Blackwater

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US Troops Kill 9 Iraqi Civilians
US Troops Kill
9 Iraqi Civilians
Feb 4, 2008 5:40 AM CST

US Troops Kill 9 Iraqi Civilians

Houses bombed during hunt for al-Qaeda suspects: Iraqi police

(Newser) - American military forces accidentally killed nine Iraqi civilians and injured three during raids south of Baghdad Saturday, US officials revealed today. The incident occurred near Iskandariyah, when a helicopter air strike was ordered on a checkpoint after a convoy of US troops in pursuit of Al Qaeda in Iraq came...

Blackwater Takes Aim at NC Candidate

Security contractor calls on workers to 'run this goof out of Dodge'

(Newser) - A North Carolina congressional hopeful had some harsh words to say about Blackwater in an online forum, and now the security contractor, located in Marshall Adame’s district, is firing back in a big way, reports Mother Jones. “Private Armies represent the very things we despise,” Adame said....

US Seeks Iraqi Authority to Continue War

Agreement would not need ratification

(Newser) - The White House is negotiating with Iraq what critics say is a treaty in all but name and could tie the hands of a future administration, reports the New York Times. The US is insisting on being granted continued authority to conduct the war and calling for legal protection for...

Blackwater Probe Hits Roadblocks
Blackwater Probe Hits Roadblocks
Jan 16, 2008 11:33 AM CST

Blackwater Probe Hits Roadblocks

DOJ runs up against immunity deal, possible gaps in US law

(Newser) - The Justice Department warned Congress last month that major legal obstacles stand in the way of any prosecution of private security firm Blackwater for a September shooting in Iraq, the New York Times reports. Immunity granted by the State Department to Blackwater employees represents a possible roadblock; Justice also has...

US Ignored Warnings on Security Firms

Stream of Iraqi reports went unheeded over two years

(Newser) - The Bush administration ignored repeated warnings about using private security contractors such as Blackwater in Iraq, the Washington Post reports. Despite the warnings from legal experts and military officials over the past two years, the US did not acknowledge the need for oversight—and, in fact, expanded the presence of...

Blackwater Guard Kills NY Times Dog
Blackwater Guard Kills
NY Times Dog
Dec 19, 2007 4:35 AM CST

Blackwater Guard Kills NY Times Dog

Pooch attacked bomb-sniffing K-9, says security firm

(Newser) - Another fatal shooting by a Blackwater guard in Baghdad is under investigation by the US embassy. The victim this time is a dog kept by the staff of the New York Times, reports Reuters. The guard shot the dog, Hentish, last week before a visit by a diplomat to the...

State Dept.'s Inspector General Quits

Embattled Krongard falls victim to fallout over Blackwater

(Newser) - The State Department’s inspector general will step down next month, ending a tenure marked by controversy and allegations of conflicts of interest, the Washington Post reports. Critics accused Howard Krongard of impeding the Blackwater investigation, a charge he vigorously denied. He recused himself from the probe when it became...

Blackwater Guards on Steroids: Suit
Blackwater Guards on Steroids: Suit
Nov 28, 2007 4:29 AM CST

Blackwater Guards on Steroids: Suit

Shooting victim's kin accuse security firm of fostering lawless culture

(Newser) - Private security contractor Blackwater fosters a "culture of lawlessness" among its guards, who are revved up on steroids and other "judgment-altering substances," claims a lawsuit filed by families of Iraqis killed by the guards. Plaintiffs include two survivors of a September shooting when the guards opened fire...

Grand Jury Calls Guards —but Not Shooters

Blackwater guards give State Dept. conflicting accounts of shootings

(Newser) - A federal grand jury investigating the killing of 17 Iraqi civilians by Blackwater security guards has called guards who were present at the September incident to testify—but not the five who admit firing their weapons, sources told ABC News. Twelve other guards were said to be present at the...

Blackwater Investigator's Brother Has Ties to Firm

State Dept. official steps aside after admitting "ugly rumors" are true

(Newser) - The State Department’s top official investigating Blackwater withdrew from the probe today after a dramatic admission that his brother has links to the private security contractor. At a congressional hearing, Howard Krongard initially called the alleged ties “ugly rumors,” but after a recess during which he called...

