Forbes: Chalabi Raid Complicates Oil-For-Food Probe

[salin]

Chalabi Raid Complicates Oil-For-Food Probe
Matthew Swibel, 05.20.04, 9:15 PM ET

WASHINGTON, D.C. - While the Iraqi prisoner abuse scandal rages, yet another controversy is gathering steam, involving top U.S. accounting firms, powerful K Street lobbying firms and international oil companies widely held by institutional and individual investors.

Senior congressional staffers, policy analysts and lobbyists are all pointing to mounting evidence that "utter chaos is reigning" in Baghdad over investigations into the Iraq oil-for-food program scandal, especially in the wake of today's raid by Iraqi police and U.S. forces on the home of Iraqi Governing Council member Ahmad al-Chalabi.

The purpose of the raid was not disclosed, but Chalabi himself later told reporters that among the items seized were files related to the oil-for-food program, which he and the council have been probing.

---snip

The raid on Chalabi's home--characterized by the White House as resulting from an Iraqi-led investigation--may frustrate the ability of private accounting firm KPMG to complete a comprehensive audit into the oil-for-food program, which generated $67 billion in revenue for Iraq between 1997 and 2002, according to the Heritage Foundation. KPMG began investigating in February 2004 on behalf of the Iraqi Ministry of Oil, the Central Bank of Iraq, the Finance and the Trade Ministry and the State Oil Marketing Association.

more: http://www.forbes.com/business/2004/05/20/cz_ms_0520iraq.html

salin's comment: So maybe it isn't a result of the Oil-for-Food investigation - as some accounts have suggested, but instead to make that investigation more difficult and its findings more murky.

[oldhat]

1. Hahahahahhaha

Yeah, it complicated the oil for food probe because it was all Chalabi bullshit that he made up about the UN to distract everyone from the fact that he's a lying, murdering sleazebag.

[salin]

2. point being... are there folks connected to bushies

who would turn up in these investigations?

[LittleApple81]

4. I think I remember reading that some of the biggest beneficiaries

were American firms... and when have you seen American firms involved in illegalities that are not related to the BFEE in some way shape or form?

[daleo]

3. Either that, or Cheney's company is implicated

Halliburton has had its mitts in everything else, why not this?

[trapper914]

5. Or it may be nothing at all...

Chalabi is the only person to have access to the documentation. It also happens to be in Chalabi's best interest to discredit the U.N. Less U.N. involvement, more opportunity for Chalabi to enrich himself and gather power.

Could it be the documents reveal very little, if nothing?

[salin]

6. and then the point of seizing the documents

is to spare the UN the false discrediting? So the administration (and pentagon) who keeps speaking out of two sides of its mouth per the UN would work to help the UN?

I have read so far:
-Chalabi may have been giving info to the Iranians - thus the raid.
-Chalabi was under investigation for corruption and thus the raid.
-The action against Chalabi could hurt the OfF investigation into corruption (this story)

all sorts of differing ideas circulating... that alone makes it very interesting (in terms of watching the story to see how it unfolds.)