Blackwater Incident Not On Agenda At U.N.

Rice, al-Maliki Avoid Discussing Shooting Incident As Tension Rises Over Role Of US Security Firms

(CBS/AP)  U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki kept a polite distance as they attended a group meeting and avoided discussion of a deadly Baghdad shootout involving guards from a U.S. company protecting American diplomats.

The two greeted each other before the meeting Saturday, but in a brief exchange of pleasantries, the issue of the shootout did not come up, deputy U.S. State Department spokesman Tom Casey said.

With tensions soaring over the Sept. 16 incident, Rice and al-Maliki chose not to speak about it at a United Nations gathering at which they were among senior diplomats and officials from Iraq's neighbors, including Iran and Syria, weighing future assistance to Iraq.

Earlier, the State Department's Iraq coordinator, David Satterfield, said the two did not have any one-on-one contact. Satterfield testily told reporters that the issue of the incident was not on the agenda. He told reporters after the meeting that Rice had already spoken by phone with al-Maliki about the matter.

The U.N. meeting came as a senior Iraqi official in Baghdad said Iraqi investigators have a videotape that shows employees of Blackwater USA opening fire against civilians without provocation on Sept. 16.

At the same time, Iraq's Interior Ministry said it had expanded its investigation of the shooting to include six other incidents involving Blackwater guards over the past seven months .

The developments added to rising U.S.-Iraqi tensions, which shot up following last Sunday's shooting that killed at least 11 Iraqis, including civilians.

Despite that, al-Maliki said before the session that he believed security was improving in Iraq and urged the United Nations to boost its presence in his country.

"The security situation ... has begun to develop tremendously, and the Baghdad of today is different from the Baghdad of yesterday," he said after a solo meeting with Ban.

The presence of Rice and al-Maliki at the same meeting here was the closest high-level encounter between the governments since the incident and since Rice on Friday announced a full review of State Department security in Iraq.

They precede a meeting between al-Maliki and U.S. President George W. Bush next week on the sidelines of the annual U.N. General Assembly.

The security review that Rice announced will examine the rules of engagement followed by security contractors as well as rules and regulations that govern their operations. That includes the jurisdiction in which contractors should be covered and the immunity from prosecution by Iraqi and U.S. military courts that they now enjoy.

A joint U.S.-Iraqi commission is also beginning to look at widely conflicting accounts of last weekend's incident; the first session was planned for Sunday.

American witnesses have said the security guards were responding to an attack. Many Iraqi witnesses have told investigators the shooting was unprovoked. The prime minister has called the incident a "crime" and his government has suggested that the U.S. no longer use Blackwater for security.

But the State Department relies heavily on private contractors to protect U.S. diplomats and other civilian U.S. government personnel in Iraq because it lacks the means to do so itself.

Blackwater has said its guards, protecting a U.S. diplomatic convoy, were returning fire from insurgents and acted appropriately.

Rice spoke to al-Maliki by telephone Monday to express regret for the deaths. At that time, she asked that he hold off from any action against Blackwater until all the facts were known.

Iraqi officials, who initially said they would ban the company, have shown no sign of easing their criticism. The killings have outraged many Iraqis, who long have resented the presence of armed Western security contractors, considering them an arrogant mercenary force that abuses Iraqis in their own country.

Iraq's Interior Ministry now is looking at other incidents involving Blackwater employees.

Maj. Gen. Abdul-Karim Khalaf said the U.S.-based company has been implicated in six other incidents over the past seven months, including a Feb. 7 shooting outside Iraqi state television in Baghdad in which three building guards were fatally shot.

Blackwater USA spokeswoman Anne Tyrrell had no comment when reached by telephone Saturday morning.

In Other Developments:

Federal prosecutors are investigating whether employees of Blackwater USA illegally smuggled weapons into Iraq that might have been sold on the black market and ended up in the hands of a U.S.-designated terror organization, U.S. officials say.

Authorities in Anbar province announced the arrests of 25 people linked to the assassination of the leader of the U.S.-backed revolt by Sunni Arab tribesmen in the western Anbar province against al Qaeda in Iraq. The detainees included the head of the security detail that was supposed to protect Sheik Abdul-Sattar Abu Risha, killed in a bombing Sept. 13 at his compound near Ramadi, 70 miles west of Baghdad, said Lt. Col. Jubeir Rashid, an Iraqi police officer in Anbar. Rashid said Abu Risha's security chief, Capt. Karim al-Barghothi, confessed and said al Qaeda in Iraq had offered him $1.5 million for the slaying, but he was arrested before he could collect the money.

