A Congressional investigation issued a scathing criticism of the private military firm Blackwater USA around the March 2004 mission that saw four of its guards killed and led to a major escalation of the Iraq war.
The House Oversight committee says Blackwater sent the guards into the insurgent stronghold of Fallujah unprepared and lacking proper security. The guards were killed, two of their bodies strung over a bridge. The U.S. military responded with devastating attacks on Fallujah that virtually destroyed much of the city, killed thousands and displaced many more. The House oversight committee also says Blackwater officials then impeded Congrssional efforts to investigate. The families of the four slain guards have launched a civil suit against Blackwater for alleged negligence in their deaths. Donna Zovko lost her son “Jerry” Zovko in the Fallujah incident. She said:
“Congress can’t change anything for my son… But let’s see what they can do for the others out there because someone needs to care for these contractors. Blackwater cares about nothing but the mighty dollar.”
Meanwhile more details have emerged on other killings linked to Blackwater forces aside from last week’s mass shooting in Baghdad. McClatchy Newspapers reports the victims include four media workers killed over the past year. In February, Blackwater guards shot and killed Al Atyaf television reporter Suhad Shakir as she was driving to work. Five days later, three Iraqi security guards were killed at the offices of the state-funded Iraqi Media Network, also known as Iraqiya.The three were picked off by Blackwater snipers on the opposite street. An Interior Ministry official says the guards were killed as if they were “target practice.”
democracynow
Stumble it!
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on Saturday, September 29th, 2007 at 12:28 pm and is filed under main, war, iraq, the rest of the world, human rights, congress, middle east.
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A Congressional investigation issued a scathing criticism of the private military firm Blackwater USA around the March 2004 mission that saw four of its guards killed and led to a major escalation of the Iraq war.
The House Oversight committee says Blackwater sent the guards into the insurgent stronghold of Fallujah unprepared and lacking proper security. The guards were killed, two of their bodies strung over a bridge. The U.S. military responded with devastating attacks on Fallujah that virtually destroyed much of the city, killed thousands and displaced many more. The House oversight committee also says Blackwater officials then impeded Congrssional efforts to investigate. The families of the four slain guards have launched a civil suit against Blackwater for alleged negligence in their deaths. Donna Zovko lost her son “Jerry” Zovko in the Fallujah incident. She said:
“Congress can’t change anything for my son… But let’s see what they can do for the others out there because someone needs to care for these contractors. Blackwater cares about nothing but the mighty dollar.”
Meanwhile more details have emerged on other killings linked to Blackwater forces aside from last week’s mass shooting in Baghdad. McClatchy Newspapers reports the victims include four media workers killed over the past year. In February, Blackwater guards shot and killed Al Atyaf television reporter Suhad Shakir as she was driving to work. Five days later, three Iraqi security guards were killed at the offices of the state-funded Iraqi Media Network, also known as Iraqiya.The three were picked off by Blackwater snipers on the opposite street. An Interior Ministry official says the guards were killed as if they were “target practice.”
democracynow
Stumble it!
This entry was posted
on Saturday, September 29th, 2007 at 12:28 pm and is filed under main, war, iraq, the rest of the world, human rights, congress, middle east.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.