'Trophy' video exposes private security contractors shooting up Iraqis

[Barrett808]

'Trophy' video exposes private security contractors shooting up Iraqi drivers
By Sean Rayment, Defence Correspondent
(Filed: 27/11/2005)

A "trophy" video appearing to show security guards in Baghdad randomly shooting Iraqi civilians has sparked two investigations after it was posted on the internet, the Sunday Telegraph can reveal.

The video has sparked concern that private security companies, which are not subject to any form of regulation either in Britain or in Iraq, could be responsible for the deaths of hundreds of innocent Iraqis.

The video, which first appeared on a website that has been linked unofficially to Aegis Defence Services, contained four separate clips, in which security guards open fire with automatic rifles at civilian cars. All of the shooting incidents apparently took place on "route Irish", a road that links the airport to Baghdad.

The road has acquired the dubious distinction of being the most dangerous in the world because of the number of suicide attacks and ambushes carried out by insurgents against coalition troops. In one four-month period earlier this year it was the scene of 150 attacks.

In one of the videoed attacks, a Mercedes is fired on at a distance of several hundred yards before it crashes in to a civilian taxi. In the last clip, a white civilian car is raked with machine gun fire as it approaches an unidentified security company vehicle. Bullets can be seen hitting the vehicle before it comes to a slow stop.

(more)

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2005/11/27/wirq27.xml&sSheet=/news/2005/11/27/ixworld.html

[spindrifter]

1. But the very worst part of the article

is the last sentence. Aegis is under contract to the U.S.

[drdtroit]

5. The worst part is that these psychopaths

will be rejoining us in American society some day! :scared:

[greenleaf]

23. Well

at least America is getting a bit of a break at the moment.

[zann725]

61. Or worse..remain in Iraq at MegaBases (at OUR increased tax cost), due to

Contractors' high salaries...compared to regularly-paid "army" forces...as they are gradually reduced and moved out.

These guys (or some form therof) are there to stay (due to oil)...for a very LONGGGG time...War or no war.

[bahrbearian]

2. Justly ,honoring fallen soldiers?

[ovidsen]

3. The Internet is our friend.

Why is it not surprising that people who are so sadistic they shoot civilians for "sport", are so stupid they post proof of their crimes on the Web. For bragging rights, I suppose.

I hope this isn't true. If it is, I hope the self-styled preservers of the peace spend the rest of their days in a nice, comfy place. Guantanamo comes to mind. Or maybe Abu Ghraib.

[spindrifter]

4. The problem is

that they are probably only subject to prosecution under Iraqi law. Maybe someone saved the tapes. Maybe someone will be able to id. the culprits--if this is true--and maybe in some distant day, the relatives of Iraqi people who were shot at will be able to prosecute these lowest level scum.

[thebigidea]

10. nope, they have immunity in Iraq

just like the contractors involved in the prison torture. The doughy guys in the pics that we never got a name for or heard from again.

[oblivious]

24. I don't understand paragraph 2.

"...private security companies, which are not subject to any form of regulation either in Britain or in Iraq"

Does this mean that they also have a license to kill in the UK too, or just that they can't be charged in the UK for murders done in Iraq.

Either way it is pure evil at work and I don't think that either country can be said to be governed by the rule of law.

[leftchick]

6. Sick mutherfuckers. ... See "Private warrors" on PBS's Frontline

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/warriors/

<snip>

"Private Warriors" also explores a very different kind of contractor -- the private world of security teams that work for firms like Blackwater, Aegis, and Erinys. They provide armed protection for U.S. government officials, government offices, military installations and even military commanders.

"The Pentagon's increasing reliance on outsourcing military functions raises important questions about accountability and the chain of command," says Smith. Through conversations with top military commanders, policy planners, military experts, and contractors, "Private Warriors" explores some of the dangers in bringing in the private sector to prosecute the war.

Warns George Washington University Professor Steve Schooner, an expert on military contracting, "We have tens of thousands of armed contractors in Iraq defending the Green Zone, defending the military, defending contractors… But they're not part of the military command structure." Schooner suggests there can be trouble when private contractors carry weapons and have tactical responsibilities yet aren't getting the same information or direction. Peter Singer, a fellow at the Brookings Institution and author of "Corporate Warriors" agrees: "There's a bubbling resentment … and you're starting to sense a backlash from the military."

[alfredo]

8. I think there has already been incidents between our soldiers and

mercenaries.