14 of 17 Blackwater Killings Unjustified: FBI

But prosecution of guards responsible may be stymied by immunity guarantees

(Newser) - Fourteen of the 17 Iraqi civilians Blackwater guards killed at a busy Baghdad intersection in September were unjustified shootings, FBI investigators have concluded. Three deaths—including a mother and son in a car—could be considered a valid use of lethal force in response to a perceived threat, the New ...

Guards Kill Baghdad Taxi Driver
Guards Kill Baghdad
Taxi Driver
Nov 12, 2007 10:05 AM CST

Guards Kill Baghdad Taxi Driver

Workers for security contractor accused of unprovoked slaying

(Newser) - A convoy run by American security contractor DynCorp International shot and killed an Iraqi taxi driver on a Baghdad roadside Saturday, the Iraqi Interior Ministry said yesterday. “They just killed a man and drove away,” said a spokesman. Witnesses said the driver posed no apparent threat; an Iraqi...

Grieving Mom Still Wants Answers from Blackwater

CEO offers to meet after reading her story

(Newser) - Donna Zovko's son Jerry was working for Blackwater in 2004 when he was killed and his mutilated body dragged through Fallujah, and Zovko tells CNN she would trade her meeting with the Pope "for the truth of my Jerry's death." After seeing the story Blackwater's CEO offered to...

Blackwater's Legal, PR Counterstrike

Security firm goes on offensive to influence press, block suits

(Newser) - As Blackwater reels from the threat of criminal prosecution in Iraq, civil suits in the US, and bad press everywhere, the New York Times looks at the private security firm's counterstrike. Blackwater has hired a clutch of Washington lawyers and damage-control experts, including a former Clinton White House counsel, to...

US Military to Oversee Blackwater Convoys

Defense Dept. wins tug of war with State for control of contractors

(Newser) - The military is taking control of State Department security convoys in Iraq, supervising Blackwater and other contractors, the New York Times reports. State had fought a losing battle to keep control of Blackwater after it was involved in a September incident that left 17 Iraqis dead. Now, the military will...

Iraqis to Put Contractors Under Local Law

Bill would require licensing, put convoys subject to search

(Newser) - Iraq's cabinet approved a draft bill today that would allow foreign security contractors such as Blackwater to be prosecuted under local law, Reuters reports. The bill would scrap Order 17—a hotly debated 2004 decree that protects contractors from prosecution—as well as require contractors to register for Iraqi licenses,...

Blackwater Guards Handed Immunity in Probe Blunder

Protection given without authorization

(Newser) - State Department investigators have jeopardized the Blackwater criminal probe by promising immunity to guards involved in the controversial shooting last month that killed 17 Iraqis, the AP discovered. The investigators, from the Bureau of Diplomatic Security, offered the guards limited-use immunity or "garrity" protection, which prohibits their statements from...

Feds Sought to Cover Up '05 Blackwater Killing

'We can't win this one,' wrote one official

(Newser) - State Department officials sought to conceal evidence of a 2005 Blackwater killing from an LA Times reporter, according to emails obtained by ABC News. Referring to a shooting that killed one Iraqi and led to two Blackwater dismissals, one official instructed another to give the Times "what we can...

Dems Skewer Rice Over Iraq Foul-ups
Dems Skewer Rice Over
Iraq Foul-ups
Oct 25, 2007 6:35 PM CDT

Dems Skewer Rice Over Iraq Foul-ups

Condy accused of lax oversight of Blackwater, corruption, US embassy

(Newser) - House Democrats today grilled Condoleezza Rice over alleged State Department bungling in Iraq, from failure to supervise private security contractors like Blackwater to ignoring corruption in the new Iraqi government to sloppy oversight of the new US embassy in Baghdad. Usually composed, Rice showed signs of frustration today, as Dems...

Push to Put Private Guards Under Military

Congress wants military in charge, despite resistance from Condi

(Newser) - Despite reluctance from Condoleezza Rice, Congress is pushing to bring all private security guards operating in Iraq under US military control. The Senate included military oversight of private contractors in its 2008 defense bill, and the House is likely to follow, the AP reports. The bill's sponsor, Sen. Carl Levin,...

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