Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Muqtada al-Sadr told the
government to ban all foreign security contractors.
BAGHDAD (AP) — The United States on Tuesday suspended all land travel by U.S. diplomats and other civilian officials in Iraq outside Baghdad’s heavily fortified Green Zone, amid mounting public outrage over the reported killing of civilians by the U.S. Embassy’s security provider Blackwater USA.
The move came even as the Iraqi government appeared to back down from statements Monday that it had permanently revoked Blackwater’s license and would order its 1,000 personnel to leave the country — depriving American diplomats of security protection essential to operating in Baghdad.
“We are not intending to stop them and revoke their license indefinitely, but we do need them to respect the law and the regulation here in Iraq,” government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh told CNN.
The U.S. order confines most American officials to a 3.5-square-mile area in the center of the city, meaning they cannot visit U.S.-funded construction sites or Iraqi officials elsewhere in the country except by helicopter. The notice did not say when the suspension would expire.
The Iraqi Cabinet decided Tuesday to review the status of all foreign security companies. Still, it was unclear how the dispute would play out, given the government’s need to appear resolute in defending national sovereignty while maintaining its relationship with Washington at a time when U.S. public support for the mission is faltering.
Polls show Gen. David Petraeus’ report to Congress and President Bush’s nationally televised address have had little impact on Americans’ distaste for the Iraq war and their desire to withdraw U.S. troops.
Petraeus, America’s top commander in Iraq, and Ryan Crocker, the top U.S. diplomat here, briefed the British government Tuesday on their recommendations to keep troop levels high.
Also Tuesday, three U.S. soldiers were killed following an explosion near their patrol northeast of Baghdad, the military said. Another soldier was killed in a vehicle accident in the northern province of Ninevah, the military said.
Al-Sadr’s response
Exploiting public rage over the killings of what police said were 11 civilians by Blackwater guards, anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr demanded that the government ban all 48,000 foreign security contractors.
Al-Sadr’s office in Najaf said the government should nullify contracts of all foreign security companies, branding them “criminal and intelligence firms.”
“This aggression would not have happened had it not been for the presence of the occupiers who brought these companies, most of whose members are criminals and ex-convicts in American and Western prisons,” the firebrand cleric said in a statement.
Al-Sadr insisted that the government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki prosecute those involved and ensure that families of the victims receive compensation.
There was no threat by al-Sadr to unleash his Mahdi Army militia in retaliation for the killings.
However, his statement was significant because it signaled al-Sadr’s intention to stir up anti-American sentiment in the wake of the weekend shootings and further undermine al-Maliki’s U.S.-backed government.
Many Iraqis, who have long viewed security contractors as mercenaries, dismissed Blackwater’s contention that its guards were attacked by armed insurgents and returned fire only to protect State Department personnel.
“We see the security firms ... doing whatever they want in the streets. They beat citizens and scorn them,” Baghdad resident Halim Mashkoor told AP Television News. “If such a thing happened in America or Britain, would the American president or American citizens accept it?”
Blackwater is among three private security firms employed by the State Department to protect employees in Iraq, and expelling it would create huge problems for U.S. government operations in this country.
Reviewing security
In a notice sent to Americans in Iraq, the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad said it had taken the step to review the security of its personnel and possible increased threats to those leaving the Green Zone while accompanied by such security details.
“In light of a serious security incident involving a U.S. embassy protective detail in the Mansour District of Baghdad, the embassy has suspended official U.S. government civilian ground movements outside the International Zone [IZ] and throughout Iraq,” the notice said.
“This suspension is in effect in order to assess mission security and procedures, as well as a possible increased threat to personnel traveling with security details outside the International Zone,” said the notice, a copy of which was provided to The Associated Press by the State Department in Washington.