Blackwater
How weird! There's been very little in the news about that GAO report from July just before General Petreaus's report that told the story of the disappearing weapons in Iraq. I wrote two posts. The first was about the level of bungling involved. The second considered the possibility that it wasn't DOD bungling at all and suggested that they were getting weapons to terrorist groups who might be hostile to Iran. Now there's this Blackwater story.
If you remember Blackwater's been involved in some very odd stories in Iraq. Most recently their contractors were involved in a gun battle that killed several Iraqi civilians. Well....it seems that Blackwater is involved in the covert weapons and some of those weapons likely went to a Kurdish group operating in Turkey. I guess my question is whether or not this is just some employees trying to make a few extra bucks by moving weapons to terrorist groups or is there something even more devious and deeper going on here? I'll be interested to hear Blackwater's side of this story.
chancelucky
Labels: Blackwater secret arms trade in Iraq secret war GAO report
8 Comments:
Related to another post--CL, I wish you would write a book. David Mizner, a JRE supporter I've noticed on the Daily Kos and a FP once a week on MyDD wrote one that I'm reading now that is a novel: Hartsburg, USA. So far, I find it engaging because it is humorous as the tome is about a school board election in southern Ohio. I don't read fiction often, but this one is good.
I might add I'm reading Jeffrey Toobin's book about the SCOTUS too.
There are more contractors(180,000) in Iraq than even surged US troops. Now that's a way to hide money and casualty figures and busted laws.
Benny,
I'll take a look at the Mizner book some time.
Mr. Pogblog,
this Blackwater story is really spooky in so many ways. I looked at the Blackwater website as well. I just don't think that mercenaries are a good thing even when they come from your own country.
Blackwater USA.. Just why do they have to have "USA" in their name.
I dont think they like the label of "mercenaries".. But, if you insist on calling a spade a spade...
Perhaps kicking BW and the contractors out of Iraq is another way to end the war. But, to see the Iraq govt. completely fall behind the US on this issue is a bit disheartening.
Last.. good to see things back up and running.
PL,
good to have you back as well. The Blackwater website is very interesting in its own right. They don't mention any of the current issues in Iraq on their "recent news" or didn't as of Friday.
It all reads like something out of Hannibal with all the contract forces, etc.
Regarding arms to Kurds in Turkey: In the Byzantine world of intelligence this could mean any number of things. Most likely it is a way to fund an Anti-Iran group but it has to be looked at in the context of placating and balancing aide to different Kurdish leaders. Could be they had to send arms into one sector over another simply as a matter of protocol. For insight into this works, take a look at See No Evil, an excellent book by retired CIA man Robert Bauer. I have it on loan as a CD book right now. Beats listening to sports talk radio.
Sorry, the author is Robert Baer not Bauer. By the way, the movie "Syriana" is based on Baer's book.
Rcg,
many thanks for the recommendations. I'm always amazed by what the public record shows and how much of it simply gets ignored.
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