Iraqi Government: Blackwater Guards Fired Unprovoked
By Logan Murphy Friday Sep 21, 2007 7:01pm
AP Via Yahoo:
Iraqi investigators have a videotape that shows Blackwater USA guards opened fire against civilians without provocation in an incident last week in which 11 people died, a senior Iraqi official said Saturday. He said the case was referred to the Iraqi judiciary.
Interior Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Abdul-Karim Khalaf said Iraqi authorities had completed an investigation into the Sept. 16 shooting in Nisoor Square in western Baghdad and concluded that Blackwater guards were responsible for the deaths.
He told The Associated Press that the conclusion was based on witness statements as well as videotape shot by cameras at the nearby headquarters of the national police command. He said eight people were killed at the scene and three of the 15 wounded died in hospitals. Read more...
C&L has been documenting Blackwater's activities for some time now. While it would be heartening to think these investigations by the Iraqi government will end in justice for the families of the murdered, it's not a likely outcome. It's put up or shut up time for the Bush administration -- if the Iraqi government is truly sovereign as they love to shout at every opportunity, they need to step back and let them make their own decisions. In a separate matter, Blackwater has released a statement in which they deny illegal arms activities in Iraq.
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Bastards.
Oh! What a legacy the US will leave when it finally withdraws from Iraq. I mean.. people are still going on and on and on and on (ad nauseam) about the ebil nazis that attached anyone they laid their eyes on, tortured people, murdered civilians etc. How long till the great american adventure in mesopotamia will be forgotten?
Iraq Contractors Go On Shooting Spree
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ZHqugy_QBw
Iraq Blackwater shooting of civilians?! 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yn0phnmsEOA
Iraq Blackwater shooting of civilians?! 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1DGkGK8y6P8
Iraq Blackwater shooting of civilians?! 3
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mR12CplMb4E
please this can all be explained away !ummm let me think!
say hello to my little fren
I don't watch the cable news talk shows, so I don't know - but is anyone even attempting to defend these fools? What spin is Fox News putting on this?
The important question for American citizens to consider: Which civilian communities stateside has/did/will Blackwater contractors -- when not in Iraq -- be located?
People returning from Iraq need decompression time. It is hoped that the American public closely watch the oversight in Iraq of Blackwater: The same kind of oversight is needed when these personnel return to American cities. Likely, these personnel will return to their law enforcement duties.
The lessons from Iraq about Blackwater are lessons all Americans should heed. There needs to be better civilian oversight boards. One thing for Blackwater/US Military personnel to treat Iraqis abusively and commit war crimes; quite another for American teenage youth to have to silently endure teh same abuses merely because they fit a "drug profile" near school.
Blackwater needs oversight. The public needs to understand how the CIA personnel operating overseas are then dispatched into American neighborhoods. It's one thing to lecture high school students about the "benefits" of democracy; quite another for those same student to learn first hand, at the tip of a gun, that the only "benefit" of democracy is the requirement to remain silent about police abuse of power.
Let's get this mess with Blackwater in Iraq cleaned up; and make sure all American citizens do not have to endure the same abuses in the United States.
The Iraqi government told Blackwater they had to leave the country - at least that's what I read a few days ago.
Blackwater did not leave. They are still there and still doing business.
So who is running the show?
ldzppln @ 6:
What do you think Condy's been doing the past few days?
The whole blackwater incident, one of many attributed to this mercenary group of murderers, is not unexpected. It has always been the cheney/bush administration's goal to kill Iraqis. Just like Hitler with the Jews, bush's goal is to kill as many Muslims as possible.
Possibly, the only reason he hasn't yet used nukes is that the world would likely react in a way that the US cannot afford at this time. Thus the rhetoric and flame-throwing regarding Iran; it seems designed to provoke retaliation leading to the nuclear destruction of more millions of Muslims. And now that bush is aligning with the Sunnis - the former supporters of Sadaam - his target has shifted to the Shia, who conveniently make up the vast majority of Iranian Muslims. Watch for an incident masquerading as another "terr'ist attack", supposedly perpetrated by Iran - bush's "precipitating incident" that sets off a modern ethnic-cleansing" holocaust centered on Muslim extermination.
