Declaration of Human Rights
Baloch Society Of North America (BSO-NA)
Baloch Society Of North America (BSO-NA)  is working to unite and Organize all Baloch in North America and to
expose the Occupation of our land (Balochistan)  and  exploitations of our resources by  Pakistani and Iranian
Governments, and to bring their Human Rights Violations in Balochistan into the world’s Notice.
Iraq expels American security firm

By ROBERT H. REID,

Mon Sept. 17, 2007

BAGHDAD - The Iraqi government announced Monday it was ordering Blackwater USA, the security firm that protects U.S. diplomats, to leave
the country after what it said was the fatal shooting of eight Iraqi civilians following a car bomb attack against a State Department convoy.

The order by the Interior Ministry, if carried out, would deal a severe blow to U.S. government operations in Iraq by stripping diplomats,
engineers, reconstruction officials and others of their security protection.
The presence of so many visible, aggressive Western security contractors has angered many Iraqis, who consider them a mercenary force
that runs roughshod over people in their own country.

Sunday's shooting was the latest in a series of incidents in which Blackwater and other foreign contractors have been accused of shooting to
death Iraqi citizens. None has faced charges or prosecution.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice telephoned Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki late Monday and the two agreed to conduct a "fair and
transparent investigation" and hold any wrongdoers accountable, said Yassin Majid, an adviser to the prime minister. Rice was expected to
visit the Mideast on Tuesday.

Deputy State Department spokesman Tom Casey said Rice "told the prime minister that we were investigating this incident and wanted to
gain a full understanding of what happened."

"She reiterated that the United States does everything it can to avoid such loss of life, in contrast to the enemies of the Iraqi people who
deliberately target civilians," Casey said.

Majid made no mention of the order to expel Blackwater, and it was unlikely the United States would agree to abandon a security company
that plays such a critical role in American operations in Iraq.
The U.S. clearly hoped the Iraqis would be satisfied with an investigation, a finding of responsibility and compensation to the victims' families
— and not insist on expelling a company that the Americans cannot operate here without.

Details of Sunday's incident were unclear.

Interior Ministry spokesman Abdul-Karim Khalaf said eight civilians were killed and 13 were wounded when contractors believed to be
working for Blackwater USA opened fire on civilians in the predominantly Sunni neighborhood of Mansour in western Baghdad.

"We have canceled the license of Blackwater and prevented them from working all over Iraqi territory. We will also refer those involved to Iraqi
judicial authorities," Khalaf said.

He said witness reports pointed to Blackwater involvement but added that the shooting was still under investigation. One witness, Hussein
Abdul-Abbas, said the explosion was followed by about 20 minutes of heavy gunfire and "everybody in the street started to flee immediately."

U.S. officials said the motorcade was traveling through Nisoor Square on the way back to the Green Zone when the car bomb exploded,
followed by volleys of small-arms fire that disabled one of the vehicles but caused no American casualties.

Blackwater said the company had not been formally notified of any expulsion.

"Blackwater's independent contractors acted lawfully and appropriately in response to a hostile attack in Baghdad on Sunday," spokeswoman
Anne E. Tyrrell said in a statement late Monday.

"The `civilians' reportedly fired upon by Blackwater professionals were in fact armed enemies and Blackwater personnel returned defensive
fire," she said. "Blackwater regrets any loss of life but this convoy was violently attacked by armed insurgents, not civilians, and our people did
their job to defend human life."

American officials refused to explain the legal authority under which Blackwater operates in Iraq or say whether the company was complying
with the order. It also was unclear whether the contractors involved in the shooting were still in Iraq.

The incident drew attention to one of the controversial American practices of the war — the use of heavily armed private security contractors
who Iraqis complain operate beyond the control of U.S. military and Iraqi law.
The events in Mansour also illustrate the challenge of trying to protect U.S. officials in a city where car bombs can explode at any time, and
where gunmen blend in with the civilian population.
"The Blackwater guys are not fools. If they were gunning down people, it was because they felt it was the beginning of an ambush," said
Robert Young Pelton, an independent military analyst and author of the book "Licensed to Kill."
"They're famous for being very aggressive. They use their machine guns like car horns. But it's not the goal to kill people."
In one of the most horrific attacks of the war, four Blackwater employees were ambushed and killed in Fallujah in 2004 and their charred
bodies hung from a bridge over the Euphrates River.

But Iraqis have long complained about high-profile, heavily armed security vehicles careering through the streets, with guards pointing
weapons at civilians and sometimes firing warning shots at anyone deemed too close. And Iraqi officials were quick to condemn the foreign
guards.

Al-Maliki late Sunday condemned the shooting by a "foreign security company" and called it a "crime."
Interior Minister Jawad al-Bolani described the shooting as "a crime about which we cannot be silent."
"Everyone should understand that whoever wants good relations with Iraq should respect Iraqis," al-Bolani told Al-Arabiya television. "We are
implementing the law and abide by laws, and others should respect these laws and respect the sovereignty and independence of Iraqis in
their country."

Defense Minister Abdul-Qadir al-Obaidi told Iraqi television that "those criminals" responsible for deaths "should be punished" and that the
government would demand compensation for the victims' families.

Despite threats of prosecution, government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh told Alhurra television that contractors cannot be prosecuted by Iraqi
courts because "some of them have immunity."

In April, the Defense Department said about 129,000 contractors of many nationalities were operating in Iraq — nearly as many as the entire
U.S. military force before this year's troop buildup.

About 4,600 contractors are in combat roles, such as protecting supply convoys along Iraq's dangerous, bomb-laden highways.

