House Oversight And Government Reform Committee Report Slams Blackwater
Henry Waxma’s opening at the Blackwater hearing today. Watch it.
With Blackwater in front of a Congressional Committee answering questions today, a new fifteen page House Oversight and Government Reform Committee report has lambasted the security company, claiming it ‘out of control’…
“Blackwater USA is an out-of-control outfit indifferent to Iraqi civilian casualties, according to a critical report released Monday by a key congressional committee.
Among the most serious charges against the prominent security firm is 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 dozens of guards over the past three years for problems ranging from misuse of weapons, alcohol and drug violations, inappropriate conduct and violent behavior, says the 15-page report from the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.
Just after the report was released, The Associated Press learned the Federal Bureau of Investigation is sending a team to Iraq to investigate an incident that has angered the Iraqi government.
On Sept. 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-defense after the convoy came under attack. Iraqi witnesses have said 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 is roughly one-seventh of the work force that Blackwater has 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, says the report, which uses information from Blackwater’s own files and State Department records.
The report, prepared by the majority staff of the committee, also says Blackwater has been involved in 195 shooting incidents since 2005, or roughly 1.4 per week.
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, 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,” according to the report.”
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October 2nd, 2007 at 5:51 pm
It’s basically like having a license to kill.
Of course the government doesn’t look like the bad buy here because they just “hired” Blackwater to protect them. They have someone else to point the finger to.
October 2nd, 2007 at 6:58 pm
I think a part of the problem is that many special forces members get out of the service with poor prospects of employment and financial need forces them to turn to companies like Blackwater. There they become guns for hire where success is measured by profit margin and bottom line.
The bottom line leads to cutting corners on training and operation planning. Things like alternate routes and intel on local insurgent activity.
Like I’ve said before, these guys need to lose this immunity they have and face responsibility for their actions and things would change. But we only need look at the big picture as far as what a clusterfuck Iraq has become to know that it’s very unlikely for anything to change.
I have a feeling that there are one or more employees who are wanting to speak out but won’t. They won’t because of the way four of their fellow employees were set up in Faluja.
October 3rd, 2007 at 5:09 am
As much as I love to hear Waxman’s words and it starts to give me hope about accountability, I’m afraid the only repercussions will be a witch hunt against Blackwater guards, perhaps bankrupting the company by forcing them to financially compensate families, thus making room for the next contracting company, where they will make a better effort to keep the carnage secret. After all, if there were no Iraqi witnesses to the Sept 16 incident, would this hearing be underway?
Soldiers to do a soldier’s job, period. No mercenaries, period. When I hear that, I will really start to have hope. As much as it is important to hold individuals and company accountable for what amounts to criminal actions, the government knowingly enabling the continuation of these actions should be equally to blame.
October 3rd, 2007 at 6:49 am
mmaw… seriously, you think this is gonna make Blackwater bankrupt? This means nothing. Knowing someone has done something wrong is in no way related to the likelihood of action being taken against them. Moral accountability is a fucking joke, especially when the US and companies rooted there are involved.
October 3rd, 2007 at 4:59 pm
[quote comment="27969"]mmaw… seriously, you think this is gonna make Blackwater bankrupt? This means nothing. Knowing someone has done something wrong is in no way related to the likelihood of action being taken against them. Moral accountability is a fucking joke, especially when the US and companies rooted there are involved.[/quote]
Any actions that may be taken will have little to do with moral accountability and everything to do with PR. I am thinking there will be a big show of prosecuting a few minor players, and I’m not so sure Blackwater can walk away completely unscathed now that these incidents are so publicized. They may have to change their name at least … depends on how short term the public memory is or how quickly our attention is diverted towards the next scandal.
Sad to think that the pathetically inadequate reaction I would expect to result from all this tragedy is still more than you would expect.
Sadder to think you are probably right.
October 4th, 2007 at 10:18 am
This has become another issue in which the right hand doesn’t give a damn what the left hand does. And the majority of us are amazed that the body is able to function at all.
Tsk tsk, Blackwater. Terrible. But I assume you’ve learned your lesson, what with the new contracts being slung your way.