Security Guards Will Be Charged

US gunmen could be charged within the week
By Nick McMaster,  Newser Staff
Posted Sep 23, 2007 8:54 AM CDT
Security Guards Will Be Charged
IRAQ-UNREST-US-BAGHDAD-BLACKWATER   (Getty Images)

Iraqi officials will file criminal charges against the employees of Blackwater, the private security firm involved in the shooting deaths of Iraqi civilians last Sunday, CNN reports. How such charges would be levied and trials held remain to be seen, as the US government has claimed that the Iraqis have no jurisdiction over private security contractors. The charges will be filed within a week, according to a source from Iraq's Foreign Ministry.

Though initially suspended, Blackwater security details were resumed Friday to provide protection for American officials. Company officials insists they were under attack when they opened fire at a busy Baghdad intersection. The Iraqis claim they possess video evidence that contradicts the Blackwater version of the incident in which they now say as many as 20 people were killed. (More Iraq stories.)

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