U.S. firm out of control in Iraq: report to Congress

[Praxius]

U.S. firm out of control in Iraq: report to Congress

The U.S. security firm Blackwater is an out-of-control outfit indifferent to Iraqi civilian casualties, says a critical report released by a key U.S. congressional committee. Among the most serious charges against the prominent security firm is that Blackwater contractors, who protect U.S. diplomats, sought to cover up a June 2005 shooting of an Iraqi man and the company paid, with State Department approval, the families of others killed by its guards. The 15-page report from the House of Representatives oversight and government reform committee says Blackwater has had to fire dozens of guards over the last three years for problems ranging from misuse of weapons, alcohol and drug violations, inappropriate conduct and violent behaviour. Just after the report was released, The Associated Press learned the F-B-I is sending a team to Iraq to investigate an incident that has angered the Iraqi government. On September 16, 11 Iraqis were killed in a shoot-out involving Blackwater guards protecting a U.S. diplomatic convoy in Baghdad. Blackwater says its guards acted in self-defence after the convoy came under attack. Iraqi witnesses say the shooting was unprovoked. The FBI team was sent at the request of the State Department and its findings will be reviewed for possible criminal liability. The 122 personnel terminated by Blackwater represented roughly one-seventh of the workforce Blackwater had in Iraq, a ratio that raises questions about the quality of the people working for the company. The only punishment for those dismissed was the termination of their contracts with Blackwater, said the report, which used information from Blackwater's own files and State Department records. The report, prepared by the majority staff of the committee, also said Blackwater has been involved in 195 shooting incidents since 2005, or roughly 1.4 a week. In more than 80 per cent of the incidents, called "escalation of force," Blackwater's guards fired the first shots, even though the company's contract with the State Department calls for it to use defensive force only, it said. "In the vast majority of instances in which Blackwater fired shots, Blackwater is firing from a moving vehicle and does not remain at the scene to determine if the shots resulted in casualties," the report said. Blackwater made huge sums of money: report The staff report said Blackwater has made huge sums of money despite its questionable performance in Iraq, where Blackwater guards provide protective services for U.S. diplomatic personnel. Blackwater has earned more than $1 billion from federal contracts since 2001, when it had less than $1 million in government work. Overall, the State Department paid Blackwater more than $832 million between 2004 and 2006 for security work, the report said. Blackwater bills the U.S. government $1,222 a day for a single "protective security specialist," the report said. That works out to $445,891 on an annual basis, far higher than it would cost the military to provide the same service. Blackwater, founded in 1997 and headquartered in Moyock, N.C., is the largest of the State Department's three private security contractors. The others are Dyncorp and Triple Canopy, both based in Washington's northern Virginia suburbs. The report said Blackwater has had more shooting incidents than the other two companies combined. The report is critical not only of Blackwater. In two cases, the State Department recommended Blackwater make payments to the families of Iraqis killed by its guards. On Dec. 24, 2006, a drunken Blackwater employee shot and killed a bodyguard for Iraqi Vice-President Adel Abdul-Mahdi. The AP previously reported the contractor became lost on the way back to his barracks in Baghdad's Green Zone and fired at least seven times when he was confronted by 30-year-old Raheem Khalaf Saadoun. The guard was terminated by Blackwater. Within 36 hours of the shooting, the department allowed the 26-year-old contractor to be transported out of Iraq, the staff report said. An unnamed State Department official then recommended Blackwater pay the guard's family $250,000 as an "apology." But the Diplomatic Security Service, the department's own law-enforcement arm, said that was too much money and might prompt other Iraqis "to 'try to get killed"' in order to provide for their families, the report said. "In the end, the State Department and Blackwater agreed on a $15,000 payment," the report said. The negative fallout from the event affected the relationship between the U.S. military and Iraqis, many of whom see little distinction between the private guards and U.S. troops, the report stated. Initial news coverage by Middle Eastern news media of the killing said a "U.S. soldier" was responsible. In a company e-mail obtained by the committee, a Blackwater employee said the mistake in the news "gets the heat off of us." The report said the U.S. Justice Department is investigating. In another instance, the department recommended Blackwater make a $5,000 payment after guards killed an "apparently innocent" Iraqi bystander, said documents the committee examined. In this same case, the Blackwater personnel failed to report this shooting and "covered it up," the report stated. There is no evidence, the report said, "that the State Department sought to restrain Blackwater's actions, raised concerns about the number of shooting incidents involving Blackwater or the company's high rate of shooting first, or detained Blackwater contractors for investigation." State Department spokesman Tom Casey said he has not read the report and could not comment. The report was distributed to committee members on the eve of a hearing on private security contracting.