Gunmen ambushed an Iraqi police checkpoint in Baqouba, 35 miles northeast of Baghdad, killing one officer and wounding five others, according to authorities. A civilian also was killed in Khalis, a Shiite enclave near Baqouba in the volatile Diyala province, when gunmen opened fire on his car.

U.S. troops killed seven suspected insurgents and weapons and military-style assault vests were found at the site in Musayyib, 40 miles south of Baghdad. The troops also detained 12 suspected insurgents, including a militant believed to have been responsible for the movement of senior al Qaeda in Iraqi leaders and to have extensive knowledge of their whereabouts, the military said.

An al Qaeda umbrella group in Iraq posted a video recording on showing the killing of five kidnapped Iraqi army officers. The footage, posted by the Islamic State of Iraq, shows a masked gunman shooting the blindfolded officers in the back of the head with a pistol. The officers' hands are bound behind their backs during the shooting.

© MMVII, CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Add a Comment See all 11 Comments

by lastdance2 September 23, 2007 8:54 AM EDT

Illegally smuggled weapons into Iraq that might have been Sold - to a- U.S.-designated Terror Organization

The FBI - Cannot be Trusted to - Perform any Criminal Investigation.
Involving a : National Defense - Government Contractor

American Organizations that - Financially Support the Enemies of the United States
American Organizations that provide - War materials and Weapons - Intended to kill American Military personnel involved in Combat - Has been going on for Decades

This practice could have never been Started or Initiated.
This practice could have never been carried out - for so many Decades without - The Support - The Approval
and The Assistance - Provided by - The FBI
If you think for one Moment - The FBI - Had no knowledge - of this Decades old - ongoing Criminal and Treasonous Activity - " Your Nuts "

Write a Complaint to the - Senate Judiciary Committee
Ask for a formal Criminal Investigation against Blackwater USA - Conducted by : The Criminal Investigative Division of the U.S. Treasury - The Internal Revenue Service

Since Federal Weapons- Federal Funds were misused - The Internal Revenue Service is obligated to perform a - Formal Criminal Audit of every Blackwater USA Employee
Every Penny Accounted for - Where it came From - Where it went To ! !

There was a time - Treason - was a Criminal Act

Lastdance

Reply to this comment

by gkc99 September 23, 2007 9:43 AM EDT

Hope the UN delegates don''t choke up laughing when Condie starts talking about "the sovereign state of Iraq", "Iraqi democracy" and the like! Usually the governments of sovereign states have the right to make decisions about what happens on their own territory, but not with this puppet! And certainly don''t expect the Iraqis to make any decisions about what happens to Iraqi oil--that decision will be made by the people who own and operate George W. Bushit and Darth Chickenhawk.

Reply to this comment

by mcvet September 23, 2007 12:25 PM EDT

This happens to be the darkest page in a long history... OURS. The corruption and outright lying about this Occupation of a Nation will haunt this country for decades and decades. Now we find out that security is being provided by the Klan... Wow!!

Reply to this comment

by grumpas September 23, 2007 12:53 PM EDT

It should be the first thing on her agenda! If this administration had any principle''s it would be! They owe Iraq an apology for what they have unleashed upon the Iraqi people. It was criminal for Bush to use hired thugs as security forces. That''s all I see Blackwater and the numerous mercenary''s as being as hired thugs. This whole war has gotten completely out of Bush''s control. It has become a monster that is growing by the day and is being fed with borrowed money. It is going to devour us alive if something isn''t done to put it to an end.

Reply to this comment

by thinkharder- September 23, 2007 1:29 PM EDT

S_Temper

You are a despicable excuse for a human being. An Iraqi civilian would not heaving grenades at our troops...they greeted us as liberators...right?
Your lacking heart has apparently grown from a seething pile of hatred and you my friend, are no better than any Islamic extremist. You apparently have the emotional depth of a twelve year old girl. I can''t believe you are calling for the extermination of innocent lives to satisfy your overly hostile ethnocentric rhetoric. Sounds familiar really...you and Bin Laden should have a family outing...I''m sure he would appreciate the ease at which it takes to mold you childish perceptions.

Reply to this comment

by mcvet September 23, 2007 2:24 PM EDT

Those Iraqi "civilians" get what they deserve! They act like a bunch of ANIMALS! They throw grenades at passing convoys and murder American troops. Blackwater is just returning the favor to those sc*mbag hajis. If those *********** don''''t like being treated like animals, they should stop acting like animals! Dirty sand people.

Posted by S_Temper at 10:09 AM : Sep 23, 2007
+ report abuse


You forgot to add the SIEG HEIL!!! It''s very humbling to know that I once put my life on the line for Garbage like you AND you have the NERVE to come on here and tell ME that we''re there to help these people. God what kind of human slime are you Nazi''s made of? Sieg Heil Bush!!

