U.S. Supreme Court Agrees to Rehear Iran's Appeal on Compensation Ruling

On Thursday, October 1, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to review the Central Bank of Iran's request to reconsider a federal court ruling regarding a $1.75 billion compensation payment to the families of victims of terrorist attacks, including the 1983 bombing in Lebanon that killed 241 American soldiers. According to the Associated Press, the Supreme Court justices agreed to examine a ruling from a New York appeals court that ordered the Central Bank of Iran to pay $1.75 billion from its assets to hundreds of victims and the families of those killed or injured in terrorist attacks supported by the Iranian government. This case has been ongoing for 20 years, and the Supreme Court's review comes after Iran and six world powers, including the U.S., signed an agreement to resolve Iran's nuclear program. The Supreme Court had sought the Obama administration's opinion on the compensation issue earlier this year. According to a report by the Wall Street Journal, a U.S. Department of Justice official requested the Supreme Court to reject the Central Bank of Iran's appeal on August 20. The Central Bank of Iran has stated that the seizure of its assets violates agreements between Iran and the U.S. After President Barack Obama ordered the freezing of Iranian assets, including those belonging to the Central Bank in 2012, the mentioned amount was held in trust in a bank. The Associated Press reported that after deducting federal government costs, each family may receive $5 million. The Supreme Court is expected to address this request in the winter. The 1983 bombing in Lebanon is attributed to Hezbollah, which is supported by Iran. Lawyers representing the victims' families have stated that evidence shows that Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic, and other Iranian leaders planned and ordered the bombing. In the early hours of October 23, 1983, a truck carrying over a thousand kilograms of explosives crashed through a checkpoint and detonated against a four-story military building in Beirut while soldiers were asleep. The killed and injured soldiers in this military building were part of the multinational peacekeeping forces sent to stabilize Lebanon, which was embroiled in a civil war between Christians and Muslims. The legal bill against Iran was submitted to the court based on a U.S. law from 1996 that allows Americans to sue nations that the U.S. State Department has designated as state sponsors of terrorism.