If you are a mercenary you are not bound by the rules of engagement. You are an illegal combatant. You have no rights.

I wonder if corporate mercenaries would fall under bush's definition of illegal combatants?

[Barrett808]

27. So it seems -- mercenaries have claimed abuse at the hands of GIs n/t

[alfredo]

28. Mercenaries are the lowest of the low. If you kill for profit, you

deserve all the abuse you receive.

[RaleighNCDUer]

7. What do we do with them after the war?

The US used private naval contractors, called privateers, in the Revolution, the War of 1812, and the civil war. At the end of each war there was an upsurge in piracy as the former privateers continued to do what they did best - attack shipping for profit.

How is Blackwater any different?

[spindrifter]

9. There is some pretty sickening video

on the aegisIraq.co.uk website. It is the one that "belongs" to the employees, as noted in the link for this thread. The other bizarro thing is the comments these people are making among themselves on their website. Take good care of your trunk monkey, and he'll take good care of you. WTF?:puke:

[Eric J in MN]

51. Did you download it before they took it down?

Do you have a copy?

[pfitz59]

11. Sarajevo's sniper alley.....

I once read that wealthy individuals paid large sums of money to whack people along sniper alley. Same thing going on in Bahgdad? Wouldn't be surprised if Rummie or Perle or the other Chickenhawk slime didn't fire off a few shots themselves!

[teryang]

12. Private contractor armed forces not subject to discipline or law

What a bad policy. This is what Cheney wanted when he said we needed to "take the gloves off." This is a fascist policy that naturally leads to war crimes through lack of accountability.

[cantstandbush]

13. It should be a war crime to use private forces to kill innocents.

It's called glorified murder. If you can't hold these people responsible for killing innocents, then the US must do away with the death penalty within its territories and states.

[teryang]

14. What are armed forces without an enforceable code?

Gestapo? SS? Terrorists?

[spindrifter]

15. We are paying this company $293 million to

commit whatever unchecked atrocities they can ad lib. BUT, and this is a big BUT, this also may be a plant to grease the skids for Tony, as this 2004 Brookings piece

http://www.brookings.edu/views/op-ed/fellows/singer20040615.htm

snip...The contract is a case study in what not to do. To begin with, a core problem of the military outsourcing experience has been the lack of coordination, oversight and management from the government side. So outsourcing that very problem to another private company has a logic that would do only Kafka proud. In addition, it moves these companies further outside the bounds of public oversight.

snip...

The chief executive of Aegis, Tim Spicer, is a former British Army officer turned private warrior who titled his memoir "An Unorthodox Soldier." He is infamous in Britain for his role in the Sandline affair of 1998, in which a company he founded shipped 30 tons of arms to Sierra Leone in contravention of a United Nations arms embargo. His client in the case was described by Robin Cook, the British foreign minister, as "an Indian businessman, traveling on the passport of a dead Serb, awaiting extradition from Canada for alleged embezzlement from a bank in Thailand." When Mr. Spicer told the press that the British government had encouraged his operation, it nearly brought down Prime Minister Tony Blair.
snip...

The chief executive of Aegis, Tim Spicer, is a former British Army officer turned private warrior who titled his memoir "An Unorthodox Soldier." He is infamous in Britain for his role in the Sandline affair of 1998, in which a company he founded shipped 30 tons of arms to Sierra Leone in contravention of a United Nations arms embargo. His client in the case was described by Robin Cook, the British foreign minister, as "an Indian businessman, traveling on the passport of a dead Serb, awaiting extradition from Canada for alleged embezzlement from a bank in Thailand." When Mr. Spicer told the press that the British government had encouraged his operation, it nearly brought down Prime Minister Tony Blair.

snip...

:banghead:

[Shallah Kali]

16. Some articles about the mercs in Iraq

Private Military Contractors
A buyer's guide
http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/prem/200409/quirk

U.S. Took Eyes Off Mercenaries, $96M in Iraq, New Audits Find
http://newstandardnews.net/content/?action=show_item&itemid=1790

[spindrifter]

17. Thanks for the cites.

[daleo]

18. Postings on an internet site are supposedly enough to identify Zarqawi

We generally hear that some vague voice recording on an unknown website is proof enough that Zarqawi committed some atrocity. I suppose the same logic ought to work here.

"A spokesman for Aegis Defence Services, said: "There is nothing to indicate that these film clips are in any way connected to Aegis."

[spindrifter]

19. This is why I question

whether the real intent is to bring down Tony Bl*ir.

