and tried to gesture to his colleagues in an attempt to stop the shooting. Not only was the decision described as a "miscarriage of justice," but some U.N experts claimed that the pardons "violate U.S. obligations under international law and more broadly undermine humanitarian law and human rights at a global level," per Reuters. [26][27] A U.S. Army convoy arrived at 12:39p.m., backed by air cover, to escort TST 22 back to the Green Zone. Blackwater's owner, Erik Prince, recently said his company is spending $2 million a month in legal . The 2007 incident in Baghdad's Nisoor Square caused an international outcry. Human Rights Watch reports that some helicopters above ever started shooting at the street below. Trump pardons ex-campaign aide and disgraced Republican lawmakers, Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning, 2023 Guardian News & Media Limited or its affiliated companies. "[29], On October 4, 2007, the Federal Bureau of Investigation announced that it would be taking the lead in the investigation of the shooting incident. It looks at the rise of private security contractors such as Blackwater in the era of modern warfare. An American man and Iraqi woman joined forces to document the reality of life on the ground for Iraqi civilians and become the only outsiders to live with the people of Fallujah following the battle that destroyed their holy city. [14], On October 13, 2007, the FBI reported that it had concluded that at least 14 of the 17 Iraqis who died in the square had been killed without cause. He also maintained that he wanted to limit and reduce the authority of all security contractors, not just Blackwater, Timereports. "[51][52][53], On January 19, 2008, The New York Times reported that the contractor responsible for many of the deaths in the engagement, previously known only as "turret gunner no. And it's estimated that at least one other person died from the second shooting incident. An estimated 20,000 to 35,000 private security contractors operate in Iraq, without adequate oversight, without adequate training and without adequate legal sanctions to hold abusers accountable. Black Water (2007 film) - Wikipedia The four guards Paul Slough, Evan Liberty, Dustin Heard and Nicholas Slatten were part of an armoured convoy that opened fire indiscriminately with machine-guns, grenade launchers and a sniper on a crowd of unarmed people in a square in the Iraqi capital. Blackwater has been one of the biggest recipients. Like Khalaf, Hooby said he never saw anyone on his side of the square make even a threatening gesture toward the Blackwater convoy. Their first contract, awarded in June 2004, was for $100 million for one year. Ali Khalaf Salman, a traffic cop who was there, recounted seeing an American shoot Ahmed. On January 31, 2009, the U.S. State Department notified Blackwater that it would not be renewing its security contract with the company. [57], In October 2007, the United Nations released a two-year study that stated that private contractors, although hired as "security guards", were performing military duties. [37] A senior aide to al-Maliki said that three of the Blackwater guards were Iraqis and could be subject to prosecution. The line of bullet holes in one side door is overshadowed by the two soccer-ball-size holes in the roof and driver's side door. The US government said in a memorandum filed after the sentencing: None of the victims was an insurgent, or posed any threat to the Raven 23 convoy. The memorandum also contained quotations from relatives of the dead, including Mohammad Kinani, whose nine-year-old son Ali was killed. [40], On October 11, 2007, the Center for Constitutional Rights filed suit against Blackwater USA under the Alien Tort Claims Act on behalf of an injured Iraqi and the families of three of the seventeen Iraqis who were killed by Blackwater employees during the September 16, 2007, shooting incident. [42] A spokesman stated that the ban would last for the duration of the investigation, and that it would not be permanent. The Blackwater Shooting (2007) | The New York Times The New York Times 4.26M subscribers 1.1M views 8 years ago In this 2007 video, witnesses shed light on the killing of 17 Iraqis by American. [89][90][91] The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit's fractured per curiam decision first found that Military Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Act authorized the prosecutions, over the partial dissent of Judge Janice Rogers Brown. For a moment, it appeared as though Blackwater was going to be responsible for guarding the FBI agents, but the Bureau soon announced that the FBI agents would instead be guarded by "official personnel," rather than the very company that they were to be investigating. No!" FBI scientists couldn't match bullets from the square to guns carried by the Blackwater guards and FBI investigators found foreign cartridge cases of a kind not used by U.S. or Blackwater personnel. [3][84] Prosecutors stated they reached their decision after an "assessment of the admissible evidence against him". In total, the defendants faced 14 counts of voluntary manslaughter and 20 counts of attempted manslaughter. At the end of the day, none of the Blackwater guards deny what they did, they just deny that there was any wrongdoing. the American security company Blackwater ("Black water") was founded in 1997, seal commando Erik Prince and shooting coach al Clark. Vigilance Elite: Blackwater 'Massacre' Was A Massacre of Justice The Nisour Square massacreoccurred on September 16, 2007, when employees of BlackwaterSecurity Consulting (now Constellis), a private military companycontracted by the US government to provide security services in Iraq, shot at Iraqi civilians, killing 17 and injuring 20 in Nisour Square, Baghdad, while escorting a U.S. embassy convoy. I am overwhelmed with emotion at this fantastic news.. But the Iraqis' hands are tied. Ahmed