Blackwater Worldwide

9 Stories

Erik Prince Violated Arms Embargo: UN Report

The former Blackwater head may face sanctions

(Newser) - United Nations investigators say that the former head of private security contractor Blackwater Worldwide violated a UN arms embargo by sending mercenaries to Libya to fight on behalf of a militia leader there, the Hill reports. The New York Times obtained a confidential report that details how Erik Prince sent...

UN Rights Office 'Deeply Concerned' by Blackwater Pardons
In Iraq, Fury at Pardons
of Blackwater Contractors
THE RUNDOWN

In Iraq, Fury at Pardons of Blackwater Contractors

Trump 'broke my life again,' says father of youngest Baghdad massacre victim

(Newser) - President Trump's decision to pardon four Blackwater contractors convicted of killing more than a dozen unarmed civilians in Baghdad has caused anger in Iraq—and concern at the United Nations. The UN rights office says it is "deeply concerned" by the pardons for the men involved the 2007...

Blackwater to Investigator: We Could Kill You

After investigators uncovered drunken misconduct by guards

(Newser) - Well, that's one way to deal with being investigated. In 2007, Blackwater USA's project manager for Iraq essentially threatened to kill two State Department investigators, according to an explosive new report in the New York Times today. The incident took place not long before the private security contractor...

Blackwater, Er, We Mean Xe, Changes Name Again

CEO says 'Academi' will strive to be 'boring'

(Newser) - Blackwater's attempt to scrub clean its image by rebranding itself as Xe Services didn't really throw anyone off the scent—it was forever identified as "the company formerly known as Blackwater"—so now the company is trying again. Today, it will formally announce its new name,...

Blackwater Settles With US for $42M
 Blackwater 
 Settles With 
 US for $42M 


CAN STILL GET FED CONTRACTS

Blackwater Settles With US for $42M

Security firm still faces other charges

(Newser) - No stranger to controversy, Blackwater has settled a laundry list of transgressions with the State Department to the tune of $42 million. The deal treats violations—which include illegally exporting weapons to Afghanistan and offering to train Sudanese troops without authorization—as an administrative matter, and allows Blackwater, now...

CIA Hires Renamed Blackwater in Afghanistan

Gives company $100M for 'protective services'

(Newser) - The CIA has secretly given a $100 million contract to Xe Services—the company formerly known as Blackwater Worldwide—to guard its facilities in Afghanistan and elsewhere, sources tell the Washington Post . The news comes hot on the heels of the revelation the State Department granted Xe a $120 million...

Ex-Blackwater Prez Hit With Federal Weapons Charges

Gary Jackson, 4 others allegedly stockpiled arms

(Newser) - The former president of Blackwater Worldwide and four other former officials at the embattled security firm were indicted today on federal weapons charges, partially the result of a raid 2 years ago by agents that rounded up 22 weapons, including AK-47s. The indictment charges Gary Jackson, who left the company...

Suit: Blackwater Charged US for Strippers, Payroll Hooker

Ex-workers accuse company of massive fraud

(Newser) - Controversial private security firm Blackwater Worldwide scammed the US for millions through overbilling, including charges for alcohol, strippers and a hooker on a monthly payroll, according to a lawsuit filed by two ex-employees. The company hired a prostitute to pleasure male employees in Kabul and sent the bill to Uncle...

Iraq Orders Blackwater Contractors Out of Country

Move affects 250 current and former employees

(Newser) - Iraq has ordered about 250 former and current Blackwater employees to leave the country within seven days or face having their visas pulled. The order comes in the wake of a US judge dismissing criminal charges against five Blackwater guards accused in the 2007 shooting deaths of 17 Iraqis in...

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