[BeHereNow]

20. Americans don't want to know.

I have no doubt that these atrocities are occuring.
The American people simply don't want to know.
Including many here at DU.
"Rah-Rah "for the left which is no different than the "right"
as far as delusional ideology at this point in our collective history.
AS IF the actions of the media darlings were actually going to
stop any of this?
Get a fucking clue people.
Consider that the very media talking heads you deplore and criticize
have focused only on the ONE person who is LEAST
likely to effect a change of any consequence while
silencing those who might.

Just my opinion,
BHN

[gmaki]

21. Anyone have a link to the video?

It must be somewhere out there.

[pnorman]

22. ""Refrain from posting anything which is detrimental to the company ....."

>
>
The video first appeared on the website www.aegisIraq.co.uk. The website states: "This site does not belong to Aegis Defence Ltd, it belongs to the men on the ground who are the heart and soul of the company." The clips have been removed.

The website also contains a message from Lt Col Spicer, which reads: "I am concerned about media interest in this site and I remind everyone of their contractual obligation not to speak to or assist the media without clearing it with the project management or Aegis London.

"Refrain from posting anything which is detrimental to the company since this could result in the loss or curtailment of our contract with resultant loss for everybody."
>
>

"Refrain from posting anything which is detrimental to the company ..." NOT refrain from this sort of conduct!! Is there no LIMIT to this sort of behaviour! Presumably, they're all card-carrying Christians, but they behave as though there's no such thing as Judgement Day!

pnorman

[Robeson]

25. Yeah, I caught that shit, too.....

...these guys compartmentalize like Nazis. Western civilization at its worst...

[Barrett808]

26. Probably "employees" don't even see this as "detrimental." n/t

[UpInArms]

29. 'Trophy' video exposes private security contractors shooting up Iraqi driv

'Trophy' video exposes private security contractors shooting up Iraqi drivers

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2005/11/27/wirq27.xml&sSheet=/news/2005/11/27/ixworld.html

A "trophy" video appearing to show security guards in Baghdad randomly shooting Iraqi civilians has sparked two investigations after it was posted on the internet, the Sunday Telegraph can reveal.

The video has sparked concern that private security companies, which are not subject to any form of regulation either in Britain or in Iraq, could be responsible for the deaths of hundreds of innocent Iraqis.

The video, which first appeared on a website that has been linked unofficially to Aegis Defence Services, contained four separate clips, in which security guards open fire with automatic rifles at civilian cars. All of the shooting incidents apparently took place on "route Irish", a road that links the airport to Baghdad.

<snip>

The Foreign Office has also confirmed that it is investigating the contents of the video in conjunction with Aegis, one of the biggest security companies operating in Iraq. The company was recently awarded a £220 million security contract in Iraq by the United States government. Aegis conducts a number of security duties and helped with the collection of ballot papers in the country's recent referendum

...much more...

[orpupilofnature57]

30. Aegis Security = Halliburton

[SpiralHawk]

31. Live by the hired gun - die by the hired gun

BushCo & Cronies making massive profits from munitions, oil, and mercenaries.

Throw the bums out.

[superconnected]

32. Murderers.

Think they'll be tried? Bet they aren't.

[ck4829]

33. Didn't Contractors once try a drive-by on American Troops too?

[Briar]

34. "The heart and soul" of the company?

Dark heart, rotten soul.

[sattahipdeep]

35. Spicer is investigating Aegis

The website also contains a message from Lt Col Spicer,
which reads: "I am concerned about media interest in this
site and I remind everyone of their contractual obligation
not to speak to or assist the media without clearing it with
the project management or Aegis London.

"Refrain from posting anything which is detrimental to the
company since this could result in the loss or curtailment of
our contract with resultant loss for everybody."

Last night a spokesman for the Foreign Office said: "Aegis
have assured us that there is nothing on the video to
suggest that it has anything to do with their company. This
is now a matter for the American authorities because Aegis
is under contract to the United States."

The clips have been removed.

[goforit]

40. Fascinating cover-up.

[bahrbearian]

36. Honoring the Fallen Soldiers ?

[goforit]

39. Yep!!...More evidence of bush's bull sh*t!!!

[Ian David]

37. The world's largest private army

Pratap Chatterjee
CorpWatch
06.24.04

The world's largest private army
Your tax dollars continue funding mercenary boondoggle in 51st state

A fortnight before Iraq is to be handed over to a new government, the world's largest private army is being set up by Lieutenant Colonel Tim Spicer, a former British commando who has been investigated for illegally smuggling arms and planning military offensives to support mining, oil, and gas operations around the world.

