Iraqis to Pay $400M to Americans

It took them 20 years, but Iraqi lawmakers approved a contentious $400 million settlement on Saturday for Americans who claimed they were abused by Saddam Hussein's regime during the U.S. invasion of Kuwait in 1990. The settlement is part of a deal brokered last year between Baghdad and Washington to finally put an end to legal battles by U.S. citizens and some former American troops who claim to have been tortured and traumatized, with hundreds saying they were used as human shields in combat. Many Iraqis, however, feel they were victims of a double-edged sword, with Saddam's regime on one end and the 2003 U.S.-led invasion on the other, and don't feel they should have to pay for their ousted dictator's wrongdoings. One lawmaker said that approving the settlement would protect Iraq from more lawsuits in the future that could potentially have added more money to the $400 million suit had it not been settled. According to military and independent record years, April has been the deadliest month for U.S. troops in Iraq since November 2009, when 11 soldiers died. An 11th soldier was reported dead on Friday, April 29.