Chiquita Brands International Inc. (CQB), owner of the namesake banana label, failed to halt U.S. lawsuits brought by thousands of Colombians who said they or their relatives were tortured or killed by militias the company paid. U.S. District Judge Kenneth Marra in West Palm Beach, Florida, today denied Chiquita’s motion to dismiss some of the claims brought under the Alien Tort Statute and the Torture Victim Protection Act...The...company was fined $25 million by the U.S. after pleading guilty in March 2007...for paying Colombian paramilitary militias $1.7 million from 1997 to 2004...“While the court allowed some claims to move forward, it is important to understand that at this stage of the proceedings, the court is required by law to treat plaintiffs’ outrageous and false allegations as if they were true,” Ed Loyd, a company spokesman, said...