Oh wait.... There's plenty more:

[Praxius]

BBC NEWS | Middle East | Blackwater boss grilled over Iraq

The chairman of US private security contractor Blackwater has defended his firm and his staff during a grilling by a congressional committee. Blackwater has come under scrutiny since a shoot-out last month in Baghdad in which 11 Iraqis were killed. The FBI has begun investigating that incident. The firm's founder, Erik Prince, said his staff were brave and effective, and had acted "appropriately". But one of the committee asked if the firm was "a shadow mercenary force". "Blackwater appears to have fostered a culture of shoot first - and sometimes kill - and then ask the questions," said Democratic Congressman Elijah Cummings. Blackwater is the main firm employed by the state department to provide security for its staff and visiting officials and businessmen. It has earned more than $1bn (£490m) from US government contracts since 2001. The state department paid the company more than $832m (£408m) for security work between 2004 and 2006. 'Short' on standards The 16 September shooting incident is not featuring in the hearing by the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, because it is under investigation by the FBI. But congressmen raised a number of other incidents they said showed that Blackwater fell short of the standards of the US military. The committee's chairman, Henry Waxman, referred to an incident in Afghanistan in 2004 when a Blackwater plane flown by inexperienced pilots crashed, killing US service personnel on board. An investigation showed the pilots did not follow procedure, did not know where they were going and were treating their mission as "fun". "Is Blackwater, a private military contractor, helping or hurting our efforts?" Mr Waxman asked, referring to Iraq. Good value? Several representatives referred to an incident in which a Blackwater guard shot dead a bodyguard of one of Iraq's vice-presidents while drunk. He was hurried out of Iraq and faced no criminal charges. Mr Prince said Blackwater had taken firm action against the guard. He was fined and fired. He also said that 30 Blackwater staff had been killed while working to defend US diplomats, but that none of its clients had died while in its protection. "There is no better evidence of the skill and dedication of these men," said Mr Prince, who is a former member of the US Navy Seals special forces. Mr Prince, 38, said his firm was happy to be subjected to greater oversight. "Blackwater believes that more can and should be done to increase accountability, oversight and transparency," he told the hearing. Mr Waxman's staff produced a scathing report on Monday that released details of several incidents involving Iraqi casualties, in which Blackwater employees had fired first on 163 out of 195 occasions. In the majority of cases, the guards fired their weapons from moving vehicles without stopping to count the dead or assist the wounded, the report said. He questioned whether private contractors should be used instead of US soldiers. "The question for this hearing is whether outsourcing to Blackwater is a good deal to the American taxpayer," he said.

My god this just get more sickening the more I read..... Oh but wait.... There's still more:

[Praxius]

