Cole Families Sue the Sudan
The suit alleges the Sudanese government and Osama bin Laden co-owned a bank and a company. Also, the country allegedly let al-Qaida run a terrorist training camp within its borders and allowed an al-Qaida member to ship crates of explosives from Sudan to Yemen, where the USS Cole bombing occurred, Judge Doumar said….“These facts not only satisfy the [Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act’s] definition of ’material support or resources,’ but suggest the existence of a joint enterprise or partnership. If these allegations do not suffice to establish ’material support or resources’ for the purpose of jurisdiction, it is difficult to imagine what can,” Judge Doumar said.
He also ruled that the complaint’s allegations satisfied the terrorist exception because they claimed that Sudanese officials acted within the scope of their duties when providing material support to al-Qaida.
