Drugmakers Must Face Claims They Aided Iraqi Terrorist Group (1)

Victims of attacks orchestrated by terrorist group Jaysh al-Mahdi can move forward with their Anti-Terrorism Act aiding-and-abetting claims against major drug and device manufacturers they say effectively sponsored the group, a federal court said Friday.

The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia found the plaintiffs plausibly alleged the defendants’ participation was “conscious, voluntary, and culpable” and facilitated Jaysh al-Mahdi’s operations.

Victims of Jaysh al-Mahdi and their family members accused 21 companies from five corporate families—including AstraZeneca PLC, GE Healthcare Technologies Inc., Johnson & Johnson, Pfizer Inc., and F. Hoffman-La Roche Ltd.—of paying illegal ...