A judgment by a federal appeals court offered little comfort to those impacted by brutal terrorist assaults, as it deemed the assets of Afghanistan’s central bank, Da Afghanistan Bank (DAB), invulnerable to legal claims. The decision hampers the continued pursuit of financial reparation by victims of the atrocities committed on September 11, 2001, and the August 7, 1998 bombings at U.S. embassies in Africa. The court’s ruling reflects an obstruction to deliver justice, albeit a financial one, and regrettably impedes the efforts of victims to hold accountable those seemingly untouchable entities that facilitated these heinous acts.
Despite an asserted link to the Taliban and its role in orchestrating these gruesome attacks, the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan ruled that DAB’s $3.5 billion reserves, ensnared at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, were shielded under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (FSIA), classifying the bank as an extension of Afghanistan. Consequently, the victims’ hopes to seize these assets were cruelly dashed, accentuating the perceived legitimacy for such internationally-scorned entities amidst devastating repercussions on American soil.
The victims’ failure to demonstrate that DAB functioned as a Taliban instrument under the federal Terrorism Risk Insurance Act further fortified this stance. The passed ruling, ironically, ruled out the removal of immunity offered by FSIA, albeit a law designed to strip entities of such protections. The court verdict, far from assuaging the victims’ drawn-out agony, instead stonewalled their path to legal justice even further.
This unsettling 2-1 ruling spells defeat for a slew of plaintiff groups, which brought charges against a plethora of defendants, including the notorious terrorist group Al-Qaeda, for their roles in the aforementioned assaults. These plaintiffs specifically aimed to extract from the $7 billion of DAB’s frozen assets, half of which were frozen by the seemingly disinterested Biden administration in August 2021.
The victims’ endeavors, whether to lay claim to these assets or simply to secure default judgments in the absence of defendant representation, have been tragically thwarted. Circuit Judge Jose Cabranes further diluted their chances of success with his assertion that evidence indicating DAB’s delivery of aid to or control by the Taliban before August 15, 2021, was non-existent.
Cabranes’ claim was based on his belief that Taliban control and leadership over the bank only surfaced after Kabul’s fall, on that very date. While this may have been a technically accurate stance, it came as a cold reminder of the myriad barriers victims face in their tenacious pursuit of justice.
However, Circuit Judge Richard Sullivan, the sole dissenter on the panel, decried the ruling for undermining the federal Terrorism Risk Insurance Act’s intended goal of making ‘any assets available’ to victims of terrorism. His dissenting view, unfortunately, did little to sway the unfavorable ruling for the plaintiffs.
Judge Sullivan also challenged the viewpoint that Afghanistan continued to be recognized as a foreign state under FSIA, arguing that this meant DAB’s funds remained untouchable. Despite his valuable counterpoints, the courts sadly upheld the prior rulings, further complicating the victims’ plight.
In a rather shocking turn of events, two lower court judges had already ruled against the plaintiffs in 2023. The course of legal prosecution highlights the hindrances victims face on their quest for justice, given the seemingly misplaced protection of suspected entities.
It is essential to note that the U.S. government has designated the Taliban as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist – an interesting, albeit hypocritical, contrast to its actions in the courtroom. Despite this, President Biden opted for the remaining $3.5 billion of the frozen DAB funds to be saved for the Afghan people, ultimately denying American victims their due compensation.
It is a grim reminder of the fatal day of September 11, 2001, when around 3,000 innocent lives were lost in ruthless attacks on the World Trade Center in New York, the Pentagon in northern Virginia, and a field in Pennsylvania. The chronicles of these brutalities continue to cast a dark shadow on our nation’s history.
Recollections also stretch back to the dreadful events of August 7, 1998, when multiple truck bombs detonated outside U.S. embassies in Nairobi, Kenya, and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Tragically, these explosions claimed the lives of 224 innocent individuals.
The victims of these brutal terror attacks and their families have long been on a painful journey for justice. Regrettably, this recent federal appeals court ruling has served as an unfortunate reminder that their road remains fraught with numerous daunting obstacles.
In the grand scheme of global diplomatic maneuverings and legal intricacies, the simple desire for justice from those affected by such tragic terrorism incidents seems to be drowned out. Dishearteningly, the victims’ quest for justice remains hamstrung by political and legal barriers, punctuated by a lack of support from the very top tiers of American leadership.
The post Biden Administration Disregards Victims of 9/11: Blocks Access to DAB’s Frozen Assets appeared first on Real News Now.
About Author
