WASHINGTON, Jan. 29 (UPI) -- An Iraqi newspaper this week published a list of 270 individuals and organizations from 50 countries who allegedly received "oil certificates" worth millions of dollars from Saddam Hussein.
The certificates were likely used as bribes or as a way to circumvent the prohibitions of the United Nation's oil-for-food program, according to the Washington, DC-based Middle East Media Research Institute which translated the article.
The list includes Russian President Vladimir Putin's political party and Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri.
One of the recipients, a former member of parliament in Jordan, confirmed receipt of the vouchers but said they were meant for her associate. A number of those on the list have denied receiving the certificates, which was first reported in the Iraqi Arabic-language daily Al-Mada.
According to MEMRI, the voucher recipients sold the vouchers to oil traders, who then collected the oil against the vouchers from the Kirkuk-Banias (Syria) pipeline terminal, which was operating in contravention of the Security Council sanctions. The pipeline carried 200,000 barrels per day of Iraqi oil to Syria.
MEMRI -- the Middle East Media Research Institute -- published a part of the list, including:
Canada:
Arthur Millholland, president and CEO of the Calgary-based Oilexco company, allegedly received 1 million barrels of oil.
United States:
Samir Vincent, an Iraqi-born American, who allegedly received 10.5 million barrels. In 2000, Vincent organized a delegation of Iraqi religious leaders to visit the United States and meet with former president Jimmy Carter.
Shaker Al-Khafaji, chairman of the 17th conference of Iraqi expatriates, allegedly received 1 million barrels.
Great Britain:
George Galloway allegedly received 1 million barrels.
Fawwaz Zreiqat received 1 million barrels. Zreiqat also appears in the Jordanian section as having received 6 million barrels.
The Mujahideen Al Khalq, a terrorist group opposing Iran from a base in Iraq, allegedly received 1 million barrels.
France:
The French-Arab Friendship Association allegedly received 15.1 million barrels.
Former French Interior Minister Charles Pasqua allegedly received 12 million barrels. He denied it in a French radio interview this week.
Patrick Maugein of the Trafigura company allegedly received 25 million barrels.
Michel Grimard, founder of the French-Iraqi Export Club, allegedly received 17.1 million barrels.
Switzerland:
Glenco Re, a large commodity trader in Switzerland, allegedly received 12 million barrels.
Taurus, which has been associated with Iraq for 20 years and was the first company to renew its business with Iraq after the fall of Saddam, allegedly received 1 million barrels.
Petrogas, which is listed under three sub-companies -- Petrogas Services, Petrogas Distribution, and Petrogas Resources -- and is associated with the Russian company Rosneftegazetroy, allegedly received 1 million barrels.
Alcon, listed in Liechtenstein and associated with larger oil companies, allegedly received 1 million barrels.
Finar Holdings, which is listed in Lugano, Switzerland and is under liquidation, allegedly received 1 million barrels.
Italy:
The Italian Petrol Union allegedly received 1 million barrels.
West Petrol, which trades crude oil and oil products, received 1 million barrels.
Roberto Formigoni, allegedly received 1 million barrels. A Roberto Formigoni, President of the Lombardy Region, has been vice-president of the European Parliament for five years, and deputy to the Italian Parliament for three.
Salvatore Nicotra, a former NATO pilot who became an oil merchant, allegedly received 1 million barrels.
Spain:
Basem Qaqish, a member of the Spanish Committee for the Defense of the Arab Cause, allegedly received 1 million barrels.
Ali Ballout, a Lebanese journalist, allegedly received 1 million barrels.
Javier Robert allegedly received 1 million barrels.
Yugoslavia:
The Yugoslav Left party allegedly received 9.5 million barrels.
The Socialist Party allegedly received 1 million barrels.
The Italian Party allegedly received 1 million barrels.
Another party, whose name in exact transliteration is "kokstuntsha" -- possibly Kostunica's party -- allegedly received 1 million barrels.