United States taxpayers will pay up to $293 million for a contract to Aegis Defence Services of London, a new company created by Spicer, to create an "integrator" or coordination hub for the security operation for every single reconstruction contractor and sub-contractor throughout Iraq, effectively creating a private military that can attack Iraqi protestors at any time anywhere in the country.

There are currently several dozen groups in Iraq that provide private security to both the military and the private sector, with more than 20,000 employees altogether. The companies include Erinys, a South African business, that has more than 15,000 local employees charged with guarding the oil pipelines; Armor Group, a British company that provides security to Bechtel and Halliburton; and North Carolina-based Blackwater Consulting, which provides everything from back-up helicopters to bodyguards for Paul Bremer, the American ambassador in charge of the occupation.

The military will pay all of Aegis' expenses, plus a pre-determined percentage of whatever they spend, which critics say is a license to over-bill. The company has also been asked to provide 75 close protection teams -- comprised of eight men each -- for the high-level staff of companies that are running the oil and gas fields, electricity, and water services in Iraq.

More:
http://www.workingforchange.com/article.cfm?ItemID=17179

[chat_noir]

47. Tim Spicer of Aegis

Tim Spicer's World

Military contracts are big game. And one of the most notorious hunters is a former British soldier whose past business ventures include violating a UN arms embargo in Sierra Leone and unwittingly triggering a coup in Papua New Guinea. His name is Tim Spicer, and in March his London-based company, Aegis Defense Services, bagged a $293 million contract from the Pentagon to protect US diplomats in Iraq.

One might think that the government would be wary of awarding such largesse to a man with a dubious background. But not only did the Pentagon have no idea who Spicer was when they gave his company a huge contract, they didn't seem to care when challenged about it.

Five Democratic senators, led by Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts, protested the Aegis contract on humanitarian grounds, urging the Pentagon to reconsider the deal in light of Spicer's background. He is, they noted, a man with a remarkable talent for entangling himself in scandal. In August, they asked Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to review the Spicer deal. In a response last month, the Army admitted that its contracting officer was unaware of trouble spots in Spicer's past, but it refused to reconsider the contract.

"It is significant that the British Ministry of Defense was apprised of our intention...and did not object or advise against the action. Moreover, neither Aegis nor Mr. Spicer are on the...list of parties excluded from Federal contracting," wrote Sandra Sieber, director of the Army Contracting Agency. "We therefore had no legal basis to deny the award to Aegis, which won the competition fairly based on the rules and criteria established by our solicitation."

http://www.thenation.com/doc/20050110/ackerman


Foreign Office quizzed Tim Spicer over coup plot

Britain's most notorious mercenary, Colonel Tim Spicer, was called into the Foreign Office to discuss the alleged coup in Equatorial Guinea more than a month before the illegal putsch attempt, The Observer can reveal today.
Spicer was quizzed by a senior Foreign Office official in early February, after the government received intelligence reports on 29 January detailing preparations for the planned coup in the oil-rich west African state. The reports specifically mentioned a British military firm formerly connected to Spicer.

The former Scots Guards officer told officials he had no knowledge of any plans to overthrow President Teodoro Obiang. The disclosure that Straw had seen intelligence naming a British company in relation to the illegal coup is in marked contrast to the original categorical assertions by his officials that the government had no prior knowledge of the plans.

Spicer is an old friend of Simon Mann, the former SAS captain who is in jail in Zimbabwe after being accused of masterminding the plot. Sir Mark Thatcher is also under arrest in South Africa after being accused of funding the alleged plot.

http://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,6903,1366901,00.html

Give War a Chance: the Life and Times of Tim Spicer

http://www.corpwatch.org/article.php?id=11361


http://www.google.com/search?q=Tim+Spicer&hl=en&lr=&safe=off&rls=HPIC,HPIC:2005-21,HPIC:en&start=10&sa=N

[goforit]

38. Hiring these over priced security firms is a SLAP to our armed services!

And Bush deserves every bit of their high priced sloppy reputation.

Can't hide from hidden cameras buckos!!!

[Ian David]

49. Can we start a mercenary company of all gay soldiers?

Wouldn't it be ironic if they get discharged under Don't Ask Don't Tell, only to come back as "private contractors" make ten times the money they made in the army?