CTV.ca | Blackwater chief defends actions in Iraq

WASHINGTON -- The founder of Blackwater USA on Tuesday vigorously defended his private security company against charges of covering up Iraqi civilian deaths, saying 30 of its contractors have been killed while protecting U.S. diplomats and no Americans have died while under its watch. "There is no better evidence of the skill and dedication of these men," Erik Prince said in remarks prepared for a congressional hearing and obtained by The Associated Press. Prince said there has been a "rush to judgment based on inaccurate information." He disputed a congressional report's finding that Blackwater is an out-of-control outfit that's indifferent to Iraqi civilian casualties. And he maintained that his guards were responding to hostile fire when they engaged in a Sept. 16 shootout while protecting a U.S. convoy. At least 11 Iraqis died as a result of that incident. Prince's contention about the nature of the gunfire exchange is hotly disputed by witnesses and the Iraqi government, and the incident remains under U.S. and Iraqi investigation. "To the extent there was loss of innocent life, let me be clear that I consider that tragic," Prince said in his prepared opening statement to the congressional panel. "Every life, whether American or Iraqi, is precious." But, he added, "based on everything we currently know, the Blackwater team acted appropriately while operating in a very complex war zone." Prince, 38, said existing laws and regulations provide an adequate level of accountability and oversight for contractors in battle zones. But, "Blackwater believes that more can and should be done to increase accountability, oversight and transparency," he said. Prince did not specify what those additional measures should be. Blackwater has nearly 1,000 personnel working in Iraq. Prince refuted a claim in a congressional report released Monday, saying Blackwater does not engage in "offensive or military missions, but performs only defensive security functions." While noting that the Sept. 16 incident remains under investigation, Prince said Blackwater guards acted properly after a car bomb exploded near a diplomatic convoy they were protecting. After the bomb detonated the guards came under small-arms fire and some of them returned fire at "threatening targets," which included vehicles that appeared to be suicide car bombers. Only five of approximately 20 Blackwater guards involved fired their weapons, Prince said. Blackwater helicopters did assist in directing the convoy to safety, but the choppers did not fire their weapons, he said. "Despite the valiant missions our people conduct each day with great success, in this September 16 instance, Blackwater and its people have been the subject of negative and baseless allegations reported as truth," Prince said. On Monday, the FBI opened an investigation of the Sept. 16 incident - the latest fatal shootings in Iraq involving Blackwater guards. The FBI team was sent at the request of the State Department and its findings will be reviewed for possible criminal liability. Blackwater, founded in 1997 by Prince and headquartered in Moyock, N.C., is the largest of the State Department's three private security contractors. The others are Dyncorp and Triple Canopy, both based in Washington's northern Virginia suburbs. Blackwater has had more shooting incidents than the other two companies combined, according to a report written by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee ahead of Tuesday's hearing. Blackwater, which has been paid more than $1 billion in federal contracts since 2001, is embroiled in a host of controversies over the conduct of its guards. Others on the witness list besides Prince include David Satterfield, the State Department's Iraq coordinator; Richard Griffin, assistant secretary of state for diplomatic security; and William H. Moser, deputy assistant secretary of state for logistics management. The Democratic staff of the House committee issued a scathing 15-page report on the company's conduct Monday, portraying the company as unchecked by the State Department. Among the report's most serious charges was that Blackwater contractors sought to cover up a June 2005 shooting of an Iraqi man and the company paid -- with State Department approval -- the families of others inadvertently killed by its guards. Blackwater has had to fire 122 guards -- one-seventh of the personnel it has in Iraq -- over the past three years for problems ranging from misuse of weapons, alcohol and drug violations, inappropriate conduct, and violent behavior, the committee report said. It also said that Blackwater has been involved in 195 shooting incidents since 2005. In more than 80 percent of the incidents, called "escalation of force," Blackwater's guards fired the first shots even though the company's contract with the State Department calls for it to use defensive force only, the report said. "In the vast majority of instances in which Blackwater fired shots, Blackwater is firing from a moving vehicle and does not remain at the scene to determine if the shots resulted in casualties," it added. The report said there is no evidence that "the State Department sought to restrain Blackwater's actions, raised concerns about the number of shooting incidents involving Blackwater or the company's high rate of shooting first, or detained Blackwater contractors for investigation." The staff report says Blackwater has made huge sums of money despite its questionable performance in Iraq, where Blackwater guards provide protective services for U.S. diplomatic personnel. Blackwater has earned more than $1 billion from federal contracts since 2001, when it had less than $1 million in government work. Overall, the State Department paid Blackwater more than $832 million between 2004 and 2006 for security work, according to the report. Blackwater bills the U.S. government $1,222 per day for a single "protective security specialist," the report says. That works out to $445,891 on an annual basis, far higher than it would cost the military to provide the same service.

You know I want to back track a bit to the second article's quote:

"The question for this hearing is whether outsourcing to Blackwater is a good deal to the American taxpayer," he said.

That's not the f'ing question ffs!

First, they even show it costs more to use one of these trigger-happy monkey mercs compared to an actual US soldier.

Secondly, even if they were cheaper, that's no excuse to allow them to act and kill people the way they do.

It's interesting that it all boils down to cutting a deal compared to preventing the loss of life.

And people still wonder why things are not working in Iraq and why they still are not fans of those in their country.

[butterbut]

For some reason Bush likes to give giant no-bid contracts to large corporations. Mercenaries working for cash will never do as good a job as soldiers fighting for thier country.

[grandpa]

Quote by: butterbut For some reason Bush likes to give giant no-bid contracts to large corporations. Mercenaries working for cash will never do as good a job as soldiers fighting for thier country.

Gee, I wonder why. Our government is run primarily for the wealthy owners of corporations.

Grandpa h.

[another day]

Quote by: butterbut For some reason Bush likes to give giant no-bid contracts to large corporations. Mercenaries working for cash will never do as good a job as soldiers fighting for thier country.

I think Bush is outsourcing these jobs to a private company so that they can get away with things normal soldiers couldn't. When the time comes, he just says, I have nothing to do with them, the us government has nothing to do with them. They are a private company, we didn't know what was going on, we didn't order it, blah blah... It's all very shady, and I'm sure it's against internation law isn't it? Not that that's ever mattered.

