International

Passengers Sue UK Govt, British Airways

Published

5 months ago

Jul 1, 2024.

Passengers and crew of a British Airways flight taken hostage in Kuwait in 1990 have filed a legal action against the UK government and the airline.

Eko Hot Blog gathered that a statement from the law firm McCue Jury & Partners on Monday alleged that the UK government and BA allowed the flight to land despite knowing the invasion had begun, using the opportunity to “insert a covert special ops team into occupied Kuwait.”

The incident occurred on August 2, 1990, when BA flight 149, en route to Kuala Lumpur, landed in Kuwait just hours after Iraq’s Saddam Hussein invaded. The 367 passengers and crew were detained, with some held for over four months as human shields during the Gulf War.

Ninety-four of those affected have now filed a civil claim at the High Court in London, accusing the UK government and BA of “deliberately endangering” them. The law firm said, “All of the claimants suffered severe physical and psychiatric harm during their ordeal, the consequences of which are still felt today.”

Barry Manners, a passenger on the flight and a claimant, said, “We were not treated as citizens but as expendable pawns for commercial and political gain.” He hopes a victory in the case will “help restore trust in our political and judicial process.”

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Files released in November 2021 showed that the UK ambassador to Kuwait had informed London of an Iraqi incursion before the flight’s landing, but this information was not relayed to BA.

There are also claims, denied by the government, that passengers were knowingly put at risk to deploy undercover operatives and that the flight’s take-off was delayed to allow them to board.

The UK government declined to comment on the ongoing legal proceedings. British Airways, which has denied negligence, conspiracy, and a cover-up, did not respond to AFP’s request for comment but previously stated that the 2021 records confirmed it was not warned about the invasion.

McCue Jury & Partners had announced in September its intention to file the suit, estimating potential damages at an average of £170,000 ($213,000) per claimant.

In 2003, a French court ordered BA to pay 1.67 million euros to the flight’s French hostages, citing a “serious failure” in its obligations by landing the plane.

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