World Watch
August 21, 2009 10:00 AM

CIA Hired Blackwater to Arm Afghan Drones

By
Alex Sundby
Topics
Afghanistan
(CBS)
The New York Times reported Friday that the company that used to be known as Blackwater has taken over from the Central Intelligence Agency the job of arming the agency's Predator drones that patrol over Afghanistan.

Contractors for Blackwater, now formally known as Xe (pronounced Zee) Services, assemble and load Hellfire missiles and laser-guided bombs onto the pilotless aircraft in secret bases in Afghanistan and neighboring Pakistan, the Times reported. Although CIA employees fire the drones' weaponry from the agency's headquarters in Langley, Va., the Times reports this development reflects how much the agency "now depends on outside contractors to perform some of the agency's most important assignments."

"The actual pulling of a trigger in some ways is the easiest part, and the part that requires the least expertise," one government official told the Times. "It's everything that leads up to it that's the meat of the issue."

Current and former CIA employees told the Times that Blackwater's assignment of assembling bombs for the drones led to disputes between the company and the spy agency. If a Predator missed a target, CIA employees would sometimes blame Blackwater employees for the mistake, the Times reported.

"In one instance last year recounted by the employees, a 500-pound bomb dropped off a Predator before it hit the target, leading to a frantic search for the unexploded bomb in the remote Afghan-Pakistani border region," the Times reported. "It was eventually found about 100 yards from the original target."

Friday's story builds on the newspaper's article in Thursday's editions that the CIA hired Blackwater for a secret program to find and kill high-value targets in al Qaeda. The program did not lead to the deaths of any Qaeda operatives and CIA Director Leon Panetta ended it shortly after learning about its existence. After Thursday's article was published, the paper learned that Blackwater executives were not given a "license to kill" but were instead assigned to surveillance duties and to train for possible missions.

  • Alex Sundby

    Alex Sundby is an associate news editor for CBSNews.com

Add a Comment See all 27 Comments
by worldcitizen1 August 25, 2009 9:53 PM EDT
The CIA should be limited to their original duties. Collection of information for use by the military! They have caused great harm to the US by their ignorant actions. They have NO business with their own weapons.
Reply to this comment
by babooph August 24, 2009 1:42 AM EDT
Rome became Christian & switched to "contractors"from the citizen soldier prior to......
Reply to this comment
by babooph August 21, 2009 10:25 PM EDT
Did Rome not evolve from mostly national to mercenary protection PRIOR to falling ?
Reply to this comment
by ToolMangler1 August 22, 2009 2:57 PM EDT
by alphaa10000 August 22, 2009 6:33 AM ED
"INTERESTING POINT
The empire of Rome, especially at its most critical stage, had grown dependent on what might be called mercenaries, today"



This is what bothers me as I watch the unfolding events of today. Having read 'RAFOTRE' When it was a 'New publication' (weeeelllllll thats what my grandkids say) I see trends that worry me deeply. Hiring Mercs is one of them. We the people have offered ourselves for this country since its beginning and only kick out at authority when we feel we have been let down. I feel that we are being "let down now". We are fighting an enemy that is willing to die for what they feel is right. If "WE" disagree with them then we should be willing to fight as they do. The only reason that nukes haven't been used is "They might poison the Oil Fields". If they could find a way to make Nukes non-radioactive, they would be in everyday use on the battlefields (which would include our own cities and homes.)
by babooph August 21, 2009 9:42 PM EDT
I guess this means any national govt can hire international assassins to go about the world for their political desires-sure glad my kids are not traveling around the world ,becoming targets for those who feel"justified" in killing them.
Reply to this comment
by ToolMangler1 August 22, 2009 2:34 PM EDT
by jgg00000008 August 21, 2009 9:59 PM EDT
"don't you think you are exaggerating a wee bit?"


In this case I agree with babooph, It is against the law to hire assassins to ilegally kill. (period). You either "declare war or leave them alone"
by steeepe August 21, 2009 7:21 PM EDT
Can't the military and the CIA do stuff themselves? Do they need to hire private contractors, at high cost and with no responsibility or accountability, to do everything?
Reply to this comment
by kphx August 21, 2009 4:54 PM EDT
A private company is always a for-profit institution. Profit by any and all means. Protecting the country / patriotism comes last. People do not understand that, when they toot "privatise means efficiency". When the private contractors are paid more than the army personnel to do the same job but without any rules to be followed, that is some efficiency, we can be proud of.
Reply to this comment
by bradkt1 August 21, 2009 4:08 PM EDT
I don't get it...so a private contractor armed the drones. The article says that the CIA maintained control over the other aspects of operating them. The CIA flew the drones, identified and selected the targets and fired the missles when a target was identified and detected.

Look, there may be 1001 reasons to go after Blackwater (or whatever their name is now), but I don't see how this is one of them.

Now...if the issue is that the government has delegated way too many functions to private contractors to its operational detriment, fine...but this story really doesn't make that case.
Reply to this comment
by worldcitizen1 August 25, 2009 10:03 PM EDT
The CIA should have no control of dangerous weapons. CIA; Central Intelligence Agency, not air force!
by gdw666 August 21, 2009 3:49 PM EDT
"by pvperson3 August 21, 2009 3:22 PM EDT
Rome began to depend on mercenaries before it's fall also. When "freedom" depends of the use of paid assassins that will work for the highest bidder and use methods outside the law, is it really freedom?"

You need a new dictionary. Look up "mercenary" then look up "assassin".
Reply to this comment
by gdw666 August 21, 2009 3:45 PM EDT
"by johnbrown8888 August 21, 2009 12:32 PM EDT
How many US government sponsored murders and hits have been carried out in the USA by Blackwater?"

Since you seem to know. You tell us.
Reply to this comment
by pvperson3 August 21, 2009 3:22 PM EDT
Rome began to depend on mercenaries before it's fall also. When "freedom" depends of the use of paid assassins that will work for the highest bidder and use methods outside the law, is it really freedom?
Reply to this comment
by Illuminated1 August 23, 2009 12:08 PM EDT
no, its a time bomb.
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