The Foreign Service Journal, July-August 2023

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | JULY-AUGUST 2023 29 bombing of Marine barracks in Beirut in 1983, the Khobar Towers bombing in Saudi Arabia in 1996, the bombing of the USS Cole in Yemen in 2000, the bombings of the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, and any victims taken hostage or murdered by a state sponsor of terrorism. The victims of the 9/11 attacks are also included in the fund and have access to half of the fund resources. State Sponsors of Terrorism. The list of state sponsors of terrorism includes Cuba, North Korea, Iran, and Syria. Sudan recently settled a case brought by victims of the Nairobi and Dar es Salaam embassy bombings and has been removed from the list. Libya was removed in 2006. Injuries Covered. Injury can include both physical and psychological damage. It has been ruled by the courts that when “one, who by extreme and outrageous conduct, intentionally or recklessly causes severe emotional distress to another, one is subject to liability for such emotional distress. Acts of terrorism are by their very definition extreme and outrageous and intended to cause the highest degree of emotional distress.” In previous U.S. court cases related to the Nairobi and Dar es Salaam bombings, the court has accepted plaintiffs’ uncontro- verted assertions that they did, in fact, suffer severe emotional and/or physical injury, and the court concluded that defendants were liable for intentional infliction of emotional distress (IIED). I believe that almost anyone who was in the facility or involved in helping in the immediate aftermath of the Kenya and Tanzania embassy bombings will have a strong case for an award based on IIED and/or physical injury. Damages can include reimbursement for medical bills, economic losses, pain and suffering, solatium (compensation for emotional rather than physical or financial harm), and punitive damages. Further, it has been ruled that one did not have to be present at the site of the attack to claim IIED. Thus, one’s spouse, children, parents, and siblings can claim IIED, as well. Amounts of the damage are set out in Peterson, et al. v. Republic of Iran (a case resulting from the bombing of the U.S. Marine bar- racks in Beirut in 1983). Under this, spouses can receive up to $4 million, children $2.5 million, and siblings $1.25 million. Victims’ awards are based on severity of injury. Whatever the award level is, it is highly unlikely that one will ever receive the total amount of the award because there are so many people who qualify and there is only so much money in the fund. The fund usually pays out, at most, once a year. The fund currently sunsets in 2039. How to Make a Claim. To make a claim to the U.S. Victims of State Sponsored Terrorism Fund, one must have a final judg- ment from a U.S. district court. To do that, one has to sue a state sponsor of terrorism under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act before the 10-year statute of limitations runs out. In the case of the East Africa embassies, one sues Iran because other courts have ruled that country culpable in the bombings. And because Iran has chosen not to respond to any of the bombing cases filed against it, the judge has ruled that cases can proceed notwith- standing expiration of the statute of limitations. I feel strongly that all of us should know about the U.S. Victims of State Sponsored Terrorism Fund, and that all who qualify should be able to access the fund. With regard to the victims of the Kenya and Tanzania bombings, I assembled a list of names for more than 200 Americans and 100 Foreign Service Nationals (now called locally employed staff) who had not yet made claims. I was unable to find contact information for everyone on the list but reached out to as many as I could. To access the U.S. Victims of State Sponsored Terrorism Fund, you have to go through a lawyer to get the final judgment from the court. A Google search for lawyers for victims of the Kenya and Tanzania embassy bombings will bring up lawyers with the proper experience in working this kind of case. Further Actions My hope for the future would be that the State Department would notify any and all victims of their possible eligibility for the fund. Information regarding the fund should be included in all terrorism training programs. I would also like to see AFSA work to amend the law so that the Justice Department is required to notify any victims of any future event of their eligibility to make a claim through the fund. An amendment should include at least the following points. Notification. When a terrorist attack that would fall under