An aside about Blackwater, and the State Department Inspector General, and gun smuggling...
I think Henry Waxman is onto something... The missing Glock pistols turning up all over Turkey [links to overview @ my site] that were supposed to be earmarked for the Coalition Provisional Authority:
[In Full]
I hope you're not hinting that a United States Presidential Executive Order may not be the law of the land in another sovereign country. My oh my, you surely are not leading to the fact that Iraq may seek some sort of justice here? Not after Baby Bush has said that Blackwater is free of all laws, our laws AND Iraq laws, while they are in country and working under HIS Executive Order.
Who you going to believe.
Shame isnt it that the Iraqi government of the sovereign nation of Iraq is left to whine and nothing more. Maybe the Iragi government should order the Iraqi military to attack Blackwater on sight.
... I would be money that the US military - our heros - would defend Blackwater.
I wouldnt put political assassination outside the realm of possibility for Blackwater. They would have Pat Robertson's support.
Anthology @ 8:
Excellently put. This is simply another example of how an analogy can be drawn from Iraq to Vietnam. But while the governments of Diem and Ky in Vietnam were basically puppet governments of the U.S., in this case the government of Iraq has clearly expressed to the United States that their desire is for Blackwater to leave their country. Now if the U.S. will listen to the people of Iraq who also clearly desire that the U.S. stop brutalizing and terrorizing and occupying their country. Support the troops by bringing them home now before more of them end up dying, maimed and crippled for absolutely no justification reason whatsoever.
While the Democrats show no balls and the Republicans show no morals, we are ensuring that Iraq will end up having the same relationship with the US that Iran now has. Incidents like this one with Blackwater only stroke the hatred of Americans in the extremists, and make non-extremists willing to listen to those who are.
We will either need to send in enough troops to enable American marshal law in Iraq, or we are going to have to leave. There are no other options and all the time spent arguing about it in Congress only costs the US more money and lives, and further weakens the US dollar.
What will it take for people to demand more from their elected officials? A viable third party is the only answer. Someone talk to Warren Buffet . . .
If the United States is the leader of the "free world", no wonder the Middle East doesn't want freedom!
Arghhhh! The link I posted for the Turkish connection to those missing glocks was updated... Its HERE
anon @ 13:
To do that, the government of the sovereign nation of Iraq would have to have command and control of their own military, and they don't. The Iraqi military is still under U.S. Command. Such is the myth of Iraqi sovereignty.
Companies like blackwater are indirectly perpetuating this war for big money payouts. Disgusting.
anon @ 13:
But to further answer your question, after four Blackwater employees were killed and mutilated in Fallujah in 2004, the U.S Military decided it was time to 'pacify' Fallujah.
Ummm...do correct me if I'm wrong...but I think I somewhat recall hearing from the U.S. administration, at the start of the Iraq invasion, Shock & Awe, whatever....that this was a 'liberation', not an (and this was the key point back then) 'occupation'!
Which now leads me to wonder why the Iraqis seem to have no say in what goes on in their country.
Gee Bushie, how disappointing that the Iraqi people haven't as yet tossed flowers in the air & shouted proclamations about how indebted they are to the great U.S of A for releasing them from their horrific lives.
Someone needs to give smartass Georgie a rifle & some army gear and send him into the 'action'...let him really feel 'super' about what he's wrought upon this country's people.
Any investigation into this will be the usual whitewash B.S. As with everything with this criminal administration, there are many twists and turns in this story. The Inspector General mentioned in the article, Howard Krongard, just happens to be the brother of AB "Buzzy" Krongard. Buzzy is on the board of Blackwater, is ex CIA, and was head of the Exchange that was at the forefront of all the insider trading oddities the week before 9/11. All just a coincidence, I guess.
My oh my you would think Drudge would have this at the top of the page, with little police strobe light flashing instead of . . . . . .
COLUMBIA DEAN: WE'D INVITE HITLER TO SPEAK
L.A. Confidential @ 23:
It is on the Drudge site....above Hitler and to the left....no pic there but there is a link to full story....
