March 19, 1999
Geneva - A key U.N. panel has ruled that Iraq will have to pay an additional $174 million to companies that suffered losses resulting from Iraq's 1990 invasion of Kuwait. The total approved by the U.N. Compensation Commission Thursday includes $128 million to 45 Kuwaiti firms. The remaining amount goes to corporations based in other countries, said U.N. spokeswoman Therese Gastaut. The latest amounts come on top of $2.73 billion already approved by the panel for payment to individuals, companies and governments.
Compensation awards approved by the 15-nation commission are paid from Iraqi oil sales approved by the U.N. Security Council. The commission has received a total of $240 billion in compensation demands from individuals, governments and corporations seeking compensation for deaths, loss and damage caused by the invasion of Kuwait, which led to the 1991 Persian Gulf War.
Processing the claims is expected to take several more years.
