| | - |
|
U.S. State Department recommends overhauling diplomatic security service in Iraq |
 |
+ |
- |
10:59, October 06, 2007 |
A State Department review has recommended overhauling the U.S. diplomatic security service in Iraq following a deadly shooting in Iraq by a private U.S. company's security agents, spokesman Sean McCormack said Friday.
The review was ordered by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice following a shooting incident on Sept. 16 in which guards employed by Blackwater USA killed at least eight Iraqi civilians and wounding 13 others.
The State Department has recommended U.S. diplomatic security agents accompany Blackwater-escorted convoys in Baghdad to monitor the practices of such private security firms, McCormack said.
As a result, the State Department will have better management and accounting of Blackwater's security practices, McCormack said.
McCormack made the remarks after a report by the Washington Post on Friday said U.S. military reports from the scene of the Sept. 16 shooting incident indicate that Blackwater guards opened fire without provocation and used excessive force against Iraqi civilians.
The U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday overwhelmingly approved a bill that would bring all U.S. government contractors in the Iraq war zone under the jurisdiction of American criminal law.
The Iraqi government has ordered Blackwater to stop work in Iraq and leave the country after the fatal shootout.
Blackwater was the biggest security firm working to protect U.S. diplomats in Iraq.
Source: Xinhua
|
|
|
Comment
Tell A Friend
Print Format
Save Article