Knock me over with a feather. I simply could never believe this could happen (sarcasm).
This isn't war. It's bloody murder.
None Dare Call It Genocide
http://www.lewrockwell.com/rockwell/none-dare-call-genocide.html
The worse the treatment of civilians by Blackwater operatives...
The greater the threat of violence by the Iraqi civilians directd toward Americans.
Hence the "greater the need" by our diplomatic corps for mercenaries... cause GOD KNOWS there aren't enough Marines in Iraq to protect all of the US DIPLOMATS driving around outside of the Green Zone!
What a bunch of HOGWASH!
THEY ARE LYING TO US... AGAIN AND AGAIN AND AGAIN AND AGAIN.
the "wild west" culture of the private army has to stop. Blackwater needs to lose all of its govt contracts
Did you ever wonder where killed by Blackwater fits into General Petraeus' statistics. I couldn't figure it out. The actual military methodology is posted now at:
http://www.tpmmuckraker.com/archives/004266.php
Now that the actual methodology used by General Petraeus to compile his statistics is posted on the internet it is easy to see that the criteria used is so subjective that skewing the data one way or the other would be easy. Not one of the categories they use would qualify as a valid operational definition in a scientific abstract.
However, what most people forget is that even if the methodology stinks, and this methodology certainly isn't very scientific, what really matters is that the same methodology is used on both the before and after.
I think that the military started using this method last April. If they didn't go back and use the new criteria on the data collected before last April, then they're comparing apples to oranges. Depending on the nature of their record keeping, it's probably not possible for them to recompile their older statistics using the new criteria. Their older records would have to be incredibly detailed to do so.
The problem with General Petraeus' charts is that we don't know if the pre-Surge and post-Surge data was complied using the same criteria.
Sorry, no sympathy from me. Iraq had the chance to pull Blackwater's license to operate. They said they would in their so-called outrage over the last incident but instead caved-in. So, Blackwater clearly knowing the Iraqi government is utterly ball-less goes back to business as usual....and they fully know nothing will come of this 'new' outrage either! So sorry---fuck Iraq and fuck Blackwater. They deserve each other.
"fuck Iraq and fuck Blackwater. They deserve each other."
I think Maliki and his government of imported Iraqis would be swinging from the nearest tree if the Americans left. So, he's stuck relying on American support for his Vichy like government. Apparantly, the mercenaries, also known as "contractors" are protected by a deal whereby they are not subject to any law. Can you imaging a truly sovereign government accepting that?
We're told that the terrorists are after the U.S. because they hate our freedoms, not because they hate American imperialism, also known as "nation building".
We keep hearing the framing of national security as being defined as "Are we safer now than we were on Sept 11, 2001"? Possibly, because we ended al-Qaeda control of Afghanistan. However, the question should be "Are we safer than we were on Mar 19, 2003" ? We certainly are not because we stopped pursuit of al-Qaeda in favor of "nation building" in Iraq, giving bin-Laden relief and a host of talking points to use in recruiting new followers.
The Blackwater mercenaries, which is helping non-reinstatement of the draft, is just more talking points for bin-Laden. I'm afraid that having the flat-earth society run our foreign policy has gotten us into a real mess. It's like Vietnam, with its ups and down, but in the end, was the pissing away of money and lives into a quagmire (which Bush says we should have continued). Meanwhile the Democrats, satisfied with their position of being the lesser of two evils, are content to stamp their feet and protest mightily, while doing nothing. Pelosi has given the green light for the attack on Iran - don't expect anything on Iraq from the Democrats. They're not going to give the green light on Iran to the President, and then interfere in the President's handling of Iraq.
If one looks at what is happening in this country - the smears of anyone who disagrees w/Bush; the Bush bullshit about Move On`s ad:,the Jenna six situation with the White Supremacists;politicizing the military,the DOJ,and many other government agencies; the war propaganda;the shredding of the Constitution; IT`s not beginning to look a lot like
Christmas;it`s looking a lot like Nazi Germany,or Fascist Italy.
We need a leader with some FIRE IN THE BELLY.Somebody whose tough,will stand up to Bush and Cheney.We need Dennis Kucinich to hook up with Al Gore.
