A United Nations' commission has approved the release of more than $1 billion in compensation payments for victims of Iraq's 1990 invasion of Kuwait.

It is the latest installment in a program of reparations that began in 1994.

In a Thursday statement, the U.N. Compensation Commission said the latest payments will be distributed to nine successful claimants. It says the claimants include government bodies and international organizations as well as corporations and public sector enterprises.

The commission did not specify the names of the recipients.

A U.N. Security Council mandate currently requires Iraq to put five percent of its oil and gas revenues into the reparations fund, which so far has provided about $33 billion in compensation.

The commission says a further $19 billion is due. It says the funds are compensation for losses and damages suffered as a result of Iraq's unlawful invasion and occupation of Kuwait that triggered the Gulf War.

An international coalition expelled Saddam Hussein's forces from Kuwait in 1991 after a seven-month occupation.