would count upwards of 40 bullet holes in their car alone. Blackwater Security Consulting, also known as Blackwater Worldwide, was founded in 1997 by Al Clark and Erik Prince as a private security firm. [17], Just before noon on September 16, 2007, a car bomb exploded near the Izdihar Compound where US and Iraqi officials were meeting,[20]:547 and a 19-man Blackwater Tactical Support Team (TST) consisting of a convoy of four trucks, answering to the call sign "Raven 23", took up positions on the south side of Nisour Square to secure an evacuation route for the US officials and another Blackwater team providing security for them. [25], A State Department spot report published the same day as the incident stated that eight to ten attackers opened fire on Raven 23 "from multiple nearby locations, with some aggressors dressed in civilian apparel and others in Iraqi police uniforms" after the convoy had entered Nisour Square,[26] starting at 12:08p.m.[27] The report added that another Blackwater Tactical Support Team (TST 22), who had escorted the officials and TST 4 back to the Green Zone, was redirected to support Raven 23. [79] Three weeks later, Vice President Joe Biden, who was overseeing U.S. policy in Iraq, promised Iraqi leaders the U.S. would appeal the dismissal of these charges. US President Donald Trump has pardoned four former security guards from the private military firm Blackwater who were serving long jail terms for killing 14 Iraqi civilians, including two children, during the infamous 2007 Nisour Square massacre in Baghdad. - Asser Institute (Decision Date: 31 December 2009)", "Ex-Blackwater Guards Face Renewed Charges", "Blackwater guards face new U.S. charges for Iraq shooting deaths", "Legal questions loom in Blackwater convictions", "Blackwater guards found guilty in Iraq shootings", "Emails Reveal Discord Over Blackwater Charges", "Ex-Blackwater Guards Sentenced to Long Prison Terms in 2007 Killings of Iraqi Civilians", "U.S. Appeals Court Tosses Ex-Blackwater Guard's Conviction in 2007 Baghdad Massacre", "Murder conviction in Blackwater case thrown out, other sentences overturned", "In Blackwater Case, Court Rejects a Murder Conviction and Voids 3 Sentences", Recent Case: D.C. According to Tidings Media, one guard continued to shoot at unarmed civilians until another guard drew his own gun on him and threatened to shoot. His brother left behind a wife and four children. FBI investigators who visited the scene in the following days described it as the My Lai massacre of Iraq a reference to the infamous slaughter of civilian villagers by US troops during the Vietnam war in which only one soldier was convicted. The 14 victims killed by the Blackwater guards on trial were listed as Ahmed Haithem Ahmed Al Rubiay, Mahassin Mohssen Kadhum Al-Khazali, Osama Fadhil Abbas, Ali Mohammed Hafedh Abdul Razzaq, Mohamed Abbas Mahmoud, Qasim Mohamed Abbas Mahmoud, Saadi Ali Abbas Alkarkh, Mushtaq Karim Abd Al-Razzaq, Ghaniyah Hassan Ali, Ibrahim Abid Ayash, Hamoud Saeed Abttan, Uday Ismail Ibrahiem, Mahdi Sahib Nasir and Ali Khalil Abdul Hussein. The Intercept reports that others who tried to run for cover were killed by machine gunfire. The Iraq government's own investigation found no evidence that the guards had been provoked or attacked, and Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's spokesperson called the shootings "deliberate murder.". [1][2][3] The killings outraged Iraqis and strained relations between Iraq and the United States. A sixth guard, Jeremy Ridgeway, pleaded guilty and agreed to cooperate with investigators, World reports. However, Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki urged the United States to end their contract with Blackwater. I Sued Blackwater for the Massacre of Iraqi Civilians. Trump Just [58] Nor is the US a signatory of the 1977 additional protocol to the 1949 Geneva Conventions in which Article 47 specifies that mercenaries are civilians who "take a direct part in the hostilities" and are "motivated to take part in the hostilities essentially by the desire for private gain". Assadi is now the sole breadwinner for the entire family. It's all the news that's fit to watch. Donald Trump has pardoned four security guards from the private military firm Blackwater who were serving jail sentences for killing 14 civilians including two children in Baghdad in 2007, a. In an instant, Ahmed was shot through the head. One such incident is the Blackwater massacre, also known as the Nisour Square massacre. Meanwhile, although Moonen admitted that he was intoxicated, he maintained that he shot in self-defense. As shootings in the square were not uncommon, it is unclear whether the shells were from the shooting in question or from other incidents. Fifteen minutes later, the four-car convoy continued around the square and drove away. [36] Several Iraqi and American investigations have been conducted into the incident. An initial prosecution was thrown out by a federal judge sparking outrage in Iraq but the then vice-president, Joe Biden, promised to pursue a fresh prosecution, which succeeded in 2015. [7][8] U.N. experts said this "violated U.S. obligations under international law". [6][85][86] Jurors sided with prosecutors' contention that the shooting was a criminal act, not a battlefield encounter gone wrong. The incident led to at least five investigations and although the Blackwater guards repeatedly claimed that their actions were justified, several of them came to the opposite conclusion. My son!" Black Water (2018) - Full Cast & Crew - IMDb 3", is named Paul Slough. And Blackwater didn't make the investigation easy. A rocket grenade was fired into one of the cars, killing its driver. The numerals and letters matched the family's plate. Interviews with victims and witnesses to the Sept. 16 shooting in Nissour Square bring to light more information about the problems caused by private contractors, which have effectively operated with impunity as they've brought violence and widespread ill will to US operations in Iraq. Slattern was sentenced to life and the others to 30 years in prison each. His tough faade cracked as he described the moment he learned about the shootings. Other ways to share Some of the counts resulted in a mistrial, but none of the defendants got an acquittal on any count. 