Reply to this comment

by mcvet September 23, 2007 2:29 PM EDT

How long does it take for us to figure out that these people DO NOT want our way of doing things...at least NOT when sub human''s like these Hired Killers are the face of this nation. How low do we sink? Do we get like the Trailer Trash in Mississippi before we realize that this Southern Nazi will drag us to the bottom of the swamp before he will admit HE made a mistake. Bush thinks he''s superior to us and he just keeps feeding the Red Neck Hate to keep it like that. This nation and it''s people want to let the people of IRAQ settle their own differences BUT our Superior Leader wants to make sure that they have the RIGHT government... not just the Government THEY want. Now would someone tell me what on earth gives us the right to let someone like George W. Bush determine what kind of Government these folks have? Look at the wonderful Government he''s brought to us!!! We the People means absolutely NOTHING to George W. Bush... NOTHING!! Sieg Heil Y''all.

Reply to this comment

by sharncedar September 23, 2007 3:24 PM EDT

Well let''s not be so quick to condemn S_Temper. There is a place for hardness and tough thinking. But, if you go that way, you MUST win your battles. To be ruthless and hard, and also a pathetic loser like Bush, is very bad.

So, S_Temper, I would suggest you and your Nazi friends win at least one little war, or even one little battle, before you go about talking tough. To get your rear ends kicked and humiliating all of America by a tiny nation the size of Iraq is a disgrace. If you were the kind of hard man you pretend, you would kill yourself in disgrace.

People will accept a brave, strong, and successful leader who is tough and ruthless, but not a cowardly pathetic loser who cannot fight even a small war against one of the smallest, weakest nations in the world.

You are doubly damnned.

Reply to this comment

by socrates392 September 23, 2007 5:51 PM EDT

Posted by SharnCedar at 12:24 PM : Sep 23, 2007

Yep. If you''re going to be a tyrannical, imperialist dictator be a tyrannical, imperialist dictator. Don''t try to pretend like Bush does that he is some sort of kind-hearted Christian messiah spreading freedom and charity around the world. If America is going to be a colonialist power, it needs to crack some skulls and murder some more innocent civilians.

Thankfully, most Americans don''t want to be colonialists. That''s why we will never win in Iraq.

Reply to this comment

by starleo146 September 23, 2007 6:19 PM EDT

These mercenaries, paid very well I might add, are the ones giving our troops a bad name they are dressed like our troops but there actions are quite different. I heard they have more mercenaries than troops over there. Protect the state dept. workers and the Billion dollar Embassy Is that all you need over 100, 000 to do that? How much does this cost the taxpayer?

Reply to this comment

by starleo146 September 23, 2007 6:22 PM EDT

You forgot to add the SIEG HEIL!!! It''''s very humbling to know that I once put my life on the line for Garbage like you AND you have the NERVE to come on here and tell ME that we''''re there to help these people. God what kind of human slime are you Nazi''''s made of? Sieg Heil Bush!!

Posted by MCVet

Way to go McVet This guy is so lame.

Reply to this comment

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[lastdance2]

Illegally smuggled weapons into Iraq that might have been Sold - to a- U.S.-designated Terror Organization

The FBI - Cannot be Trusted to - Perform any Criminal Investigation.
Involving a : National Defense - Government Contractor

American Organizations that - Financially Support the Enemies of the United States
American Organizations that provide - War materials and Weapons - Intended to kill American Military personnel involved in Combat - Has been going on for Decades

This practice could have never been Started or Initiated.
This practice could have never been carried out - for so many Decades without - The Support - The Approval
and The Assistance - Provided by - The FBI
If you think for one Moment - The FBI - Had no knowledge - of this Decades old - ongoing Criminal and Treasonous Activity - " Your Nuts "

Write a Complaint to the - Senate Judiciary Committee
Ask for a formal Criminal Investigation against Blackwater USA - Conducted by : The Criminal Investigative Division of the U.S. Treasury - The Internal Revenue Service

Since Federal Weapons- Federal Funds were misused - The Internal Revenue Service is obligated to perform a - Formal Criminal Audit of every Blackwater USA Employee
Every Penny Accounted for - Where it came From - Where it went To ! !

There was a time - Treason - was a Criminal Act

Lastdance

[gkc99]

Hope the UN delegates don''t choke up laughing when Condie starts talking about "the sovereign state of Iraq", "Iraqi democracy" and the like! Usually the governments of sovereign states have the right to make decisions about what happens on their own territory, but not with this puppet! And certainly don''t expect the Iraqis to make any decisions about what happens to Iraqi oil--that decision will be made by the people who own and operate George W. Bushit and Darth Chickenhawk.

