezbollah operative with other Iran-backed groups also involved in planning and overseeing it, according to the complaint.
The conduct of Iran and the militant groups “violated the laws of armed conflict,” plaintiffs said in the complaint. “No declared war or armed conflict existed between the governments of United States and Iran, and the injuries plaintiffs sustained were not the result of a declared war with Iran.”
The case is Freeman v. HSBC Holdings Plc, 14-cv-06601, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of New York (Brooklyn).