U.S. court revives lawsuit against Pfizer, others on Iraq terrorism funding claims

FILE PHOTO: A 3D printed Pfizer logo is placed near medicines from the same manufacturer in this illustration taken September 29, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

(Reuters) - A U.S. appeals court on Tuesday revived a lawsuit against AstraZeneca, Pfizer and other companies over allegations their contracts with Iraq's health ministry helped fund terrorism that killed Americans during the war in Iraq.

The plaintiffs contend that the militia group Jaysh al-Mahdi, sponsored by Hezbollah, controlled Iraq's health ministry and that the 21 defendant U.S. and European medical supply and manufacturing companies made corrupt payments to obtain medical-supply contracts.