Judith Miller of the NY Times:
French Bank Is a Focus of Oil Inquiry
House committee and an independent United Nations panel exploring fraud and abuse in the oil-for-food program are focusing on the role of BNP Paribas, a French bank that managed billions of dollars in Iraqi oil revenue for the program, according to investigators.
In a statement yesterday, Representative Henry Hyde, Republican of Illinois, who is chairman of the House International Relations Committee, said investigators had found suggestions of banking violations. "If true, these possible banking lapses may have facilitated Saddam Hussein's manipulation and corruption of the program," Mr. Hyde said.
Investigators said the bank may not have verified the identity of some payment recipients. The bank's activities are to be the subject of a committee hearing today.
Bob Bennett, a lawyer for the bank, called the assertions "outrageous" and said that while it was possible the bank made a few questionable payments, it was "grossly unfair" to suggest it had "sloppy procedures." "Overall, this bank did an amazing job of handling a series of vast, complex transactions," he said.
Two people familiar with the United Nations investigation, led by Paul A. Volcker, said investigators had become frustrated with BNP resistance to requests for records and other information. But Mr. Bennet said the bank was cooperating.
I presume this to be the Bob Bennett who was famous even before he took on Bill Clinton as a client.
Fro comparison, here is the AP version and the WaPo account.
The WaPo lead:
UNITED NATIONS, Nov. 16 -- A U.N.-appointed investigator probing corruption in Iraq's oil-for-food program has rejected a request by a Senate committee to strip U.N. officials of their immunity so they can testify before Congress. The U.N. official agreed to release, at a time of his choosing, internal audits of the program and other confidential documents sought by Congress.
Paul A. Volcker, the former chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank, wrote in a letter to Sens. Norm Coleman (R-Minn.) and Carl M. Levin (D-Mich.) that asking U.N. officials to forgo diplomatic immunity and go before Congress "would plainly risk ending prospects of their cooperation with" his investigation.
The AP lead:
NEW YORK - The independent panel investigating alleged corruption in the multibillion-dollar U.N. oil-for-food program in Iraq told the Senate it won't hand over any documents until its own investigative reports are issued starting in January.
Former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker, who heads the inquiry, also said he opposes allowing U.N. staff or contractors to testify before congressional committees, arguing that this could risk their cooperation with his investigation.
That is interesting - the non-cooperation of Paul Volcker appears in the last paragraph of the Miller story. If you read just one, try the AP.
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