Sarkis Soghanalian

Common card · No. 399026

Sarkis Garabed Soghanalian (Armenian: Սարգիս Կարապետ Սողանալեան; February 6, 1929 – October 5, 2011), nicknamed the Merchant of Death, was a Syrian-Lebanese-Armenian international private arms dealer who gained fame for being the "Cold War's largest arms merchant" and the lead seller of firearms and weaponry to the former government of Iraq under Saddam Hussein during the 1980s. Soghanalian was contracted by the Central Intelligence Agency to sell arms to help Iraq during the Iran–Iraq War. With the encouragement of the Reagan Administration and the backing of American intelligence agencies, he oversaw the transaction of several significant arms deals. Aside from Iraq, he also sold weapons to groups in Mauritania, Lebanon, and Latin America. On the eve of the Persian Gulf War, Soghanalian spoke publicly about his activities during the Iran-Iraq War. This led to a federal indictment by the Justice Department. He was found guilty and sentenced to jail. He was given an early release when...

Read on Wikipedia