At least six major groups of victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks have struck a tentative deal to divide about $3.5 billion in Afghan central bank assets they are trying to seize to pay off legal claims against the Taliban, according to a letter filed on Tuesday to a judge overseeing the matter.
But another major group is not part of the deal, which would mean some families would receive a far larger payout than most others. And the Sept. 11 plaintiffs still must persuade a court that the central bank funds — deposited in the Federal Reserve of New York before the Taliban took over Afghanistan in August — can lawfully be used to pay off the Taliban’s legal debts.
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Jerry S. Goldman, a lawyer for a plaintiffs’ group called the O’Neill case that Mr. Carter’s letter said supported the deal, declined to comment on the substance of any agreement or the status of negotiations. But he said he was trying to get the best possible result for his clients “under the existing circumstances and legal environment.”
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