U.S. Contractors Fired at Kabul Car (Xe/Blackwater)

[Snazzy]

Source: WSJ

MAY 16, 2009

U.S. Contractors Fired at Kabul Car

By AUGUST COLE

Four U.S. contractors affiliated with the company formerly known as Blackwater Worldwide fired on an approaching civilian vehicle in Kabul this month, wounding at least two Afghan civilians, according to the company and the U.S. military.

The off-duty contractors were involved in a car accident around 9 p.m. on May 5 and then fired on the approaching vehicle, which they believed to be a threat, according to the U.S. military. At least some of the men, who were former military personnel, had been allegedly drinking alcohol that evening, according to a person familiar with the incident. Off-duty contractors aren't supposed to carry weapons or drink alcohol.

The incident occurred at a delicate time for the U.S., which faces rising outrage from Afghan leaders over civilian casualties from U.S. airstrikes. For Xe, which is the name Blackwater chose this year to distance itself from its controversial security work in Iraq, the shooting comes as the Obama administration and Defense Secretary Robert Gates reconsider the role of military contractors, a practice that boomed during the Bush years.

...

Xe is now winding down its guard work in Iraq as the government there is effectively forcing them out after a 2007 shooting incident involving one of its State Department security teams left 17 Iraqis dead. The company is counting on offsetting that loss of business, for hundreds of millions of dollars a year, with contracts in Afghanistan doing everything from training to flying cargo for the U.S. military.

....



Read more: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124239900599924043.html#printMode

[balantz]

1. Ex Xe

[Iliyah]

2. Cheney's

group along with Rummy, i.e. - no wonder they are trying to distract the American public. All hell is coming out for the party.

[Vidar]

3. Hand the firicking CEO --Prince, I think--over to the Iraqis for prosecution.

[Nostradammit]

4. How about - "U.S. Contractors Wound two Afghan civilians"

"Fired at Kabul Car"

Hope the car is ok! :sarcasm:



Jesus-Fucking-Christ that rag is worthless!!!

[Snazzy]

5. CNN: U.S. investigates Afghan shooting by military contractor

U.S. investigates Afghan shooting by military contractors

* Story Highlights
* Military says the contractors wounded two Afghan civilians in Kabul this month
* Sources say contractors are linked to firm with same owner as Blackwater
* Source says the four contractors were allegedly drinking before the incident

From Mike Mount and Suzanne Simons
CNN

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. military in Afghanistan is investigating a group of military contractors who shot and wounded two Afghan civilians in Kabul earlier this month, according to the military.

The contractors worked for a company called Paravant, which is affiliated with Xe, the new company name for the security contractor Blackwater Worldwide, according to sources familiar with the incident. Paravant is owned by Erik Prince, who is also the owner of Xe.

"The contractors were involved in a vehicle accident in Kabul at approximately 9 p.m. May 5. While stopped for the vehicle accident, the contractors were approached by a vehicle in a manner the contractors felt threatening," according to a U.S. military press release.

"The contractors fired upon the vehicle, reportedly wounding two Afghans," the statement said.

The wounded Afghans were taken to a hospital, according to the release.


...


http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/05/15/afghanistan.contractors/

(and yeah--wsj and cnn only places that have this as of now--Friday news dump, along with the Rove story might add)

[MasonJar]

6. Why are we still paying these cutthroats? Fire them now!

[Ozymanithrax]

7. An Empire does what an empire does...

We pay mercenaries because it is convenient, because they perform a service that an empire needs, that being a blunt instrument.

The State department uses mercenaries for two reasons: (1) it frees up military personel for other mission. (2) Paid bodyguards give rockstar status to the state department personel. (3) They don't trust the military to keep them safe.

In a world where the US government does not want to dobule the size of its military forces because civilians would complain, mercenaries are an alternative.

Also, remember that the Republicans who believed in their heart and soul that all government is bad and wasteful went to the next logical step to privitize war. Obama will continue to use them because they are an existing institution that an empire needs.

[sattahipdeep]

9. Serious problems have hardly been addressed

Despite previous calls by President Barack Obama to reform the flawed and ballooning dependence of the military on private contractors, serious problems have hardly been addressed. So while billions of dollars will remain in dispute in Iraq, Obama has no choice but to keep pouring money into American firms such as KBR, DynCorp, and even Xe (formerly Blackwater) if he wants to move forward with the mission in Afghanistan, despite those firms’ notorious reputations for waste, fraud, and abuse in theater.

http://original.antiwar.com/vlahos/2009/05/13/the-private-contracting-surge

[sattahipdeep]

8. An Afghan died,

4 Americans investigated in Afghan death

By FISNIK ABRASHI

KABUL (AP) — Four U.S. contractors for the private security company formerly known as Blackwater are accusing the company of holding them against their will in Afghanistan following their involvement in a shooting this month, a lawyer said Saturday. A spokeswoman for the company denied the allegation.

An Afghan died and two others were wounded in the May 5 shooting, which followed a car accident in Kabul, said Lt. Col. Chris Kubik, a U.S. military spokesman in Kabul.

The men believe that Xe is attempting to negotiate a deal in which it would hand them over to Afghan authorities in exchange for official permission to remain in the country, Callahan said.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hvWEqwq3CrRvaQCmt21MfoYhjZJQD987BIQ80