Maybe the relentless pursuit of the Oil-For-Food scandal story by Claudia Rosett has shamed the N.Y. Times into some increased attention to the biggest fraud in history. Early in this excellent article by Susan Sachs and Judith Miller, they get right to the point: (free registration required)
Multiple investigations now under way in Washington and Iraq and at the United Nations all center on one straightforward question: How did Mr. Hussein amass so much money while under international sanctions? An examination of the program, the largest in the United Nations' history, suggests an equally straightforward answer: The United Nations let him do it.Posted by dan at August 14, 2004 01:50 PM"Everybody said it was a terrible shame and against international law, but there was really no enthusiasm to tackle it," said Peter van Walsum, a Dutch diplomat who headed the Iraq sanctions committee in 1999 and 2000, recalling the discussions of illegal oil surcharges. "We never had clear decisions on anything. So we just in effect condoned things."