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Tuesday, September 25, 2007

Jean-Marie Benjamin

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The Rev. Jean-Marie Benjamin is a priest who once worked as an assistant to the Vatican secretary of state and became an activist for lifting Iraqi sanctions prior to the 2003 invasion of Iraq. He is reported to have set up the meeting between former Pope John Paul II and Tariq Aziz, Iraq's foreign minister. Report of the Independent Inquiry Commission “Oil for Food” of the United Nations "Since the last two years, in some articles published by the media, father Jean-Marie Benjamin has been accused of having received “allocations of oil” from the Government of Saddam Hussein. One thing is to put the name of a person on the list, another matter is to accept what is proposed. At the end of the year 2001, as soon as father Benjamin was informed concerning the allocations, he categorically refused. On 25 January 2002, he wrote a letter to Tareq Aziz to refuse the offer officially. This letter was transmitted to the former vice Prime Minister through the Embassy of Iraq in Rome, with a copy for the Iraqi Consul in Rome. Following this letter Jean-Marie Benjamin never gave this matter a thought again. In January 2005, Jean-Marie Benjamin, during a meeting with the inspectors, gave the inspectors of the Independent Inquiry Commission a copy of the letter that he had addressed to Tareq Aziz. After an investigation in Baghdad conducted by the inspectors of the Independent Inquiry Commission at the Ministry of Oil and Iraqi officials, the report of the Commission confirms what Jean-Marie Benjamin has always declared, he never accepted any allocation or any other support from Iraq. On 27 October 2005, the Independent Inquiry Commission “Oil for Food” has published the final report. One can read on page 100 and 101 of the second volume of the report the following conclusion by the inspectors:

“... An Iraqi official involved in allocations at the time confermed that Father Benjamin did not request an oil allocation”.

end:

In January 2002, when he was offered an additional oil allocation to support his “activities and projects in favor of the Iraqi population”, Father Benjamin told officials at SOMO and Mr. Aziz, both in person and by letter, that he could not accept any oil allocations. Ministry of Oil records confirm that, although oil allocations totaling 5.5 million barrels were granted to Father Benjamin in Phases XI through XIII, none of the oil was lifted.” An UN report confim Father Banjamin never accepted any petrol barrel.

A letter written by Jean Marie Benjamin in italian language can be found at http://www.beppegrillo.it/2007/09/una_lettera_di_1.html

This letter is a verifiable source of the above mentioned information.