Other political parties:
The Romanian Labor Party allegedly received 5.5 million barrels.
The Party of the Hungarian Interest allegedly received 4.7 million barrels.
The Bulgarian Socialist Party allegedly received 12 million barrels.
The Slovakian Communist Party allegedly received 1 million barrels.
Austria:
The Arab-Austrian Society allegedly received 1 million barrels.
Brazil:
The 8th of October Movement, a Brazilian Communist group, allegedly received 4.5 million barrels.
Fuwad Sirhan allegedly received 10 million barrels.
Egypt:
Khaled Gamal Abd Al-Nasser, son of the late Egyptian president, allegedly received 16.6 million barrels.
Imad Al-Galda, a businessman and a member of the Egyptian parliament from President Mubarak's National Democratic Party, allegedly received 14 million barrels.
Abd Al-Azim Mannaf, editor of the Sout Al-Arab newspaper, allegedly received 6 million barrels. Manaf said Jan. 26 he has documents which show that he was made an offer but that he declined.
Muhammad Hilmi, editor of the Egyptian paper Sahwat Misr, allegedly received an undisclosed number of barrels.
The United Arab Company allegedly received 6 million barrels.
The Nile and Euphrates Company allegedly received 3 million barrels. The Al-Multaqa Foundation for Press and Publication allegedly received 1 million barrels.
Libya:
Prime Minister Shukri Ghanem allegedly received 1 million barrels.
Sub-Saharan Africa:
Chad's foreign minister allegedly received 1 million barrels.
South Africa:
Tokyo Saxville allegedly received 4 million barrels.
Montega allegedly received 4 million barrels. Both are associated with the African National Party.
Palestinians:
The Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) allegedly received 4 million barrels.
The PLO Political Bureau allegedly received 5 million barrels.
Abu Al-Abbas allegedly received 11.5 million barrels.
Abdallah Al-Horani allegedly received 8 million barrels.
The PFLP allegedly received 5 million barrels.
Wafa Tawfiq Al-Sayegh allegedly received 4 million barrels.
Oman:
The Al-Shanfari group received 5 million barrels.
Syria:
Farras Mustafa Tlass, the son of Syrian Defense Minister Mustafa Tlass, allegedly received 6 million barrels.
Audh Amourah allegedly received 18 million barrels.
Ghassan Zakariya allegedly received 6 million barrels.
Anwar Al-Aqqad allegedly received 2 million barrels.
Hamida Na'Na', the owner of the Al-Wafaq Al-Arabi periodical, allegedly received 1 million barrels.
Lebanon:
The son of Lebanese President Emil Lahoud allegedly received 4.5 million barrels.
Former MP Najjah Wakim allegedly received 3 million barrels.
Nasserist Party head Osama M'arouf allegedly received 3 million barrels.
National Arabic Club Chairman Faisal Darnika allegedly received 3 million barrels.
Jordan:
Former Islamist MP and head of the Engineers Union Leith Shbeilat received 15.5 million barrels. Shbeilat issued a statement this week denouncing the publication of the names as an attempt to harm the reputations of nationalists who opposed the invasion of Iraq.
Former MP and Jordanian Writers Union head Fakhri Qi'war allegedly received 6 million barrels. Qi'war has denied the charge.
Former Jordanian chief of staff Mashhour Haditha allegedly received 1 million barrels.
Former MP Toujan Al-Faisal allegedly received 3 million barrels. Faisal said in a news interview this week the vouchers were meant for her political friend, Abd Al-Rahman Al-Qatarna, on whose behalf she intervened with the Iraqi authorities.
The Jordanian Ministry of Energy allegedly received 5 million barrels.
Muhammad Saleh Al-Horani, the Amman Stock Exchange head and former Minister of Supplies, allegedly received 4 million barrels.
Lawyer Wamidth Hussein Al-Majali allegedly received 6 million barrels. Al-Majali denied the charge, saying he was a member of an organization which provided medicines to Iraq paid for by the members.
