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| Iraq |
| Blackwater Says Allegations of Arms Smuggling are `Baseless' |
| 2007-09-23 |
| Sept. 22 (Bloomberg) -- Blackwater USA, the private security firm under investigation for shooting incidents in Iraq, denied it had engaged in smuggling weapons to that country. ``Allegations that Blackwater was in any way associated or complicit in unlawful arms activities are baseless,'' the Moyock, North Carolina, company said in an e-mailed statement sent to reporters by Blackwater spokeswoman Anne Tyrrell and posted on its Web site. The Associated Press, citing unidentified officials, reported earlier today that the U.S. Attorney's Office in Raleigh, North Carolina, is seeking to determine whether Blackwater employees illegally smuggled weapons into Iraq that may have later been sold on the black market, possibly to a terrorist organization. Blackwater said in its statement that it had ``no knowledge of any employee improperly exporting weapons.'' ``When it was uncovered internally that two employees were stealing from the company, Blackwater immediately fired them and invited the ATF to conduct a thorough investigation,'' the statement said, referring to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives in the Justice Department. ``The employees, who were former Marines and law enforcement, have been convicted and are currently negotiating sentencing in Raleigh with federal prosecutors.'' The company is under investigation by the U.S. Embassy in Iraq following a Sept. 16 clash in Baghdad that, according to the Iraqi Interior Ministry, left eight local civilians dead. Blackwater has said that its personnel opened fire only after the State Department convoy they were protecting came under attack. Blackwater is the State Department's largest private security contractor, according to AP. The company's Web site says Blackwater has nine separate business units, including the biggest private firearms and tactical training center in the country. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice yesterday ordered a ``full and complete'' review of the department's handling of security contractors in Iraq. The examination will be conducted separately from the U.S. Embassy investigation. |
| Posted by:gorb |