U.S. Supreme Court declines to halt $655.5m Palestinian damages ruling

A U.S. Supreme Court justice has declined to block a $655.5 million damages award against the Palestinian Authority (PA) and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) over attacks that killed or injured Americans in Israel more than two decades ago.

A U.S. Supreme Court justice has declined to block a $655.5 million damages award against the Palestinian Authority (PA) and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) over attacks that killed or injured Americans in Israel more than two decades ago.

Justice Sonia Sotomayor rejected an emergency request from the Palestinian authorities to pause enforcement of the judgment while they appeal a lower court's decision to revive the long-running case.

The lawsuit was brought on behalf of Americans who were killed or wounded in a series of shootings and bombings in the Jerusalem area between 2002 and 2004. A New York federal court initially awarded damages to the plaintiffs in 2015.

Long legal battle

The case appeared to end in 2016 when a federal appeals court ruled that U.S. courts lacked jurisdiction and dismissed the lawsuit. The Supreme Court later declined to hear an appeal.

However, Congress passed the Promoting Security and Justice for Victims of Terrorism Act in 2019, allowing certain lawsuits against the PA and PLO to proceed in U.S. courts. Last year, the Supreme Court unanimously upheld the law, paving the way for the case to be reinstated.

In March, the Second U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals revived the original damages award following that ruling.

Palestinian concerns

The PA and PLO argue that enforcing the judgment would have severe financial consequences and could undermine public services in the West Bank.

In court filings, they said the plaintiffs intended to seek payment from Palestinian tax revenues collected by Israel, a vital source of funding for government operations.

They warned that security, sanitation and education services in the West Bank were already "hanging by a thread" and said enforcing the judgment could further destabilise the region.

The Palestinian authorities also argued that the damages award had become legally void after the original appeals process concluded in 2018. Justice Sotomayor did not explain her decision to reject the request and did not refer the matter to the full Supreme Court.
 

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