U.S. appeals court reinstates US$656M judgment against the PLO and Palestinian Authority

The Washington office of the Palestine Liberation Organization, seen on Nov. 18, 2017. (Alex Brandon / AP)

NEW YORK — A US$656 million judgment against Palestinian authorities has been reinstated by appeals judges, following a U.S. Supreme Court ruling in favour of Americans killed or wounded in attacks in Israel.

The decision from the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals comes a decade after it first tossed out a verdict against the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Palestinian Authority on the grounds that U.S. courts couldn’t consider lawsuits against foreign groups over overseas attacks that were not aimed at the United States.

But the appeals court reinstated the judgment in light of a Supreme Court ruling last June upholding a 2019 law enacted by Congress to allow the victims’ lawsuits to go forward against the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Palestinian Authority.

“We conclude that the original judgment for the plaintiffs should be reinstated. That conclusion is consistent with the plain import of the Supreme Court’s decision,” the judges said in a decision dated March 30.

“Our client families are very relieved that the court has reinstated the judgment without requiring a new trial. They have been waiting for a very long time for justice to be done,” attorney Kent Yalowitz said in an email.

Nitsana Darshan-Leitner, another attorney for the plaintiffs, said she was pleased with the decision after 22 years of litigation.

The victims had sued under the Anti-Terrorism Act, which was signed into law in 1992 to open U.S. courts to victims of international terror attacks.

The victims and their families assert that Palestinian agents either were involved in the attacks or incited them.

The Palestinians have consistently argued that the cases shouldn’t be allowed in American courts.

Emails seeking comment were sent to attorneys for the defendants on Sunday.

The Associated Press