New Oversight For Private Guards In Iraq

Secretary Of State Rice Orders New Measures Following Review Panel Recommendations

(AP)  Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Tuesday ordered new measures to improve government oversight of private guards who protect U.S. diplomats in Iraq, including extensive cultural awareness training for contractors.

The steps, recommended by a review panel she created after last month's deadly Baghdad shooting involving Blackwater USA, also include ways to bring the State Department's rules of engagement into line with those of the military and the organization of "go teams" to investigate incidents in which weapons are discharged.

The moves were described to The Associated Press by a senior U.S. official ahead of their official release by the State Department.

Another step Rice has ordered is the appointment of a senior diplomat to oversee Iraq security operations, the official said. That job, a temporary assignment for now, will be held by Steve Browning, a senior foreign service office who is now U.S. Ambassador to Uganda.

The moves announced Tuesday are among those that Rice opted to make on her own, but further changes are likely after she meets later this week with Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

Some of the review panel's recommendations would require joint action with the Pentagon, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said.

Rice was briefed Monday on the findings of the panel she created in the aftermath of a deadly Sept. 16 shooting in Baghdad in which Blackwater USA guards are accused of killing 17 Iraqi civilians.

The panel's recommendations broke down into three sections: actions already taken, steps that can be taken by the State Department alone and measures that need Defense Department coordination.

Earlier this month, Rice accepted several preliminary suggestions to improve oversight of security contractors, including having federal agents accompany Blackwater-escorted diplomatic convoys, installing video cameras in security vehicles and improving and recording audio communication between diplomats and the military.

The panel's final report found poor communication between diplomats and military officials and too little oversight of contractors like Blackwater, two people familiar with the report's findings told the Associated Press.

The panel members recommended greater coordination between the State Department and Pentagon as they manage private contractors.

Rice said late Monday she wanted to speak with Gates before moving to formalize the unified control recommendation but praised the authors of the review for their work and hinted she would endorse many, if not all, of their findings.

The panel made no specific recommendations about what should happen to Blackwater, whose guards were escorting an official from the U.S. Embassy when they fired on civilians in a Baghdad square, those familiar with the report said.

The killings have outraged Iraqis and focused attention on the shadowy rules surrounding heavily armed private guards.

"There needs to be unity of effort so that whatever's moving in the battle space is coordinated, and it needs to be understood, especially, by the military out in that battle space," said one person familiar with the report.

Those familiar with the recommendations in the report spoke on condition of anonymity because Rice has not yet decided what changes she will make.

The recommendations would apply to management of all private security contractors in Iraq, and recognize that it is impractical to eliminate such protection altogether. The military has resisted assuming responsibility for guarding large numbers of U.S. officials, and the State Department's own security force is too small and already stretched too thin.

The group's closely held report also identified a gap that left private guards for diplomats in Iraq outside the direct control of U.S. civilian or military law, and outside Iraqi law, a U.S. official said. It was not clear whether the report recommends placing private contractors squarely under U.S. civilian law, but Congress has already acted to place such guards under military law when working for the Pentagon.

The Iraqi government is demanding that Blackwater be expelled from the country within six months and that its employees be subject to Iraqi law.

[forthepeopl1]

"We are, of course, very concerned, Mr. Chairman, that the policies of Iran constitute perhaps the single greatest challenge for American security interest in the Middle East and possibly around the world, because the combination of Iranian terrorism, Iranian repression at home and the pursuit of nuclear weapons technology . . . is a very dangerous mix," she said.

SOUNDS ALOT LIKE WHAT WAS SAID TO THE UNITED NATIONS JUST BEFORE WE ATTACT IRAQ..REMEMBER...LOOK OUT EVERYONE WE ARE ABOUT TO GO IN

[nolalou]

xzavierbrown, gotta love you IDIOTS who don''t have a f-ing clue what freedom means! As soon as someone disagrees with you, you claim they must be Osama Bin Ladin loving anti-Americans! You do NOT have a monopoly on patriotism, you f-ing jerk!

As for Blackwater, I agree those accused of murder and other illegal acts should be tried. If a foreign contractor working as private ''security'' in the USA was accused of murder, we would be outraged if that person was sent back home without being arrested!

[j-whitman]

xzavierbrown.... Bush''s problems from his incompetent & corrupt leadership is just beginning...... Step outside & take some deep breaths, the smoke & smog will help you think

[j-whitman]

xzavierbrown.... This is nothing but War Profiteering run amuck

The Bush administration has doubled the amount of government money going to all types of contractors to $400 billion, creating a new and thriving class of post-9/11 corporations carrying out delicate work for the government. But the number of government employees issuing, managing and auditing contracts has barely grown..
...%u201CThat%u2019s a criticism that%u2019s true of not just State but of almost every agency,%u201D said Jody Freeman, an expert on administrative law at Harvard Law School.

[j-whitman]

xzavierbrown,,,, The review panel also found there were too few American officials in Iraq to enforce the rules that apply to Blackwater and other security contractors. It also found that the conduct of the contractors had undermined the broader mission of ending the insurgency and establishing a democratic government in Iraq. ----- Not to mention several Iraq government officials including the Bush pick for helping to write their constitution all say Iraq has no government

[j-whitman]

xzavierbrown,,,, Still spouting BS ?? Give up dude.
... The State Dept has many problems with private contractor security,,,, The waste has soared to nearly 4 billion a year, & the department has added few new officials to oversee the contracts --- vast cost overruns, poor contract performance, falsified reporting, etc.

[feelfree1]

Re: "RON PAUL IS THE ONLY POLITICAN REPUBLICAN OR
DEMOCRAT THAT WILL STOP THE WAR! NO ONE ELSE
WILL"

This claim is false. Democrats Dennis Kucinich and Mike Gravel both have positions on Iraq which are not outmatched by Ron Paul.

[xzavierbrown]

''ve got one. Try, convict, and sentence Eric Prince and the rest of his merry band of Christo-mass-murderers, seize and liquidate his terrorist network, and use the proceeds to start a reparations fund.

Posted by FeelFree1 at 07:52 PM : Oct 23, 2007
+ report abuse

********************

dam N!!! are you single??osama bin laden would love to marry you...you are a perfect bi9tch to have around.

guilty until proven innocent..gotta love these liberals

[stopthewarrr]

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Again No EXPOSURE!

Who Owns The Media: http://www.mediaowners.com

***************************
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DEMOCRAT THAT WILL STOP THE WAR! NO ONE ELSE
WILL, PERIOD! WAKE UP AMERICA! VOTE RON PAUL 2008
TAKE CARE OF AMERICA AND OUR PEOPLE FIRST, INSTEAD
OF HAVING OUR CHILDREN DIE IN A B.S. WAR!
***************************

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[glossypan]

"including extensive cultural awareness training for contractors."

There''s your problem. Blackwater personnel did not realize that in Iraqi culture, people might be offended at being shot.