In a decision that could close a contentious chapter of America's involvement in Vietnam, a federal judge in Brooklyn, New York, on Thursday dismissed a damage suit filed on behalf of millions of Vietnamese that claimed US chemical companies committed war crimes by supplying the military with the defoliant Agent Orange.
The civil suit, filed last year, had sought what could have been billions of dollars in damages and the environmental cleanup of Vietnam. The suit drew international attention for its claims about Agent Orange, which was widely used by the US military to clear the jungle until 1971.
The suit claimed that the defoliant, which contained the highly toxic substance dioxin, left a legacy of poison in Vietnam that caused birth defects, cancer, and other health problems and amounted to a violation of international law.
Judge Jack Weinstein, of US District Court in Brooklyn, sided with the chemical companies and the US Justice Department, which argued that supplying the defoliant did not amount to a war crime.
"No treaty or agreement, express or implied, of the United States," Weinstein wrote, "operated to make use of herbicides in Vietnam a violation of the laws of war or any other form of international law until at the earliest April of 1975."
A Vietnamese group in Hanoi expressed anger yesterday over the judge's ruling. Weinstein also found that the plaintiffs could not prove that Agent Orange had caused their illnesses, largely due to a lack of large-scale research.
Though the ruling is a big blow, Nhan said the group is already thinking about filing an appeal.
Lawyers for chemical manufacturers Monsanto, Dow Chemical and a dozen other companies had argued that they should not be punished for following orders of the nation's commander in chief, and that international law exempts corporations, as opposed to individuals, from liability for alleged war crimes.
"We've said all along that any issues regarding wartime activities should be resolved by the US and Vietnamese governments," said Dow Chemical spokesman Scot Wheeler. "We believe that defoliants saved lives by protecting allied forces from enemy ambush and did not create adverse health effects."
Many US veterans and Vietnamese have long blamed Agent Orange for a variety of illnesses, including cancer, diabetes and spina bifida. The US government claims there is no direct evidence linking dioxin with the illnesses.
However, about 10,000 Vietnam War veterans in the US receive disability benefits related to Agent Orange exposure.
Republican US lawmakers on Friday criticized US President Joe Biden’s administration after sanctioned Chinese telecoms equipment giant Huawei unveiled a laptop this week powered by an Intel artificial intelligence (AI) chip. The US placed Huawei on a trade restriction list in 2019 for contravening Iran sanctions, part of a broader effort to hobble Beijing’s technological advances. Placement on the list means the company’s suppliers have to seek a special, difficult-to-obtain license before shipping to it. One such license, issued by then-US president Donald Trump’s administration, has allowed Intel to ship central processors to Huawei for use in laptops since 2020. China hardliners
Conjoined twins Lori and George Schappell, who pursued separate careers, interests and relationships during lives that defied medical expectations, died this month in Pennsylvania, funeral home officials said. They were 62. The twins, listed by Guinness World Records as the oldest living conjoined twins, died on April 7 at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, obituaries posted by Leibensperger Funeral Homes of Hamburg said. The cause of death was not detailed. “When we were born, the doctors didn’t think we’d make 30, but we proved them wrong,” Lori said in an interview when they turned 50, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported. The
RAMPAGE: A Palestinian man was left dead after dozens of Israeli settlers searching for a missing 14-year-old boy stormed a village in the Israeli-occupied West Bank US President Joe Biden on Friday said he expected Iran to attack Israel “sooner, rather than later” and warned Tehran not to proceed. Asked by reporters about his message to Iran, Biden simply said: “Don’t,” underscoring Washington’s commitment to defend Israel. “We are devoted to the defense of Israel. We will support Israel. We will help defend Israel and Iran will not succeed,” he said. Biden said he would not divulge secure information, but said his expectation was that an attack could come “sooner, rather than later.” Israel braced on Friday for an attack by Iran or its proxies as warnings grew of
A prominent Christian leader has allegedly been stabbed at the altar during a Mass yesterday in southwest Sydney. Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel was saying Mass at Christ The Good Shepherd Church in Wakeley just after 7pm when a man approached him at the altar and allegedly stabbed toward his head multiple times. A live stream of the Mass shows the congregation swarm forward toward Emmanuel before it was cut off. The church leader gained prominence during the COVID-19 pandemic, amassing a large online following, Officers attached to Fairfield City police area command attended a location on Welcome Street, Wakeley following reports a number