Blackwater

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Group.png Blackwater  
(PMC) Sourcewatch WebsiteRdf-entity.pngRdf-icon.png
Blackwater.png
Formation1997
Founder• EP2.JPG Erik Prince
•  Al Clark
HeadquartersMcLean, Virginia, U.S.
Type•  private
•  military
•  PMC
•  Private Military Contractors
SloganElite Training. Trusted Protection.
Interest ofJeremy Scahill
Blackwater was a huge US-based private military contractor infamous for a string of scandals.

Blackwater was a private military company co-founded in 1997 by former Navy SEAL Erik Prince and Al Clark.[1] It operated as Blackwater USA and later Blackwater Worldwide. In Iraq they were reported to be twice as likely to use a weapon than other main contractors there.[2] Blackwater was - for nefarious reasons according to Wired[3] - "rebranded" as Academi in the 2010s after changing its name to "Xe" at first.

History

Former Navy SEAL Al Clark initially conceived of the idea for Blackwater, bringing it to Erik Prince who offered to fund the startup through The Prince Group.[4]

Blackwater Lodge and Training Center Inc. was incorporated on December 26, 1996 in Delaware.[5] The facility officially opened on May 15, 1998.[6] Clark left the company in 2000, citing "philosophical differences."

Xe Services LLC

After the number of scandals added up and brought a bad reputation to the name, the company was restructured and renamed Xe Services LLC in early 2009. Prince resigned as CEO in March 2009 and by the end of the year, was not involved with the day-to-day business of the company anymore.[citation needed]

Academi

In 2010, a group of private investors purchased Xe's North Carolina training facility and most likely secured the contracts Blackwater had. The name of the new company became Academi and it's Board of Directors included former Attorney General John Ashcroft, former White House Counsel and Vice Presidential Chief of Staff Jack Quinn, retired Admiral and former NSA Director Bobby Ray Inman, and Texas businessman Red McCombs, who was Chairman of the Board.[7][8] If this company can be separated from the legacy of Blackwater is a matter of debate, but scandals appear to have ceased thereafter.

Constellis

In early June 2014, Academi merged with Triple Canopy to form Constellis Holdings,[9] which subsequently acquired Constellis Group on June 6, 2014.[10] This resulted in Academi being brought under the same roof as a number of similar private military, security, and intelligence firms, including AMK9, Centerra Group, Edinburgh International, Gregg Protection Services, National Strategic Protective Services (NSPS), Olive Group, Omniplex, Pontaris, Strategic Social, and Tidewater Global Services (TGS).[11]

Mercenaries

The presence of mercenaries in Iraq first received widespread notice after scenes of the gruesome deaths of four Xe (then Blackwater) hired guns in Fallujah were televised worldwide. Blackwater was a Moyock, N.C. based "security consulting" firm founded in 1996 by former Navy SEAL Erik Prince. The company, according to the LA Times, has "the largest private military base in the world, a fleet of 20 aircraft and 20,000 soldiers at the ready"[12].

In 2002, the company won a five year navy contract worth $35.7 million to train ten thousand navy personnel in seizing ships. More recently it won a $21 million contract with the Pentagon in Iraq to provide personal security detail for CPA head Paul Bremer and other high-level officials, besides its numerous other private ones. The company had reportedly grown 600 percent since the beginning of the war. The firm charges its clients $1,500 to $2,000 a day for each mercenary.

Blackwater mostly recruited from the ranks of active-duty American special-forces units some of whom earn salaries that run as high as $1,000 a day. In March 2004, it hired 60 former Chilean commandos at a monthly salary of $4,000. May South Africans are also on its payroll. Armed with weapons ranging from M4 rifles to 20mm cannon on its helicopters, its men have engaged in active combat - sometimes with regular US forces.

