The Beneficiaries of Saddam's Oil Vouchers: The List of 270

The Beneficiaries of Saddam's Oil Vouchers ^

[rotstan]

The following report from MEMRI's Baghdad office is a translation of an article which appeared in the Iraqi daily Al-Mada,(1) which obtained lists of 270 companies, organizations, and individuals awarded allocations (vouchers) of crude oil by Saddam Hussein's regime. The beneficiaries reside in 50 countries: 16 Arab, 17 European, 9 Asian, and the rest from sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America. Only a portion of the 270 recipients are listed and identified.

[buwaya]

These were not gifts of oil, but purchase contracts to supposed middlemen. These would take a cut, not the entire value of the contract. Actually, many of the Russian entries look like they may be legitimate, as some of those are actual Russian oil companies or the Russian state. The Iraqis had to sell the oil to somebody.

[buwaya]

For just $ 1000 ?

[William McKinley]

Imagine that.

And Ritter co-authored some books with William Rivers Pitt, co-editor of the misnamed Truthout.org, new chairman of Dennis Kucinich's campaign.

[William McKinley]

The Iraqis had to sell the oil to somebody.

Only through the UN Oil for Food program. Anything outside of that was illegal internationally (and would be yet another justification for the war).

[cyncooper]

McDermott, if memory serves, got money from the person I just pointed out gave Ritter money for his movie, Shakir al-Khafaji, who is on the list. So some of the recipients of any largesse would be buried in that fashion, perhaps.

[MonroeDNA]

saved.

[VaBthang4]

I do not know if there is a connection between Amir Al-Khafiji and the individual listed on the Iraqi Oil list.


But Daghdad Bonier has some splainin to do.

[buwaya]

The oil-for-food program was a way of sequestering funds, not of choosing buyers.

Yes, not doubt they were cheating the oil-for-food program also.

[XHogPilot]

A question brought up elsewhere - Iraqi production for 1998 was around 750 million barrels. Is this total (looks like over 2 Billion Barrels) for one year or for several years ?

Was the 750 Mil Barrels legitimate production under the UN oil for food program?

This article specifically addresses these allocations were outside the UN program. Quote:

"Background
The following points should be taken into consideration:
First, MEMRI is not responsible for the accuracy of the details with regard to the names listed or the amount of oil granted.
Second, all names listed in the original were in Arabic. Some of those are transliterated into English phonetically, and may not be precise.
Third, denials by those whose names appear in this dispatch are footnoted.
Fourth, the issuing of vouchers by Saddam's regime may have served two primary purposes:
A: Payments in the form of bribes to individuals and organizations for their support of the regime.
B: Vouchers may have been issued to pay for goods and services that fell under U.N. Security Council sanctions and could not be financed under the "Oil for Food" program. Goods may have included military equipment or military parts, luxury automobiles that Saddam distributed as gifts inside and outside Iraq, and general luxury goods for the benefit of high-ranking officials in the Ba'ath party and government.
Fifth, the voucher recipients sold the vouchers to oil traders, who then collected the oil against the vouchers from the Kirkuk-Banias (Syria) pipeline terminal, which was operating in contravention of the Security Council sanctions. The pipeline carried 200,000 barrels per day of Iraqi oil, which benefited Syria greatly. "

[cyncooper]

Pitt is chairman of Kucinich's campaign??!

(My brother-in-law is a Dennis supporter, if you can believe that)

[in the Arena]

The Smoking Barrel...

[Ragtime Cowgirl]

Thanks for the posts, and the ping!

Thank goodness for the internet!

[William McKinley]

I misspoke. Campaign spokesman. From ABC's The Note:

Kucinich:

From ABC News Kucinich campaign reporter Melinda Arons:

While certainly not a shake-up, the campaign is changing its media strategy. National press secretary David Swanson, who kept a grueling schedule as the campaign's main spokesperson but who oftentimes had a prickly relationship with the press, has given his two weeks notice.

Replacing him is author and journalist William Rivers Pitt. Pitt, who wrote "War on Iraq: What Team Bush Doesn't Want You to Know" with former weapons inspector Scott Ritter and who currently edits the website TruthOut.org, was covering Kucinich last week in Iowa. He blended in so well that Kucinich offered him the position, and he will now travel full-time with the candidate. The campaign worries its relationship with the media has been damaged by its previously defensive attitude toward the mainstream press, something they hope Pitt can remedy. As Pitt told ABC News, "There's a new sheriff in town."

[cyncooper]

Hmmmmmm

Kerry got money from the guy who funded Ritter's pro-Iraq propaganda film....

Isn't that interesting.

[William McKinley]

It was a way of limiting their sales. They could only sell oil through that program, only for money to purchase food.

[DeepDish]

"AL-KHAFAJI, AMIR MCLEAN,VA 22101 WORLD BANK/ECONOMIST"

Now it would be interesting to know who this perp's friends and associates are and check their contributions. You know, man with big money, splits it ten or twenty ways with instruction to give everybody 1250$ with instructions to donate 1000$. Sort of a reverse Ponzi scam.

[William McKinley]

You mean the same thing Edwards does to get large donations from Law firms?

[Ragtime Cowgirl]

8 Iraqi govt. papers: Saddam bribed Chirac ~ Washington Times - UPI | 1/28/04
8 Saddam Stole Billions From U.N. ~ ABC News | 5/20/03 | Brian Ross and Ronda Schwartz
8 Kofi 'Annandersen' - Enron-style accounting at the U.N. Oil-for-Food Program
8 Saddam's Cash  ~ The Weekly Standard  |  5/5/03 | Stephen F. Hayes
8 Press scandal: Kowtowing in Iraq ~ John Burns ~ New York Daily News  | 9/17/03 | Zev Chafets

[Fresh Wind]

John Kerry at two degrees of Saddam Hussein. I'm not surprised at all.

[cyncooper]

All of my posts later in the thread were made before I got to your excellent documentation.

I see we both remembered the name.

Interesting if this pans out.

Is this list considered authentic or is it possibly a forgery? The list the thread is based on, I mean.