Report: US Should Be Ready if Iraq Bars Blackwater

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. government report raises the possibility that private security firm Blackwater could lose its license to protect U.S. diplomats in Iraq and advises making contingency plans, two sources familiar with the matter said Wednesday.

Five Blackwater guards were charged on Dec. 8 with killing 14 unarmed civilians and wounding 20 others in a 2007 Baghdad shooting that outraged Iraqis and raised questions about the firm's ability to keep working in Iraq.
The State Department relies heavily on North Carolina-based Blackwater and other private security companies, many of which are staffed by former U.S. soldiers, to protect its diplomats in Iraq, the West Bank and other dangerous places.
The two sources described the draft report prepared by the State Department Office of Inspector General (OIG) on condition that they not be named because it has yet to be made public.
"The department faces the real possibility that one of its primary worldwide personal protective services contractors in Iraq -- Blackwater USA -- will not receive a license to continue operating in Iraq," said the report, referring to a license issued by the Iraqi authorities, the sources said.
The OIG is a quasi-independent office whose mission includes preventing fraud, abuse and mismanagement as well identifying vulnerabilities and recommending solutions

LinkHere