We need to have the 21 Senators who fell for the Rethug intimidation of stormtroopers with machine guns and anthrax-- well we have to get them some balls or retire.All we have to do is get the Rethug machine guns yo jam and their anthrax to blow back in their faces.
The authoritarian gov. experiment hasn`t worked throughout history.So we have to let the criminal gang know that they`re passe`Then we have them arrested and frog marched to the Hague or Nurmberg to face their war crimes Then there L will be single payer health care for all,and we`ll fix education--free for all .We`ll make the INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE OBSOLETE, To be replaced with hH-cell and electric cars.Wind and Solar will be used for heat and electric
Yes, Iraq is a safe haven for terrorists, and their name id Blackwater.
I thought the United States is suppose to have a military. Isn't that why citizens are paying trillions for? Isn't this a little obvious that Bush's cronies are getting paid big bucks to do what the military can do for pennies? Ans now they are getting arrogant about it, killing nondescretely. Can't the US public put two and two together? Can't they just ask a few questions, get more lies, then lynch that prick Bush?
L.A. Confidential @ 27:
I have just finished watching a movie called "Beyond the Gates" about the 1994 genocide in Rwanda where the Hutu majority slaughtered the Tutsi minority. Just before the closing titles a U.S. government spokesperson is shown parsing words, explaining to the press that what is going on in Rwanda can't quiet be described as Genocide. She went on to explain that they have experts who research definitions and phraseology, but "Genocide" is just not the right label to use in this case. I believe she said that "Civil unrest" was more appropriate. Go figure.
In the end, the Hutus slaughtered 800,000 of the Tutsi minority, including women, children and babies.
The fucking bottom line is...We're a fucking lousy society which will come out and invent any type of excuse just to justoify all our corrupted and criminal actons. Killing and maining in the name of Jesus and Democracy. A heck of a mxture!
Too many errors. I beg your pardon. I just get so riled!
thought the United States is suppose to have a military. Isn’t that why citizens are paying trillions for? Isn’t this a little obvious that Bush’s cronies are getting paid big bucks to do what the military can do for pennies? Ans now they are getting arrogant about it, killing nondescretely. Can’t the US public put two and two together? Can’t they just ask a few questions, get more lies, then lynch that prick Bush?
___________________________________________________
Nope! It's about billions of dollars; but mainly: Total control. Black Water = SA. That's the shape of things to come.
These people are getting filthy rich. Chances are, that all lost weaponry went to the fighting groups of their choice which in turn will also guarantee enough security problems to justify their mercenary jobs. This opens the possibility for the whole conflict to have been manipulated as for Black Water to be able to get and earn millions on security contracts. All main parties, Bush minions. American soldiers getting killed by weapons supplied by American security contractors. That's capitalism workin at ist best!
Blackwater's Involvement Grows More Questionable My The Moment
As a kid, I recall an incident in which a shocking secret was exposed about our school janitor. It appeared he would never wait for anyone to finish using the restrooms. To make a long story short, this janitor had a peaking problem. When the peaking problem came to the forefront, everyone chimed in to a host of perverted things he was doing while employed at the school. Like the janitor at my school, Blackwater seems to be going through a similar flood of "tack ons" to their original act.
I am surprised Blackwater's actions took this long to come to the forefront. Actually, questions should of been raised concerning their very existence in Iraq. At 600 dollars a day, it takes a lot of nerve to place Blackwater employees in a role less dangerous then our troops are doing for much more money then what we pay our soldiers. That is a big slap in the face to every US soldier in Iraq. Bush should be impeached for employing them at the rate of pay they receive to guard delegates or any other government official. What to we have special forces for?
Contractors, contractors, contractors; why do we have so many contractors (160,000) in Iraq being paid by our government? I have noted this before, and I will note it again; this man must feel like a godfather of a crime syndicate. Bush is slinging our nation's treasure to make his cronies rich. For every little army job he has outsourced, you can count one more millionaire.