Blackwater mercenaries were notorious for their gung ho attitude and their mistreatment of Iraqis. Even the military seems to be concerned about their behavior, since they are invariably seen as part of the occupying army. Robert Fisk reported on their behavior in The Independent as follows:[13]

Xe (Blackwater)'s thugs with guns now push and punch Iraqis who get in their way: Kurdish journalists twice walked out of a Bremer press conference because of their mistreatment by these men. Baghdad is alive with mysterious Westerners draped with hardware, shouting and abusing Iraqis in the street, drinking heavily in the city's poorly defended hotels. They have become, for ordinary Iraqis, the image of everything that is wrong with the West. We like to call them "contractors", but there is a disturbing increase in reports that mercenaries are shooting down innocent Iraqis with total impunity.

The firm drew attention again, when it was revealed in the Observer that a memo to its staff in Iraq stated that 'actually it is 'fun' to shoot some people.'

Academi also offers a psychological counselling programme to combat PTSD.

Secret contracts

Blackwater had a number of classified CIA contracts, according to the New York Times. In 2002, it won a classified contract to protect the CIA station in Kabul, Afghanistan.[14]

Assassination programme

In 2004 the CIA hired Blackwater as part of a program to assassinate top Al Qaeda figures[15] and also to manage transportation of high-value detainees within the CIA’s illegal secret prison system.[16]

The role of an outside contractor was one reason why incoming CIA director Leon E. Panetta sought a meeting in June 2009 to tell US Congress about the programme.[17]

Drug profits

Academi has made about hundreds of millions of dollars from US "counternarcotics" operations following the US invasion of Afghanistan, and the ensuing huge rise in opium production, leading to a record harvest in 2014.[18]

Information provided by former employees in litigation lawsuits

A former employee of Blackwater named 'John Doe No.1', in a declaration before the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia in 2009, claimed:[19]

  • that he is filing the declaration anonymously because of suspicious deaths of other people that wanted to provide information about the company
  • that Blackwater was not abiding by the terms of the contract with the State Department, even deceiving it
  • that Blackwater smuggled weapons into Iraq, having available a M-249 automatic squad weapon that was not authorized for use there (only M-4 and pistols were allowed by contract)
  • that unnecessary, unjustified deadly force was used multiple times, that Blackwater failed to report these incidents and when questioned about it, likely lied towards State Department officials, no assistance to the people that were shot on these occasions was given
  • that Blackwater kept an employee on duty who bragged about killing people in Iraq
  • circumstances like mentioned above were recorded via dash-cams and watched after duty, erasing the file directly afterwards

2007 - Department of State investigation

Shortly before the Nisour Square shoting in Baghdad that left 17 civilians dead, the State Department had sent a team to Iraq with the mandate of conducting a Program Management Review (PMR).[20][21] When the investigators were made aware of problems with one of the dining facilities they tried to clarify with the RSO office[22] and Blackwaters's Program Manager, Daniel Carroll. Carroll responded to the investigator Jean Richter that the compound in question (WPPS II Camp Baghdad) was technically not under the authority of the Department of State, therefore jurisdiction for the inquiry not existing and he: 

"accentuated this point by stating that he could 'kill me' at that very moment and no one could or would do anything about it as we were in Iraq".

After leaving Baghdad three days later Richter filed a report about the incident noting that: 

"it has become fully apparent to me that the management structures in place to manage and monitor our WPPS contracts in Iraq have become subservient to the contractor themselves. This occurrence has resulted in a situation where the oversight of these high profile and extremely lucrative contracts is merely superficial at best".[23]

2017 - Special Mission to Saudi Arabia

Around 9th November 2017 reports started to emerge that Academi mercenaries were arresting and torturing princes of the Royal Saudi Family in the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Riyadh.[24] In some cases it is alleged that money has been extorted, in others it was meant to remove people from their government position or circle of influence. International press started to report on the matter about two weeks later,[25][26][27][28] all relying on the reporting from the Daily Mail. While a spokesperson for Constellis, Academi's parent company, denied the claims, even having personnel in Saudi Arabia, in the same time frame Michel Aoun, Lebanon's president, said that it is Blackwater personnel who are 'securing' Lebanon's prime minister Saad Hariri after his detention there.[29] In 2018 the Daily Mail followed up with a report on the aftermath.[30]

