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SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2009
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NEWS ABOUT: Iraq contractors

Iraq contractors stories: 25 news summaries

1 - 20 of 25 Stories | 1 2 Next >>

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ANALYSIS

 Civilian Contractors Are the 'Vietnam Vets' of Our Time

Workers injured in war zones are the hidden cost of Iraq, Afghanistan wars

Oct 7, 09 7:30 AM CDT
(Newser) - Thousands of Americans have come home from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan who are veterans in all but name, writes T. Christian Miller—and the benefits afforded veterans. The military's unprecedented reliance on civilian contractors has left thousands injured and disabled with no safety net or public gratitude. Whether... More »

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veterans • veterans' benefits • Iraq contractors • KBR • Afghanistan veterans • Iraq war • military contractors

US Soldier Held in Iraq
Contractor's Shooting Death

Contractor for Houston-based KBR shot to death, died at 8:30am

Sep 14, 09 5:33 AM CDT
(Newser) - A US soldier is being held in the shooting death of a civilian contractor in Tikrit, Iraq, reports CNN. Houston-based military contractor KBR said the victim shot to death yesterday at Contingency Operating Base Speicher was an employee. More »

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Iraq death toll • US Army • Tikrit • Iraq contractors • shooting • KBR

(Newser) - Two former Blackwater employees accused company founder and CEO Erik Prince of murder in statements filed in federal court this week, the Nation reports. The former guards, including an ex-Marine, say Prince may have either killed or facilitated the killing of operatives probing the security contractor's Iraq operations. The investigators... More »

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Blackwater • Erik Prince • security contractors • Iraq contractors • Iraq war

Pentagon Drops Ball on Contractor Oversight: Report

Says tens of billions in contracts lack decent US supervision

Jun 9, 09 9:33 AM CDT
(Newser) - Though US defense contracting has reached “unprecedented proportions” in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Defense Department isn’t adequately monitoring the contracts, according to an independent watchdog. A report to be presented to Congress tomorrow says the government lacks central records showing the identities, activities, and pay of some 240,... More »

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Congress • Pentagon • oversight • Department of Defense • security contractors • Iraq contractors • Defense Dept • House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform • defense contractors • monitoring • Wartime Contracting Commission

 Meet the New Blackwater, 
 Same as the Old Blackwater 

New contractor may hire the same people

Apr 15, 09 2:58 PM CDT
(Newser) - The military contractor known as Xe—and far better known as the former Blackwater—has changed little more than its name, NPR reports. Despite having said it's leaving the international security business, Xe recently extended its deal with the State Department to fly protective missions in Iraq. And as another... More »

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Blackwater • Triple Canopy • Iraq contractors • private security guards • Iraq war

(Newser) - The United States' poor track record on rebuilding Iraq has long been chalked up to lousy planning by Pentagon brass. But an expanding investigation by federal authorities adds another element to the mix: possible corruption by the military commanders who oversaw reconstruction in the Wild West days after the invasion,... More »

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Iraq • contractors • bribery • US military • Iraq contractors • Iraq reconstruction • graft • post-war reconstruction

US Flushes Blackwater Contract

State Dept. calls renewal 'moot' after Iraq denies operating license

Jan 31, 09 2:58 AM CST
(AP) - The State Department said Friday it will not renew Blackwater's contract to protect American diplomats in Iraq when it expires in May. A department spokeswoman said the contract will lapse because of the Iraqi government's decision to deny Blackwater a license to operate, amid lingering outrage over a 2007 shooting... More »

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Iraq • State Department • Blackwater • security contractors • Iraq contractors • Iraq war

 Halliburton, KBR 
 Sued for Sickening 
 Iraq Troops 

Suit charges contractors supplied spoiled food, contaminated water

Dec 4, 08 1:51 AM CST
(Newser) - A lawsuit filed against Halliburton and KBR accuses the military contractors of exposing troops and civilian workers on a US base in Iraq to spoiled food, contaminated water, and toxic fumes from a burn pit, the Military Times reports. The lead plaintiff in the suit said he still has nightmares... More »

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Iraq • US military • Halliburton • military bases • Iraq contractors • KBR

Blackwater Faces Hefty Fine for Iraq Gun Violations 

Contractor shipped firearms without permit; some may now be on black market

Nov 13, 08 4:08 PM CST
(Newser) - The government will hit security firm Blackwater USA with a multimillion-dollar fine for shipping hundreds of unauthorized guns to Iraq, McClatchy reports. A lengthy State Department investigation has concluded that the security contractor shipped some 900 weapons to the country—some of which likely wound up on the black market—... More »

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Blackwater • black market • security contractors • Iraq contractors • weapons • Iraq war • defense contractors

ANALYSIS

As Troops Exit Iraq, US Spends More on Contractors

$1.2B spent for private security firms; critics say Iraqis should be picking up slack instead

Aug 28, 08 1:21 PM CDT
(Newser) - American troops are trickling home, but at a hefty cost: The US has spent more than $1.2 billion this year on private security contractors—mostly to protect diplomats, but also to secure infrastructure and supplies, USA Today reports. The State Department says now that focus has shifted to rebuilding,... More »

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contractors • security contractors • Iraq contractors • Iraq war • Iraq war spending