[mirandapriestly]

41. There is also one where they are raping a Iraqi woman

I have seen it, it is horrible. I am so ashamed to be an American

[leQ]

42. no wonder the elections have produced what the bushies wanted

"helped with the collection of ballot papers in the country's recent referendum" .... no wonder the bushies got the election results they wanted.

[Miss Chybil]

43. Humans.

What pigs. Nope, sorry, pigs are better... What vile piles of ambulatory cellular structures filled with feces and urine.

[Journeyman]

44. And there was dismay when Iraqis strung up four on a bridge. . .

gutted them like stockyard beasts and set them ablaze. Falluja was destroyed in retaliation for that brutality, though no one's made clear what atrocity was then committed to even the score against Falluja's oppressors. War of attrition . . . the worst sort of madness. . .

[Blue_Tires]

45. Blackwater again

i wonder how much stuff is going on that never gets reported

[Fleshdancer]

46. link to the video....

http://bareknucklepolitics.com/?p=345

[goforit]

48. Interesting

[Eric J in MN]

52. Thanks for telling us where to watch the video (nt)

nt

[Moderator]

54. kick

[Clara T]

50. Surprising?

No. Just disgusting and affirms what we know is happening daily. How can any in the Congress avoid these recurring stories and not demand immediate withdrawal?

[Protagoras]

53. The Paralax View

anyone? anyone?

[Thom Little]

55. 'Trophy video' under investigation (mercenary murders in Iraq)

A video posted on the Internet that appears to show private security contractors in Iraq shooting at Iraqi citizens is being investigated by British officials. The Sunday Telegraph reported that both the British Foreign Office and the company connected to the video, Aegis Defense Services, have launched investigations into the video.

The video first appeared on the site www.aegisIraq.co.uk which carries the disclaimer that it is not an official site of Aegis, but "belongs to the men on the ground who are the heart and soul of the company." Aegis, which was recently awarded a multimillion-dollar contract by the US government to provide security in Iraq, was started in 2002 by a former Scots Guard officer, Lt. Col. Tim Spicer.

In one of the videoed attacks, a Mercedes is fired on at a distance of several hundred yards before it crashes in to a civilian taxi. In the last clip, a white civilian car is raked with machine gun fire as it approaches an unidentified security company vehicle. Bullets can be seen hitting the vehicle before it comes to a slow stop.

There are no clues as to the shooter but either a Scottish or Irish accent can be heard in at least one of the clips above Elvis Presley's Mystery Train, the music which accompanies the video.

Private security contractors in Iraq operate under the same rules as the US military, and cannot be prosecuted by Iraqi officials for use of lethal force.


http://csmonitor.com/2005/1128/dailyUpdate.html

[dutchdemocrat]

56. The video is online here....

http://chris-floyd.com/fallujah/contract/

[pinniped]

57. If the Iraqis are sovereign they should be able to prosecute anyone...

operating in their sovereign country.

--Private security contractors in Iraq operate under the same rules as the US military, and cannot be prosecuted by Iraqi officials for use of lethal force.--

[Nomad559]

58. Another video link

http://www.flurl.com/uploaded/Bareknucklepoliticscom_EXCLUSIVE_10122.html

[Journeyman]

59. Are the mercenaries accountable to US military law? . . .

Or are they simply a force and law unto themselves? The Iraqis can't prosecute them for use of lethal force, but does anything restrain them? Or have we simply replaced Saddam with the chaos of hell?

[It was not a pretzel]

60. OMG

That is probably the sickest thing I've seen. I'd say that these people should be lined up against a wall but that would be too good for them.

Strip them naked and march them through Fallujah with a sign around their necks "I kill ragheads for sport".....let's see what happens then.

These people are the EXACTLY THE SAME as the worst of the SS who cleared ghettos and who shot jews for fun.

[Nomad559]

62. Another video

Suicide Bombers?
http://www.flurl.com/uploaded/failed_svbied_3340.html

From here
http://www.moonofalabama.org/2005/11/another_video.html#more

[Barrett808]

64. So did they fire a tank round into the wounded guy's car?

I'm not entirely sure what happened in this video, but it sure doesn't look good.

[oblivious]

63. Whoa! If there was ever any doubt about who the terrorists in Iraq are.

Let this video finally clear it up. US and UK forces and contractors are in Iraq to inflict terror and death upon the Iraqi people. The Iraqi government, elections, constitution are a fraud. Foreign terrorists from the US and UK are able to kill at will and the Iraqi government is not allowed to stop them.

Sick, evil bastards.