US Army Stops Arrest of Blackwater Killers By Iraqi Police

[kpete]

US Army Stops Arrest of Blackwater Killers By Iraqi Police
by FishOutofWater
Fri Sep 28, 2007 at 07:59:03 PM PDT

An American embassy report presenting the situation in the latest Blackwater killings of Iraqis on September 16 had a shocking revelation with profound implications.

Before TST 22 could arrive, according to the report, TST 23 had towed the BearCat and returned to the Green Zone. TST 22 found itself alone in the congested traffic circle and confronted by an Iraqi quick-reaction force. "Over the next several minutes, additional Iraqi Army and Iraqi Police units arrived and began to encircle TST 22 with vehicles," according to the report. "The Iraqis had large caliber machine guns pointed at TST 22."

"The U.S. Army QRF" -- quick-reaction force -- "arrived on scene at 12:39 hours and mediated the situation," the report said. "They escorted TST 22 out of the area and successfully back to the (Green Zone) http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/27/AR2007092702498_2.html?hpid=topnews&sid=ST2007092800524

US Army quick Reaction Forces rescued the Blackwater TST unit from Iraqi police and escorted it back to the green zone.

................

Blackwater's methods may be crude, but fear is an effective means of keeping control after we reduce the number of U.S. troops in Iraq. The administration is willing to protect Blackwater, even after it caused the deaths of many innocent Iraqi civilians engendering the anger of the Iraqi government, because it believes that the ends - securing the oil - justify the means.

more at:
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2007/9/28/19954/8340

[zabet]

1. What exactly does this mean?

That every un-necessary death caused by Blackwater
is considered 'justifiable homicide'?
Just wait until they start patrolling the streets of
the US. :scared: :tinfoilhat:

[Amonester]

4. They already did start...

Remember New Orleans...

They're back in the Green Zone (until?)

http://www.dennis4president.com/go/in-the-press/blackwater,-oil-and-the-colonial-enterprise/
http://www.dennis4president.com/go/homepage-items/%91stunning-admission%92-by-clinton,-obama,-edwards-is-tantamount-to-a-permanent-occupation-of-iraq/

[zabet]

5. New Orleans was a

'practice drill'. Just wait until they patrol the
streets nationwide with the support of that crooked
little monkey in the White House.

[Lost4words]

8. when they patrol here we will know who they are.

and we wont be wearing caftans, we look just like the people who pay them.

[The Backlash Cometh]

12. It could mean that Blackwater was acting on the commands of someone in the military.

What was the response time of the rescue?

[daa]

14. It means that the US under chimpy and darth

and our dems has become a banana republic. The government steals our tax dollars to feed to their contributors and defense contractors and there are no rules. And oh yeah, Waxman and Palolsi and Reed and the rest sit by and let it happen.

I remember Watergate and the Dems exposed Nixon for what he was. These ass clown dems are a part of the show, just watching.

Bush spying on us. Bush spying on the UN. Bush telling the leader of Spain a month ahead of time we will be in Iraq with or without the UN. These dems have the same information we do and yet they let Bush stop health care for children while giving him another 193 BILLION this year for Iraq.

I am becoming very discouraged and really doubt anything will change whether the dems win or lose. Until a month ago I thought it world matter but now the GM workers can buy their own health care with half their pay we are in a death spiral that like Rome, cannot be undone.

[rodeodance]

2. Condi has it under control!!

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

3. Blackwaters and all US contractors were protected from prosecution and liability by our government.

This originally started with an EO by Shrub on the eve of the invasion and continued by Paul Bremer just before the return of sovereignty to Iraq.

http://www.corpwatch.org/article.php?id=14691

The Iraqi government says it has revoked Blackwater's license to operate in Iraq, although CorpWatch understands from knowledgable insiders that the company's license (issued by the Ministry of Interior) had expired a while ago. Although the Ministry has issued licenses to a number of private security contractors, many companies do not bother to get licenses because they know that there is no enforcement mechanism against them. Indeed, Paul Bremer of the Coalition Provisional Authority issued an executive order that specifically gave private contractors in Iraq immunity from prosecution.

[MiniMe]

6. Diplomatic Immunity is nothing new

It started as a way to protect our own diplomats from facing trumped up charges in other 3rd world countries. It is being abused, as so many things are, by the * administration, since Blackwater is NOT a bunch of diplomats, it is a bunch of mercenaries.

I remember back in the 90's (not that long ago, but a lifetime ago), there was a Russian diplomat's son (who was also covered by diplomatic immunity) who was driving drunk, and very fast, in Washington DC on a Friday or Saturday night. Of course there was an accident, IIRC correctly, the car flipped over and landed on a crowd of people. The area was justifiably outraged that the kid would walk because of diplomatic immunity. The Russians decided that they would remove diplomatic immunity from this kid, the crime and results warrented him standing trial in this matter. I had, and still have a great deal of respect for the Russians for taking that stance. And of course, it was the right thing to do.

Would the US have done the same? Even if the kid had to be extracted from the car so there was no question of identity, and the blood alcohol level was sky high?

[malaise]

7. Diplomatic immunity is way different from

war crimes. These fuggers should be send to the Hague.

[MiniMe]

11. Totally agree

However, not sure that *co sees it that way.

[L. Coyote]

15. Crimes by military contractors fall under the jurisdiction of Iraqi courts.

This could lead to a confrontation with US forces, and completely alter the dynamic in Iraq. The US could end up fighting the Coalition government and Iraqi police forces.

[tekisui]

9. Will BW's security convoys need Army convoys, now?

If BW is not held to account in Iraq, they will be seen as another "warring faction", another militia. If the Iraqi President can't stop them from operating, and Iraqi police can't arrest them, and Iraqi courts can't try them--the Iraqi people will.

[Demeter]

10. This is So Wrong, Dante's Gonna HAve to Add Another Circle to Hell

for Bush and Cheney and anyone who went along with their crimes.

[OneBlueSky]

13. so not only do we employ paid killers, we also immunize them . . .

from prosecution? . . . everyone see where this is heading? . . . has KBR finished constructing those camps yet? . . .

[PATRICK]

16. The army stays

as long as it is needed to protect Blackwater from the Iraqi "independent" police and military. The quick reaction from the crusader castle permanent bases is not enough. There will be military everywhere the "front line" guards are. This is a demo how impossible this is with any kind of big armed forces draw down. No nation could ever be that pacified to allow Blackwater even a hundredth of the slack they now enjoy thanks to their lesser paid US protectors. In an area where grudges stretch back hundreds of years
deadly encounters will never just go away.

Apparently, neither will the US Army unless US interests exit.

[DLnyc]

17. Not sure what to believe here

Chicago Tribune:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-blackwater_subsep28,1,1087035.story
has a similar report and says:

A State Department official, who declined to be identified because of the ongoing investigations into the shooting, said the report, which was dated the same day as the attack, reflected only what embassy officers were told by the Blackwater guards immediately after the incident. He said details could change as the investigations move forward

In other words, sounds like bullshit put out by BW
(I can't seem to load the original WP story without crashing my browser, but it reads, to me, like total bullshit, including introducing something about a 'financial compound' ? ? ? BW saying don't push us or we'll talk about the bribery schemes?)

NYT report seems a little more believable, to me:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/28/world/middleeast/28blackwater.html?hp