News Summary: Saddam-era gas victims seek probe
News Summary: Victims of Saddam-era poison gas attack demand French investigation of suppliers
PROBE SOUGHT: Twenty victims of Saddam Hussein's 1988 chemical weapons attack on the Kurdish town of Halabja, Iraq, requested a judicial investigation of French suppliers, saying executives bore some responsibility for the attacks, which killed up to 5,000 people. The complaint names no specific companies.
CARE NEEDED: Saddam ordered the March 1988 poison gas strikes to crush a Kurdish rebellion in the north. Survivors continue to suffer health problems and are demanding the companies that supplied the raw materials and equipment needed for chemical weapons take responsibility, including providing medical care.
MORE TO COME: The group expects to file additional cases in Germany, the U.S., Holland and potentially elsewhere. An Iraqi official said the case serves as a warning to anyone who may still try to sell chemicals to tyrants, touching on a central concern in Syria's civil war.