Blackwater Guards May
Be Charged in Iraq Shooting

Prosecutors target 6
in Sept. incident

Aug 17, 08 6:18 AM CDT
(Newser) - Federal prosecutors are close to seeing indictments against some of the Blackwater security guards linked to the shooting in Baghdad last September that left 17 civilians dead, the Washington Post reports. Target letters have gone out to six Blackwater contractors, sources tell the Post, indicating a high likelihood that the... More »

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Iraq • Blackwater • indictment • security guards • Iraq contractors • Iraq war

US Contractor Bills in Iraq
to Hit $100B

Workers outnumber troops, account for
20% of war spending

Aug 12, 08 6:00 AM CDT
(Newser) - By the end of the year, the US will have spent $100 billion on private defense contractors in Iraq, a congressional report finds, showing more private-sector reliance than any previous wartime. Some 20% of funds spent on the war have gone to contractors, whose numbers are now greater than the... More »

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US military • Halliburton • security contractors • Iraq contractors • KBR • Iraq war • Iraq war spending

Foreign Companies Cash In on Stable Iraq

Baghdad aggressively courts international investment

Jul 22, 08 12:00 PM CDT
(Newser) - With security and stability on the rise, Iraq’s government is turning its attention, and its generous budget, toward reconstruction. That’s led to some big opportunities for Western businesses, which are scrambling to get a cut of the country’s $25 billion reconstruction budget. Iraq, which lacks the resources... More »

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Iraq • foreign investment • Iraq government • infrastructure • Iraq contractors • Iraq reconstruction

Shoddy Electrical Work Killing US Troops in Iraq

Hazard from substandard work worse than Pentagon has acknowledged

Jul 18, 08 4:00 AM CDT
(Newser) - Shoddy electrical work by private contractors is making Iraq an even deadlier place for US troops, reports the New York Times. At least 13 troops have died from electrocution and many more have been injured. Others have perished in electrical fires. The problem is worse than the Pentagon has acknowledged,... More »

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Iraq • US military • military bases • electrocution • Iraq contractors • electrical shocks • KBR

Army Overseer Ousted After Rejecting Bogus Iraq Bills

Says he was replaced after vowing not to pay dubious bills

Jun 17, 08 7:54 AM CDT
(Newser) - Did a top Army official lose his job for trying to save the Army money? Charles Smith was ousted from his job after refusing to pay then-Halliburton subsidiary KBR more than $1 billion in charges deemed bogus by Army auditors. “They had a gigantic amount of costs they couldn’... More »

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Iraq • Halliburton • Iraq contractors • defense spending • KBR

Iraq Profitable Business for Bush's Ex-Spies

Armitage, Tenet, Black cash in on outsourcing of intelligence

May 29, 08 1:20 PM CDT
(Newser) - Richard Armitage rarely saw eye-to-eye with the Bush administration on the Iraq war, but these days he may be more sanguine. That’s because Armitage has profited handsomely from his own national security consulting firm, as well stakes in a dozen private defense and intelligence companies that do business with... More »

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intelligence spending • US intelligence • security contractors • George J. Tenet • Iraq contractors • Richard Armitage

 Audit Shows Billions Unaccounted for in Iraq

Almost $8.2B in Iraq War funding evaded federal rules, reports the Pentagon

May 23, 08 11:20 AM CDT
(Newser) - A Pentagon audit of $8.2 billion in taxpayer money spent in Iraq found that nearly all of the handouts skirted federal rules, and millions of dollars in contracts were awarded with little or no record of what they were for, reports the New York Times. Take the $320.8... More »

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Pentagon • contractors • US military • audit • Iraq contractors • Iraq war • Iraq war spending • IAP

Iraqi Official Calls Blackwater Deal 'Bad News'

PM's adviser warns Baghdad may challenge contract

Apr 5, 08 4:24 PM CDT
(Newser) - An Iraqi official called the renewal of Blackwater USA's contract "bad news" today, CNN reports. "I personally am not happy with this, especially because they have committed acts of aggression, killed Iraqis," said the adviser to Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki. With many in Baghdad upset about it,... More »

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Iraq • Baghdad • Nouri al-Maliki • Blackwater • Iraq government • security contractors • Iraq contractors

FBI Recovers 2
US Contractors in Iraq

4 others still missing after severed fingers put focus on hunt

Mar 24, 08 6:28 PM CDT
(Newser) - The FBI said today it has the bodies of two US contractors who were kidnapped in Iraq, the AP reports. John Roy Young, a security worker, and Ronald Withrow, employed by an IT firm, were two of six contractors kidnapped in Iraq over the past 2 years. Journalists shone attention... More »

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Iraq • FBI • kidnapping • contractors • US military • Iraq contractors • Iraq war

Women Report Sex Assaults by Contractors in Iraq

Victims say assaults are common and complaints ignored in legal limbo

Feb 13, 08 11:03 AM CST
(Newser) - American women who report being sexually assaulted while working for contractors in Iraq are finding themselves stuck in a legal limbo, reports the New York Times. They are not covered by military laws, and the reach of American laws over US contractors abroad is still unclear. Contractors like KBR require... More »

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Iraq • Iraq contractors • sexual assault • KBR

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