WASHINGTON, Sept. 7 Iran must pay billions of dollars to families of 241 service members killed in the 1983 bombing of the U.S. Marine barracks in Lebanon, a U.S. judge ruled.
In addition, U.S. District Court Judge Royce C. Lamberth ruled Friday the families could pursue legal action on a state level, if appropriate.
The families alleged Iran and Iranian Ministry of Information and Security were liable for damages from the attack because they provided material and assistance to Hezbollah, the terrorist organization that carried out the bombing, the opinion said.
Awards were listed in the opinion. Lamberth said punitive damages "are not available against foreign states such as the Islamic Republic of Iran."
"This Court is sadly aware that there is little it can do to heal the physical wounds and emotional scars suffered by the servicemen in this case and their family members," Lamberth said. "Though the attack on the Marine barracks in Beirut, Lebanon, occurred nearly 24 years ago ... it is clear from the testimony presented ... that the intense suffering experienced on that day has had a tragically lasting effect on the plaintiffs who have brought this action."
Copyright 2007 by UPI