23 December 2020. Director Mark Manning Writers Natalie Kalustian Mark Manning Stars Rana al Aiouby Tariq Ali Reza Aslan The deceased included nine and 11-year-old boys. [70] A second civil lawsuit filed jointly by the families of six victims against Blackwater was settled on January 6, 2012 for an undisclosed sum. In this 2007 video, witnesses shed light on the killing of 17 Iraqis by American contractors in Baghdad.Read the article here: http://nyti.ms/1u1cNzySubscribe to the Times Video newsletter for free and get a handpicked selection of the best videos from The New York Times every week: http://bit.ly/timesvideonewsletterSubscribe on YouTube: http://bit.ly/U8Ys7nWatch more videos at: http://nytimes.com/video---------------------------------------------------------------Want more from The New York Times?Twitter: https://twitter.com/nytvideoFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/nytimes Google+: https://plus.google.com/+nytimes/Whether it's reporting on conflicts abroad and political divisions at home, or covering the latest style trends and scientific developments, New York Times video journalists provide a revealing and unforgettable view of the world. Sadly, this lawsuit may be the only way that the victims and their families receive remotely adequate compensation for their losses. The audit also revealed that Blackwater overbilled at least $70,000 in travel costs. The story follows Prince, a Navy SEAL turned billionaire, as he is dogged by a grand-jury. Slough, Liberty and Heard were convicted on multiple charges of voluntary and attempted manslaughter in 2014, while Slatten, who was the first to start shooting, was convicted of first-degree murder. [56], On April 1, 2011, the Associated Press reported on Erik Prince's seven-hour testimony about what allegedly transpired. I took Mr. Carroll's threat seriously. [93], On December 19, 2018, Slatten was found guilty of murder[94] and again was sentenced to life in prison on August 14, 2019. The Blackwater Shooting October 25, 2007 Witnesses shed new light on the killing of 17 Iraqis by American contractors in Baghdad. The State Department announced an American-Iraqi joint commission to investigate both the shooting and the broader issue of employing private security contractors. However, according to Reuters, a federal judge dismissed the lawsuit, claiming that "the U.S. government had recklessly violated the defendants' constitutional rights." Erik Prince - The Rise and Fall of Blackwater | SRS #029 Khalaf's observations are backed up by official accounts, including leaked FBI findings, which concluded that at least 14 of the 17 shooting deaths were unjustified, and statements by military officials disputing Blackwater's claim that its guards had been fired upon or under any sort of attack. The incident was allegedly resolved only after another Blackwater contractor pointed his weapon at the man still firing and ordered him to stop. No! As a result, on October 17, 2013, the Department of Justice once more filed charges against the Blackwater security guards, according to the Business and Human Rights Resource Centre. Prince strongly criticized the way in which federal authorities had handled the investigation and disputed the claims that U.S. or Blackwater personnel were to blame for the shootings. From Iraq to New Orleans, it's continued to pull in multimillion-dollar government contracts, mostly without accountability and in near secrecy.. But such legislation is only as good as the oversight and enforcement that accompany it. A Blackwater team was already there, with the diplomat, who ended up being escorted back to the International Zone without any incident. Two helicopters circled overhead, each with a man strapped in and a machine gun sticking out. The order confines most Americans to a 3.5 square miles (9.1km2) area in the center of the city so that they are unable to visit other areas without traveling in a helicopter. [89][90][91] The panel also recommended that Slatten undergo a re-trial on the grounds that it was unjustifiable to try him with his co-defendants, and that he should have been tried separately. Blackwater's contracts for protecting American diplomats also weren't limited to Iraq. The large metal rod implanted by the surgeon to help his broken bone heal properly is expected to be removed at the end of December. Share this via Printer. [84], The other four went on trial starting on June 17, 2014;[5] ten weeks of testimony and 28 days of jury deliberations resulted in convictions for all four men on October 22, 2014. [49], An Interior Ministry spokesman said Iraqi authorities had completed their investigation into the shooting and concluded that Blackwater guards were responsible for the deaths. [54] He received an honorable discharge in 2002 and then enlisted in the Texas National Guard. [81] A three-judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit found "systemic" errors in the district court's 2009 decision to dismiss charges against the five former Blackwater guards and added "We find that the district court's findings depend on an erroneous view of the law". I don't know how to manage my life or care for my other two children without her. The Blackwater Shooting (2007) | The New York Times - YouTube Ex-Blackwater contractor sentenced to life in Iraq shootings By ASHRAF KHALIL August 14, 2019 WASHINGTON (AP) A former Blackwater security contractor was sentenced Wednesday to life in prison for his role in the 2007 shooting of unarmed civilians in Iraq that left 14 people dead.