[mcvet]

This happens to be the darkest page in a long history... OURS. The corruption and outright lying about this Occupation of a Nation will haunt this country for decades and decades. Now we find out that security is being provided by the Klan... Wow!!

[grumpas]

It should be the first thing on her agenda! If this administration had any principle''s it would be! They owe Iraq an apology for what they have unleashed upon the Iraqi people. It was criminal for Bush to use hired thugs as security forces. That''s all I see Blackwater and the numerous mercenary''s as being as hired thugs. This whole war has gotten completely out of Bush''s control. It has become a monster that is growing by the day and is being fed with borrowed money. It is going to devour us alive if something isn''t done to put it to an end.

[thinkharder-]

S_Temper

You are a despicable excuse for a human being. An Iraqi civilian would not heaving grenades at our troops...they greeted us as liberators...right?
Your lacking heart has apparently grown from a seething pile of hatred and you my friend, are no better than any Islamic extremist. You apparently have the emotional depth of a twelve year old girl. I can''t believe you are calling for the extermination of innocent lives to satisfy your overly hostile ethnocentric rhetoric. Sounds familiar really...you and Bin Laden should have a family outing...I''m sure he would appreciate the ease at which it takes to mold you childish perceptions.

[mcvet]

Those Iraqi "civilians" get what they deserve! They act like a bunch of ANIMALS! They throw grenades at passing convoys and murder American troops. Blackwater is just returning the favor to those sc*mbag hajis. If those *********** don''''t like being treated like animals, they should stop acting like animals! Dirty sand people.

Posted by S_Temper at 10:09 AM : Sep 23, 2007
+ report abuse


You forgot to add the SIEG HEIL!!! It''s very humbling to know that I once put my life on the line for Garbage like you AND you have the NERVE to come on here and tell ME that we''re there to help these people. God what kind of human slime are you Nazi''s made of? Sieg Heil Bush!!

[mcvet]

How long does it take for us to figure out that these people DO NOT want our way of doing things...at least NOT when sub human''s like these Hired Killers are the face of this nation. How low do we sink? Do we get like the Trailer Trash in Mississippi before we realize that this Southern Nazi will drag us to the bottom of the swamp before he will admit HE made a mistake. Bush thinks he''s superior to us and he just keeps feeding the Red Neck Hate to keep it like that. This nation and it''s people want to let the people of IRAQ settle their own differences BUT our Superior Leader wants to make sure that they have the RIGHT government... not just the Government THEY want. Now would someone tell me what on earth gives us the right to let someone like George W. Bush determine what kind of Government these folks have? Look at the wonderful Government he''s brought to us!!! We the People means absolutely NOTHING to George W. Bush... NOTHING!! Sieg Heil Y''all.

[sharncedar]

Well let''s not be so quick to condemn S_Temper. There is a place for hardness and tough thinking. But, if you go that way, you MUST win your battles. To be ruthless and hard, and also a pathetic loser like Bush, is very bad.

So, S_Temper, I would suggest you and your Nazi friends win at least one little war, or even one little battle, before you go about talking tough. To get your rear ends kicked and humiliating all of America by a tiny nation the size of Iraq is a disgrace. If you were the kind of hard man you pretend, you would kill yourself in disgrace.

People will accept a brave, strong, and successful leader who is tough and ruthless, but not a cowardly pathetic loser who cannot fight even a small war against one of the smallest, weakest nations in the world.

You are doubly damnned.

[socrates392]

Posted by SharnCedar at 12:24 PM : Sep 23, 2007

Yep. If you''re going to be a tyrannical, imperialist dictator be a tyrannical, imperialist dictator. Don''t try to pretend like Bush does that he is some sort of kind-hearted Christian messiah spreading freedom and charity around the world. If America is going to be a colonialist power, it needs to crack some skulls and murder some more innocent civilians.

Thankfully, most Americans don''t want to be colonialists. That''s why we will never win in Iraq.

[starleo146]

These mercenaries, paid very well I might add, are the ones giving our troops a bad name they are dressed like our troops but there actions are quite different. I heard they have more mercenaries than troops over there. Protect the state dept. workers and the Billion dollar Embassy Is that all you need over 100, 000 to do that? How much does this cost the taxpayer?

[starleo146]

You forgot to add the SIEG HEIL!!! It''''s very humbling to know that I once put my life on the line for Garbage like you AND you have the NERVE to come on here and tell ME that we''''re there to help these people. God what kind of human slime are you Nazi''''s made of? Sieg Heil Bush!!

Posted by MCVet

Way to go McVet This guy is so lame.