People

Resources


 

Known members

6 of the 8 of the members already have pages here:

MemberDescription
John AshcroftUS Attorney General on 9/11
Cofer BlackUS deep state operative with a leading role in the CIA's kidnapping and torture
Bobby Ray InmanNSA director 1977-1981
Jack QuinnDemocratic megalobbyist
Robert Richer
Joseph SchmitzRevolving door between government official and Blackwater merecenaries

 

Related Document

TitleTypePublication dateAuthor(s)Description
File:Isenberg Private Military Contractors.pdfpaperJanuary 2009David Isenberg
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References

  1. ↑ Flintoff, C. (2007, September 25). Blackwater’s Prince Has GOP, Christian Group Ties. NPR. http://archive.today/2012.06.29-164147/http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=14659780
  2. ↑ "gained a reputation among Iraqis and even among American military personnel serving in Iraq as a company that flaunts an aggressive, quick-draw image that leads its security personnel to take excessively violent actions to protect the people they are paid to guard" — Blackwater Tops Firms in Iraq in Shooting Rate New York Times, September 27, 2007 - saved at Archive.org saved at Archive.is
  3. ↑ https://www.wired.com/2011/12/blackwater-rebrand-academi/
  4. ↑ Sizemore, B., & Kimberlin, J. (2006, July 24). Blackwater | Part 2: Profitable Patriotism. The Virginian-Pilot. http://archive.today/2023.11.17-164655/https://www.pilotonline.com/2006/07/24/blackwater-part-2-profitable-patriotism/
  5. ↑ Falconer, B. (2007, October 9). Making a Killing: A Blackwater Timeline. Mother Jones. https://web.archive.org/web/20231113073145/https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2007/10/making-killing-blackwater-timeline/
  6. ↑ Pelton, R. Y. (2010, November 30). An American Commando in Exile. Men’s Journal. http://archive.today/2011.06.14-181306/http://www.mensjournal.com/an-american-commando-in-exile/3
  7. ↑ http://web.archive.org/web/20201022053559/https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052970203405504576599123967308168
  8. ↑ http://web.archive.org/web/20111113122815/http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/03/09/blackwater-security-firm-gets-new-leaders-image-makeover
  9. ↑ Brannen, K. (2014, July 1). Blackwater’s Descendants Are Doing Just Fine. Foreign Policy. http://archive.today/2020.07.03-143441/https://foreignpolicy.com/2014/07/01/blackwaters-descendants-are-doing-just-fine/
  10. ↑ Constellis Holdings, Inc. Acquires Constellis Group, Inc. (2014, June 6). PR Newswire. https://web.archive.org/web/20140707032259/http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/constellis-holdings-inc-acquires-constellis-group-inc-262388561.html
  11. ↑ History. Constellis. Retrieved December 9, 2021, from http://archive.today/2021.12.09-124821/https://www.constellis.com/who-we-are/history/
  12. ↑ Jeremy Scahill, Our Mercenaries in Iraq, Los Angeles Times, 25 January 2007.
  13. ↑ https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/commentators/fisk/so-this-is-what-they-call-the-new-free-iraq-45793.html
  14. ↑ Mark Mazzetti, C.I.A. Sought Xe (Blackwater)’s Help to Kill Jihadists, New York Times, 19 August 2009.
  15. ↑ Mark Mazzetti, C.I.A. Sought Xe (Blackwater)’s Help to Kill Jihadists, New York Times, 19 August 2009.
  16. ↑ https://harpers.org/blog/2009/08/blackwaters-contracts/
  17. ↑ Mark Mazzetti, C.I.A. Sought Xe (Blackwater)’s Help to Kill Jihadists, New York Times, 19 August 2009.
  18. ↑ http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/mar/31/blackwater-gets-rich-afghanistan-drug-production
  19. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20100827233649/http://file.wikileaks.org/file/xe-blackwater-employee-declaration-2009.pdf