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Qatar:
Qatari Horseracing Association Chairman Hamad bin Ali Aal Thani allegedly received 14 million barrels.
Gulf Petroleum allegedly received 2 million barrels.
The Indian Congress Party allegedly received 1 million barrels.
Indonesia:
Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri allegedly received 1 million barrels as "the daughter of President Sukarno," and 1 million barrels as Megawati.
Myanmar:
Myanmar's Forestry Minister allegedly received 1 million barrels.
Ukraine:
The Social Democratic Party allegedly received 1 million barrels.
The Communist Party allegedly received 6 million barrels.
The Socialist Party allegedly received 1 million barrels.
The FTD oil company allegedly received 1 million barrels, as did other Ukrainian companies.
Belarus:
The Liberal Party allegedly received 1 million barrels.
The Communist Party allegedly received 1 ton [sic] of oil.
The director of the Belarussian president's office allegedly received 1 million barrels.
Russia:
The Russian state itself allegedly received 1,366,000,000 barrels.
Companies belonging to the Liberal Democratic Party allegedly received 79.8 million barrels - the list notes the name of party president Vladimir Zhirinovsky.
The Russian Communist Party allegedly received 1 million barrels.
The Lukoil company allegedly received 63 million barrels.
The Russneft company allegedly received 35.5 million barrels.
Vladimir Putin's Peace and Unity Party allegedly received 34 million barrels - the list notes the name of party chairwoman Saji Umalatova.
The Gazprom company allegedly received 26 million barrels.
The Soyuzneftgaz company allegedly received 25.5 million barrels - the list notes the name Shafrannik.
The Moscow Oil Company allegedly received 25.1 million barrels.
The Onako company allegedly received 22.2 million barrels.
The Sidanco company allegedly received 21.2 million barrels.
The Russian Association for Solidarity with Iraq allegedly received 12.5 million barrels.
The Ural Invest company allegedly received 8.5 million barrels.
Russneft Gazexport allegedly received 12.5 million barrels.
The Transneft company allegedly received 9 million barrels.
The Sibneft company allegedly received 8.1 million barrels.
The Stroyneftgaz company allegedly received 6 million barrels.
The Russian Committee for Solidarity with the People of Iraq allegedly received 6.5 million barrels - the list notes the name of committee chairman Rudasev.
The Russian Orthodox Church allegedly received 5 million barrels.
The Moscow Science Academy allegedly received 3.5 million barrels.
The Chechnya Administration allegedly received 2 million barrels.
The National Democratic Party allegedly received 2 million barrels.
The Nordwest group allegedly received 2 million barrels.
The Yukos company allegedly received 2 million barrels.
One Russian company which phonetically reads as "Zarabsneft" allegedly received 174.5 million barrels.
Vouchers were also allegedly granted to the Russian foreign ministry, one under the name of Al-Fayko for 1 million barrels, and one to Yetumin for 30.1 million barrels.
The Mashinoimport Company allegedly received 1 million barrels.
The Slavneft Company allegedly received 1 million barrels.
The Caspian Invest Company (Kalika) allegedly received 1 million barrels.
The Tatneft Tatarstan company allegedly received 1 million barrels.
The Surgutneft company allegedly received 1 million barrels.
Siberia's oil and gas company allegedly received 1 million barrels.
The unnamed son of the unspecified former Russian Ambassador to Iraq allegedly received 19.7 million barrels.
Nikolay Ryjkov, a former prime minister of the USSR, allegedly received 13 million barrels.
The Russian President's office director allegedly received 5 million barrels.
Oil vouchers were also allegedly distributed to companies and individuals from the Sudan, Yemen, Cyprus, Turkey, Vietnam, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Pakistan, the UAE, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Panama, Thailand, Chad, China, Nigeria, Kenya, Ireland, Bahrain, and the Philippines. Two Saudi Arabian companies were also listed.
