Iraqi-American charged with Saddam-era violations

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - An Iraqi-American who helped organize a 2002 U.S. congressional trip to Baghdad was indicted on Wednesday on charges of working for the government of ousted Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, the Justice Department said.

The indictment against Muthanna al-Hanooti, a former official with the registered Islamic charity Life for Relief and Development, said Iraq's foreign intelligence service funnelled $34,000 (16,939 pounds) through the charity to pay expenses for the delegation.

The three lawmakers who took the trip in October 2002, five months before the U.S.-led invasion to oust Saddam, were not named in the indictment.

News reports at the time said Democratic U.S. Reps. Jim McDermott of Washington, Mike Thompson of California and David Bonior of Michigan, who were all opposed to war, were visiting Iraq. Delegation members said they warned Saddam's government that it had to allow U.N. inspections to avert war.

Bonior left office in 2003. He later served as manager of John Edwards presidential campaign.

Republicans sharply criticized the visit at the time.

Justice Department spokesman Dean Boyd declined to discuss the delegation members, saying they had been unaware of the connection to Iraq.

"The (delegation) had no knowledge (of the financial connection). They are not accused of anything."

Al-Hanooti was arrested on Tuesday when he entered the United States from abroad, Boyd said. He was released on $100,000 bond with an electronic monitor after an initial court appearance in Detroit.

(Reporting by Randall Mikkelsen, editing by Philip Barbara)