  20. ↑ http://www.samm.dsca.mil/glossary/program-management-review-pmr
  21. ↑ http://acqnotes.com/acqnote/careerfields/program-management-review
  22. ↑ http://encyclopedia.thefreedictionary.com/Regional+Security+Officer
  23. ↑ https://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/30/us/before-shooting-in-iraq-warning-on-blackwater.html
  24. ↑ https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/exclusive-senior-figures-tortured-and-beaten-saudi-purge-1489501498
  25. ↑ https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5108651/American-mercenaries-torturing-Saudi-princes.html
  26. ↑ https://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2017/11/23/blackwater-torturing-detained-saudi-princes-on-orders-of-new-crown-prince/
  27. ↑ https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2017/11/23/543176/Saudi-Arabia-US-torture
  28. ↑ https://www.news.com.au/world/middle-east/insider-claims-saudi-princes-and-billionaires-tortured-and-insulted-following-brutal-crackdown/news-story/b2855f800a8b6aa49af669ea7acdeec7
  29. ↑ https://www.alaraby.co.uk/english/news/2017/11/15/saudi-arabia-employing-blackwater-mercenaries-to-guard-hariri
  30. ↑ https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5489883/Saudi-graft-suspects-physically-abused-report.html
  31. ↑ Obituary information for Alfred (Al) Ray Clark. (2015). H.D. Oliver Funeral Apartments. http://archive.today/2023.11.13-075221/https://www.hdoliver.com/obituaries/Alfred-Al-Ray-Clark?obId=2019859
  32. ↑ Blackwater Executives Get Slap on Wrist in 6-Year Criminal Case saved at Archive.org saved at Archive.is
  33. ↑ Pelton, R. Y. (2010, November 30). An American Commando in Exile. Men’s Journal. http://archive.today/2011.06.14-181306/http://www.mensjournal.com/an-american-commando-in-exile/3
  34. ↑ Hodge, N. (2011, September 28). Contractor Tries to Shed Blackwater Past. Wall Street Journal. http://archive.today/2019.12.14-042510/https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052970203405504576599123967308168
  35. ↑ Xe (Blackwater), Cofer Black
  36. ↑ Mr. Robert Richer. (2014). United States Naval Academy. https://web.archive.org/web/20231117170027/https://www.usna.edu/LeadershipConference/Archive/2014/Panelist - Richer.php
  37. ↑ Smith, J. (2015). Gray Work: Confessions of an American Paramilitary Spy (p. 19). Harper Collins. https://www.amazon.ca/Gray-Work-Confessions-American-Paramilitary/dp/0062271695?asin=0062271695&revisionId=&format=4&depth=1
  38. ↑ Dana, S. (2017, March 2). Thomas Williams Joins Protection From Abuse. Protection from Abuse. http://archive.today/2023.06.13-085018/https://protectionfromabuse.org/thomas-williams-joins-protection-abuse/
  39. ↑ Ackerman, S. (2011, May 4). Blackwater’s New Ethics Chief: John Ashcroft. Wired. http://archive.today/2020.03.11-060247/https://www.wired.com/2011/05/blackwaters-new-ethics-chief-john-ashcroft/
  40. ↑ Admin Staff. Blackwater USA. Retrieved October 20, 2002, from https://web.archive.org/web/20021020051502/http://blackwaterusa.com/adminstaff.html
  41. ↑ David Lopez. Mission Six Zero. Retrieved August 30, 2023, from http://archive.today/2023.08.30-035148/https://missionsixzero.com/our-team/david-lopez/
  42. ↑ Moon, M. E., Gallagher, F., & Del Vecchio, J. M. (2015). Review of The Bremer Detail: Protecting The Most Threatened Man In The World. Journal of Strategic Security, 8(1-2), 86–89. https://www.jstor.org/stable/26465208
  43. ↑ Kirsch, N. (2021, December 22). Lewd Texts & Secret Missions: Inside Billionaire Michael Goguen’s Wild Life. The Daily Beast. http://archive.today/2021.12.24-114716/https://www.thedailybeast.com/inside-billionaire-michael-goguens-wild-life-in-whitefish-montana
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