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Families of Karachi bomb victims to sue Jacques Chirac for manslaughter

French naval engineers died in bombing alleged to be retaliation for decision to stop bribe payments

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• Angelique Chrisafis in Paris
• guardian.co.uk, Friday 19 November 2010 16.26 GMT
• Article history



Nicolas Sarkozy and Jacques Chirac: both men have been named by families of those killed in the 2002 Karachi bombings. They want both men to testify before an investigating magistrate. Photograph: Gangne-Guyot-Guez/AFP/Getty Images The families of French engineers killed in a Pakistan bomb attack in 2002 are to sue Jacques Chirac, the former president, for manslaughter. The bombing is known as the "Karachi Affair". The search to uncover the truth about it has become the most potentially damaging political corruption inquiry in recent French history. Allegations of illegal kickbacks on French arms sales to Pakistan threaten to engulf Nicolas Sarkozy, and now a civil suit will be launched to establish whether Chirac committed manslaughter and endangered French lives.
A total of 15 people, including 11 French naval engineers, were killed in the suicide bombing in Karachi in 2002. A French anti-terrorist judge believes the bombing was most likely a retaliation because France stopped paying bribes to Pakistan over an arms sale in 1994. Another judge is investigating whether the bribes included illegal kickbacks used to fund the political activities of Edouard Balladur, Sarkozy's close ally and mentor. As budget minister in 1994, Sarkozy would have authorised the arms sales and commissions to Pakistan. He was also director and spokesman for Balladur's failed presidential campaign in 1995.
When Chirac won the presidential race that year, he set about stopping the suspected cash flow to Balladur. He ended the bribe payments to Pakistan. But new testimony from arms executives has revealed for the first time that Paris was aware of a "risk" to French personnel on the ground if the payments were stopped.
Olivier Morice, the lawyer for the families', said they would launch a civil manslaughter suit next week against Chirac, and Dominique de Villepin, who was prime minister under Chirac from May 2005-7, as well as other arms executives.
Chirac and De Villepin have not publicly commented on the Karachi affair. Sarkozy has dismissed the allegations as a "fairy tale" and Balladur has denied involvement. The families want all four men to testify to investigating judges.