By Mike Scarcella

(Reuters) – A U.S. appels court revived Tuesday a suit against AstraZeneca. (NASDAQ:). Pfizer (NYSE.) and other companies in relation to allegations that contracts they have with Iraq’s Health Ministry helped finance terrorist activities during the War in Iraq.

Plaintiffs claim that Jaysh al-Mahdi militia, which is sponsored by Hezbollah was responsible for controlling Iraq’s Health Ministry and that 21 U.S. medical supply and manufacturing firms made corrupt payments in order to secure medical-supply contracts.

Both companies denied any wrongdoing. Representatives from the five corporate groups – AstraZeneca, GE Healthcare USA Holding, Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:) Pfizer and Hoffmann-La Roche Inc did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Families of Iraqi Mahdi Group victims brought the U.S. Court of Appeals, District of Columbia Circuit to revive the suit. The lawsuit was dismissed by a federal court judge in 2020.

Kanthon Shanmugam (the lawyer who represented the companies in the appeal) did not respond immediately.

Joshua Branson the lawyer for family members did not comment on this matter immediately.

After Saddam Hussein’s 2003 fall, the U.S. invaded Iraq, lawyers representing the firms told an appeals court they supplied “life-saving treatments for breast cancer, hemophilia injections. ultrasounds. and other medical supplies to the Iraqi government.”

Shanmugam told court in September that the ruling against these companies would “have a serious chilling effect on non-governmental organisations and companies being willing to carry out essential activities, frequently at the government’s request in troubled territories.”