Blackwater, a secretive North Carolina-based company run by a former Navy SEAL, is among the biggest and best known security firms, with
an estimated 1,000 employees in Iraq and at least $800 million in government contracts.
In May 2007, a Blackwater employee shot and killed a civilian who was thought to be driving too close to a company security detail.

Last Christmas Eve, an inebriated Blackwater employee shot and killed a security guard for an Iraqi vice president, according to Iraqi and U.S.
officials. The contractor made his way to the U.S. Embassy where Blackwater officials arranged to have him flown home to the United States,
according U.S. officials who spoke only on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.

The contractor has been fired and Blackwater is cooperating with federal investigators, company spokeswoman Anne Tyrrell has said.
___
AP correspondents Deborah Hastings in New York, Mike Baker in Raleigh, N.C., and Matthew Lee in Washington contributed to this report.

Photo A private security contractor sits in the door of a helicopter as it patrols the skies over Baghdad in a February 6, 2005 file photo. Iraq
pledged on Monday to punish foreign security contractors involved in an incident in western Baghdad in which 11 people were killed.


http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070917/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq;_ylt=AgNI73ihhHFIyL.sFNmCtA29F4l4
Photo: US private security officer with his face covered against dust, sits
in a Chinook helicopter as they accompany Iraq's US civilian
administrator L. Paul Bremer on a visit to the southern marsh areas of
Iraq in this Thursday, Sept 18, 2003 file photo near the southern Iraqi city
of Basra. The Iraqi Interior Ministry said Monday Sept. 17, 2007that it was
pulling the license of an American security firm allegedly involved in the
fatal shooting of civilians during an attack on a U.S. State Department
motorcade in Baghdad. Interior Ministry spokesman Abdul-Karim Khalaf
said eight people were killed and 13 were wounded when security
contractors working for Blackwater USA opened fire in a predominantly
Sunni neighborhood of western Baghdad. The spokesman said witness
reports pointed to Blackwater involvement but said the incident was still
under investigation.
US investigates into Blackwater incident

By MATTHEW LEE,

Mon Sep 17, 6:38 PM ET

WASHINGTON - The State Department moved quickly Monday to tamp down anger and possible repercussions after the alleged killing of
eight Iraqi civilians by a private security firm hired to protect U.S. diplomats in Iraq.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice telephoned Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to express regret at the loss of life and promise that the
results of an internal investigation into Sunday's incident would be shared with the government in Baghdad.

"She told the Prime Minister that we were investigating this incident and wanted to gain a full understanding of what happened," said deputy
State Department spokesman Tom Casey. "She reiterated that the United States does everything it can to avoid such loss of life, in contrast
to the enemies of the Iraqi people who deliberately target civilians."

Rice and al-Maliki "agreed on the importance of working closely together in the time ahead on a transparent investigation," Casey added.

The 15-minute call came after Iraq's Interior Ministry said it had revoked the license of the firm, Blackwater USA, to work in the country, a
move that could severely curtail the ability of U.S. diplomats to operate outside the heavily fortified "Green Zone."

State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said Washington had not been informed of the cancellation of the license after the latest in
a series of incidents in which private contractors working for the United States have been accused of misdeeds.

There were conflicting accounts of the incident, in which, according to the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, a diplomatic convoy was attacked in
Baghdad, causing security guards to open fire.

McCormack had no information about any Iraqi laws Blackwater or its employees might be subject to, the chain of command its employees
answer to, or details of the company's contract with the State Department.
He said the probe is being conducted by the State Department's Bureau of Diplomatic Security with assistance from the U.S.-led coalition in
Iraq.

Blackwater, based in Moyock, N.C., is one of three private security firms employed by the department to protect its personnel in Iraq. The two
others, both of which are headquartered in the Washington, D.C., suburbs, are Dyncorp, based in Falls Church, Va., and Triple Canopy,
based in Herndon, Va.

The moves by the Bush administration appeared unlikely to forestall a congressional inquiry into not just Sunday's events but the
government's increasing reliance on the use of contractors in Iraq.

"The controversy over Blackwater is an unfortunate demonstration of the perils of excessive reliance on private security contractors," said
Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., chairman of the House Oversight Committee. He said his committee would hold hearings to determine "what
has happened and the extent of the damage to U.S. security interests."
Rep. Jan Schakowsky, D-Ill., who has long questioned Blackwater's role in Iraq, said the shootings will likely hurt the U.S. mission to rebuild
Iraq and said Congress should consider regulating the industry.

"Under what law are these individuals operating, and do the Iraqis have the authority to prosecute people for the crimes they're accused of
committing? It's a very murky area," said Schakowsky. "It's still not really clear whether they are eligible for prosecution from the Iraqi
government.

"These are the kinds of things that are very provocative that do impact our mission. It's unclear what exactly they're allowed to do. It's a very
dangerous and explosive situation that's created by these armed private security contractors — and particularly Blackwater."

Sen. John Warner, R-Va., the senior Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, struck a less contentious tone, noting the Iraqi
government relies heavily on contractors to provide services.

"Having visited now 10 times in Iraq, most recently just two or three weeks ago, I know full well the dependence of that nation upon
contractors — contractors who are trying to refurbish their seriously deteriorated oil production facilities, their power lines, their fresh water,"
Warner said.

"Any number of activities today in Iraq are performed by rather a courageous band of civilians who have gone over there and assumed the
same extraordinary risks that men and women in the armed forces are experiencing every day," he told reporters on the sidelines of a
conference in Williamsburg, Va.
___
Associated Press writers Sonja Barisic in Williamsburg, Va., and Mike Baker in Raleigh, N.C., contributed to this report


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