/ 15 July 1994

Armscor Admits Sales To Saddam

Weekly Mail Reporter

ARMSCOR has admitted to selling arms to Iraq during its war with Iran.The Mail & Guardian revealed last week that Armscor sold Saddam Hussein a range of weaponry during the 1980-1989 Gulf conflict _ and that a Palestinian businessman, Wallid Saffouri, was suing it for $495-million in unpaid commission.

Armscor chief executive Tielman de Waal said in an interview this week with Agence France Presse that sales stopped after the United Nations imposed sanctions on Iraq after its invasion of Kuwait.

He said the value of weapons sold was not $4,5-billion, as claimed by Saffouri, but would not say how much was actually involved because “it was part of the court case”.

The case is expected to come before the Pretoria Supreme Court next year.