A judge dismissed a lawsuit on Thursday that accused chemical companies of committing war crimes by supplying the U.S. military with Agent Orange during the Vietnam War.
The class-action lawsuit was filed on behalf of about four million Vietnamese, who said they had suffered illnesses and their land had been poisoned by Agent Orange and other herbicides sprayed by U.S. aircraft.
- FROM APRIL 17, 2003: Use of Agent Orange in Vietnam underestimated
The suit named more than 30 companies, including Dow Chemical Co. and Monsanto Co.
U.S. District Judge Jack Weinstein ruled that the defoliant and similar products could not be considered poisons banned under international rules of war – even if they had similar effects.
"There is no basis for any of the claims of plaintiffs under the domestic law of any nation or state or under any form of international law," the federal judge wrote in a 233-page ruling.
Link between illnesses, chemical not proven: judge
The suit marked the first time that Vietnamese plaintiffs had sought compensation for the effects of Agent Orange.
U.S. aircraft dropped more than 80 million litres of the chemical on the Southeast Asian country from 1962 to 1971, trying to ruin the crops and to kill the foliage that the Communist forces were using as cover.
Agent Orange contains dioxin, a highly toxic chemical that has been linked to cancer, diabetes, birth defects, organ dysfunctions and other health problems.
Thousands of U.S. war veterans receive disability benefits related to Agent Orange.