[grandpa]

Quote by: another day I think Bush is outsourcing these jobs to a private company so that they can get away with things normal soldiers couldn't. When the time comes, he just says, I have nothing to do with them, the us government has nothing to do with them.

Boy, you hit the nail on the head. This Public/Private dichotomy is a perfect excuse for all kinds of abuses--and the courts may believe the excuse (naively assuming they're not spearheading it).

And think of what the Blackwater-types have to do mentally. They have to pretend being "private" means you shouldn't be held to some basic moral principles. They can do virtually whatever they want, so long as they are "private" (and profitable, I'd assume).

Grandpa h.

[Praxius]

As the guy from Unsolved Mysteries always says:

UPDATE!



CTV.ca | House OKs bill to prosecute contractors

WASHINGTON -- The House passed a bill on Wednesday that would make all private contractors working in Iraq and other combat zones subject to prosecution by U.S. courts. It was the first major legislation of its kind to pass since a deadly shootout last month involving Blackwater employees. Democrats called the 389-30 vote an indictment in connection with a shooting incident there that left 11 Iraqis dead. Senate Democratic leaders said they planned to follow suit with similar legislation and send a bill to President Bush as soon as possible. "There is simply no excuse for the de facto legal immunity for tens of thousands of individuals working in countries" on behalf of the United States, said Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee, D-Texas. The FBI is currently leading an investigation into the Sept. 16 shootout, although administration officials acknowledge they are unsure whether U.S. courts would have jurisdiction in the case or others like it. In a separate incident, a drunk Blackwater employee left a Christmas eve party in Baghdad and fatally shot the guard of one of Iraq's vice presidents. That contractor was fired, fined and returned home to the United States, but no charges have been filed. The current law, called the Military Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Act, covers personnel supporting the mission of Defense Department operations overseas. But because Blackwater's primary mission is to protect State Department officials, defense lawyers would likely argue that the law doesn't apply. At the same time, all U.S. contractors are immune from prosecution by Iraqi courts. The bill's passage came on the same day that a government minister told The Associated Press that the official Iraqi investigation said Blackwater security guards involved in the September incident face trial in Iraqi courts and the company should pay compensation to the victims. The White House and congressional Republicans said they support the intent of the bill, but thought it was drafted poorly and could have unintended consequences. In a statement issued Wednesday, the White House said the bill would have "unintended and intolerable consequences for crucial and necessary national security activities and operations." The statement did not explain further or give examples on how the bill would affect national security. The White House referred questions to the Justice Department, which declined to comment. Prior to passage, the House voted 342-75 to ensure the legislation would not affect intelligence operations. Rep. Chris Shays, R-Conn., accused Democrats of rushing the bill through Congress in a partisan bid to criticize the Bush administration's handling of the war. "It is amazing to me the number of men in Blackwater that have lost their lives and we never hear it on the other side of the aisle," Shays said. "Blackwater is evil. That's the way it appears in all the dialogue." Rep. David Price, who sponsored the bill, said the White House's objections were unfounded and "should infuriate anyone who believes in the rule of law." Blackwater founder Erik Prince told a House panel Tuesday that he supports expanding the law. "Beyond firing him for breaking the rules, withholding any funds we can, we can't flog him," Prince said of the intoxicated Blackwater guard. "We can't incarcerate him. We can't do anything beyond that." FBI agents will take control of the Sept. 16 probe from the State Department's Bureau of Diplomatic Security as soon as a full team has been assembled in the Iraqi capital, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack told reporters on Thursday. McCormack stressed that the step did not necessarily imply that the investigation would result in criminal charges being brought against the contractors.

Note:

Senate Democratic leaders said they planned to follow suit with similar legislation and send a bill to President Bush as soon as possible.

VEETO!

In a statement issued Wednesday, the White House said the bill would have "unintended and intolerable consequences for crucial and necessary national security activities and operations." The statement did not explain further or give examples on how the bill would affect national security. The White House referred questions to the Justice Department, which declined to comment.

I love the communication going on. Typical reposne of security matters and a referal to someone else to explain the situation, and then those who were referred to, refuse to comment. The same dam circle of run arounds I continually see.

A bill I think that should be passed is one that permits the dismissal of officials who refuse to explain situations to the public who put them there to do that job. Perhaps those secret security issues that would be infringed apon by this bill are more truthfully illegal acts nobody's supposed to know about, somewhat like what AnotherDay Mentioned...... and it's not that far fetched considdering the past reports of secret "Detention/Interogation Facilities" around the world for terrorists/insurgents, and many other questionable tactics which were allowed to go through, because of people citing "National Security" and the likes.