Recall, the weapons that was reported unaccounted for in August 2007. I think it was something like 190,000 Russian made assault weapons
When the secrets get really numerable, coupled with tangents, they become hard to keep up with. Somebody or something will deteriorate, allowing for the secret to unfold. My gut tells me Blackwater has a lot to do with secrets yet to be known but soon will.
Joseph
Cowboy Bob in Austin @ 28:
The airbase/Potemkin village where George W. Bush had his talks with the 'tribal leaders' a couple of weeks ago is home to 10,000 Marines.
No wonder he thinks Iraq is a safe place [snicker].
They need to release this video to the public and the media, then everyone can see what Blackwater is all about.
SpankyTheMonkey @ 31:
To the best of MY knowledge, Blackwater NEVER HAD the appropriate licensing to operate in Iraq ... They had been operating as a subcontractor to Halliburton, which did, and when the 'Cheney Boys' pulled out, Blackwater just assumed it was business as usual...
This is from todays column by Eric Marolis. It's so enlightening and historically important to see how wrong Blackwater is.
A MUST READ.
http://www.torontosun.com/News/Columnists/Margolis_Eric/2007/09/23/45194...
Joseph @ 40:
The origin of the weapons is unknown. There has to be literally dozens of shops around the world manufacturing AKs.
The interesting thing is 'Who Lost them:
You might note that the Italian Mafia has their fingerprints all over gun-smuggling in Iraq.
TPM has covered that.
IMHO that's the CIA-Pentagon-Mob connection that goes all the way back to WWII when the feds sent 'Lucky' Luciano back to Italy to set up an intel network.
In return for doing that, the mob ended up owning large areas of Nevada (Las Vegas), Arizona (Phoenix, I believe), a large subdivision of land in the Los Angeles area, and the government's 'promise' to look the other way as the Mafia raped the U.S. unions, and of course, 'friendly' connections with the CIA's network which pretty much allowed them to freely run drugs wherever and whenever they liked.
Many CIA analysts from the Vietnam era quit the agency saying they couldn't tell the difference between the Mob and the CIA (the 'French Connection' Heroin... SE Asia/Marseilles France/The American kid next door)
This from Sic Semper Tyrannis 2007 [click for source]
It seems that with OR without permission by the Iraqi government, Blackwater is STILL responsible under the UCMJ for maintaining whatever rules of engagement are set by the military operational commander for the area. Assuming that they are under contract to the Pentagon and not the State Department.
BUT: As I stated previously, they were initially subcontracted by Halliburton, who bailed out, and subsequently never applied for permission to work in Iraq from the Iraqi government.
It may not be legal under US law for them to operate in Iraq AT ALL.
See FindLaw for more on US Code Title 10
The bigger problem with Blackwater starts when they become the bush cabals private army in the US. That's gonna be an interesting day. Enjoy.
If the United States government wants to give a bunch of bloodthirsty mercenaries the right to inflame the populace of Iraq against our soldiers on the ground, then they will pay in blood. I think this is going to explode, and I think a lot of innocent Americans are going to suffer because of Blackwater, and hopefully the guilty ones in the White House and the Congress.
Anthology @ 8:
The corporations who bought you government who in turn are holding a gun to the head of the president of Iraq. A gun. A gun that says "We are the US and we want all your oil".
el kanuckistani @ 47:
Already are. Private armies will be just find to round up all the "non whites" in the US. they have the camps, we have all seen the pics.
garcia @ 39:
anon @ 13:
Mousilini said "Fascism should be called corporatism because it is the merger of state and corporate power."
They TRIED to do this before. Corporations ruling and shipping people methodically off to concentration camps and still serviced by IBM NY... Corporations made off like bandits during the war. And war is very profitable.
The people of Iraq are fighting an illegal occupation by an imperial army. they are the Rebels.
And we all better become rebels too or Blackwater will just move in on us.
Ex-Canuck @ 10:
the war will take place in the middle east... The Suppliers will be Russia/China vs the US.
Now that might work.
However... going Nato vs SCO means WW3.
And Europe will not side with the fucking Nazi's. France, after Vichy will not agree to side with Nazi's again.
Ask the average Euopeans to side with those who torture? Lol
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