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Viewing cable 05ROME4182, U.S. Terror Victims Accuse Italy of Siding with

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Reference ID Created Released Classification Origin
05ROME4182 2005-12-29 17:05 2011-08-24 01:00 UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY Embassy Rome
This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.
UNCLAS ROME 004182 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR EUR/WE, EUR/ERA, EB/IFB/OMA 
DEPT PLEASE PASS TO CEA 
PARIS PLEASE PASS TO USOECD 
TREAS PLEASE PASS TO HULL 
USDOC 4212/ITA/MAC/OEURA/CPD/DDEFALCO 
 
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED 
 
E.O. 12958:  N/A 
TAGS: ECON EFIN PGOV IR IT KPRP ANTITERRORISM FORCE PROTECTION
SUBJECT: U.S. Terror Victims Accuse Italy of Siding with 
Iran 
 
1. Lawyers of the families of three U.S. victims of Hamas 
terrorist attacks in Israel in 1995 and 1996, to whom a U.S. 
Court in 2003 awarded USD 523 million in damages against 
Iran, have accused Italy of siding with Iran in the legal 
battle to collect damages from Iran's assets here.  The 
lawyers, targeting Iran because of its alleged support of 
Palestinian militant groups, have asked the Rome Court to 
freeze a Banca Nazionale del Lavoro (BNL) account in Rome, 
held by the Iranian Embassy.  The Court has agreed. 
 
2. Following the Iranian Embassy's formal protest November 
10, the MFA reminded the Court that the Vienna Convention 
protects embassies from such action, and that the Court must 
uphold international agreements.  However, in a December 9 
statement, the MFA said the letter was "only procedural," 
and that Foreign Minister Fini hoped "justice will take its 
course and families are compensated in accordance with 
international law."  On December 13, Iran threatened that 
should the asset freeze continue, Iran would release 
"evidence of Italian support to Saddam Hussein's regime." 
 
3. At a December 20 Court hearing, lawyers for Italy and 
Iran raised procedural objections to freezing the accounts 
and maintained that sovereign nation assets enjoy immunity 
from national laws.  Lawyers of the U.S. victim families now 
reportedly accuse Italy of siding with Iran.  The Rome Court 
is expected to rule on the objections in January. 
 
4. Comment: The Rome Court's decision could set a precedent 
to open similar suits in other countries, who are also 
Vienna Convention signatories.  Italy has traditionally had 
good relations with Tehran, is Iran's biggest trading 
partner in Europe, and has large investments in Iran's gas 
market through the Italian oil and gas giant ENI.  That 
said, the Italian government strongly condemned Iranian 
President Ahmadinejad's recent rhetoric, calling for 
Israel's destruction and describing the Nazi Holocaust as a 
"myth."  Italy has cooperated closely with us on all 
measures to stop terrorism financing. End comment. 
 
SPOGLI