Usually one would hope for the benifit of the doubt, but the doubt has kinda expired to a rotting, curddling pool of goo over the last few years for me.

[HelioPrime]

Where do we have the power to prosecute private individuals outside of the US, where the US government isn't directly an involved party (Private company vs state of Iraq)...

Why not allow Iraq full jurisdiction over cases like this within its own country. Allow them to bring to court private companies and contractors under their justice system.

Oh right. If we prosecute then they get off easy with perhaps a scapegoat or two to keep the masses happy untill their attention wanes. :rolleyes:

[Praxius]

Indeed.... but then if you allow Iraq to prosecute them, they could face getting hanged.

[grandpa]

Quote by: Praxius but then if you allow Iraq to prosecute them, they could face getting hanged.

I highly doubt that'll happen.

The whole war is "out of control" (although it is a matter of control, ultimately):
US, Iraqis Differ on Raid on Shiite Town - MSNBC Wire Services - MSNBC.com

BAGHDAD - U.S. forces backed by attack aircraft killed at least 25 Shiite militia fighters north of Baghdad Friday in an operation targeting a cell accused of smuggling weapons from Iran, the military said. Iraqi officials, however, said American bombs killed civilians who rushed to help those injured in the initial airstrike and claimed the only ones armed in the neighborhood were locals trying to organize themselves against al-Qaida.

Grandpa h.

[grandpa]

Iraqi authorities seek Blackwater ouster - Yahoo! News

BAGHDAD - Iraqi authorities want the U.S. government to sever all contracts in Iraq with Blackwater USA within six months. They also want the firm to pay $8 million in compensation to families of each of the 17 people killed when its guards sprayed a traffic circle with heavy machine gun fire last month.

Just thought I'd update you guys on the situation.

Grandpa h.

[Praxius]

And some points I'd like to make more aware in that article:

......The tone of the Iraqi report appears to signal further strains between the government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and the White House over the deaths in Nisoor Square — which have prompted a series of U.S. and Iraqi probes and raised questions over the use of private security contractors to guard U.S. diplomats and other officials. Al-Maliki ordered the investigation by his defense minister and other top security and police officials on Sept. 22. The findings — which were translated from Arabic by AP — mark the most definitive Iraqi positions and contentions about the shootings last month. The report also highlights the differences in death tolls and accounts that have complicated efforts to piece together the chain of events as one Blackwater-protected convoy raced back toward Baghdad's Green Zone after a nearby bombing, while a second backup team in four gun trucks sped into the square as a backup team. The Iraqi investigation — first outlined Thursday by The Associated Press — charges the four Blackwater vehicles called to the square began shooting without provocation. Blackwater contends its employees came under fire first. The government, at the conclusion of its investigation, said 17 Iraqis died. Initial reports put the toll at 11. It said the compensation — totaling $136 million — was so high "because Blackwater uses employees who disrespect the rights of Iraqi citizens even though they are guests in this country." The U.S. military pays compensation money to the families of civilians killed in battles or to cover property damage, but at far lower amounts. The United States has not made conclusive findings about the shooting, though there are multiple investigations under way and Congress has opened inquiries into the role of private security contractors. Last week, the FBI took over a State Department investigation, raising the prospect that it could be referred to the Justice Department for prosecution. The Iraqi government report said its courts were to proper venue in which to bring charges. It said Blackwater's license to operate in Iraq expired on June 2, 2006, meaning it had no immunity from prosecution under Iraqi laws set down after the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003. The government report also challenged the claim that a decree in June 2004 by then-Iraqi administrator L. Paul Bremer granted Blackwater immunity from legal action in incidents such as the one in Nisoor Square. The report said the Blackwater guards could be charged under a criminal code from 1969. U.S. Embassy spokeswoman Mirembe Nantongo said the diplomatic mission would have no comment on the report. Iraq's Interior Ministry spokesman, Abdul-Karim Khalaf, said the document was in American hands. The report found that Blackwater guards also had killed 21 Iraqi civilians and wounded 27 in previous shootings since it took over security for U.S. diplomats in Baghdad after the U.S. invasion. The Iraqi government did not say whether it would try to prosecute in those cases. The State Department has counted 56 shooting incidents involving Blackwater guards in Iraq this year. All were being reviewed as part of the comprehensive inquiry ordered by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

This is the end..... my only friend, the end....

Looks like the Iraqis have been doing their homework on legalities. Sounds like since the contract with Blackwater expired in 2006.... there's no real protection of them from Iraqi authorities.

Time will tell I suppose.