Tuesday, August 21, 2007
CRS report - Private Security Contractors in Iraq: Background, Legal Status, and Other Issues
Report
The United States is relying heavily on private firms to supply a wide variety of services in Iraq, including security. From the information available in published sources, this apparently is the first time that the United States has depended on contractors to provide such extensive security in a hostile environment. In Iraq, private firms known as Private Security Companies (PSC) are currently providing security services such as the protection of individuals, nonmilitary transport convoys, buildings and other economic infrastructure, as well as the training of Iraqi police and military personnel.
The use of armed contractors raises several concerns for many Members, including transparency and accountability. Transparency issues include the lack of public information on the terms of their contracts, including their costs and the standards governing their hiring and performance, as well as the background and training of those hired under contract. The apparent lack of a practical means to hold contractors accountable under U.S. law for abuses and other transgressions, and the possibility that they could be prosecuted by foreign courts, is also a source of concern.
This report summarizes what is currently known about companies that provide personnel for security missions in Iraq and some sources of controversy surrounding them. A treatment of legal status and authorities follows, including an overview of relevant international law as well as Iraqi law, which currently consists primarily of Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) orders that remain in effect until superceded. The various possible means for prosecuting contractors under U.S. law in civilian or military courts are detailed, followed by a discussion of possible issues for Congress. This report will be updated as events warrant.
FULL REPORT: Congressional Research Service - "Private Security Contractors in Iraq: Background, Legal Status, and Other Issues,"
Labels: 10th Iraqi Army division, accountability, Congressional Research Service, contractors, federal law, international law, Iraqi war, Military law, private security companies, PSCs, security
Deputy sciences and technology minister kidnapped
Security
(Voices of Iraq) - Unknown gunmen kidnapped the undersecretary of the sciences and technology ministry on Sunday night while on his way back home in central Baghdad, a source from the ministry said. "Unidentified gunmen kidnapped Dr. Sameer Saleem al-Attar, undersecretary of sciences and technology ministry, and his driver while on his way back home in Arasat al-Hindiya region in central Baghdad and took him to an unknown place," the Director of the ministry's information department Abdul Amir Finjan told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI).
"The kidnappers phoned his family later and told them about the incident without demanding any ransom," he added. Al-Attar has a Ph.D. in Physics from the Baghdad University and he has been in his current post for more than two years. The man is married and has two children. No word was available from security authorities or the Iraqi government on the incident.
"The kidnappers phoned his family later and told them about the incident without demanding any ransom," he added. Al-Attar has a Ph.D. in Physics from the Baghdad University and he has been in his current post for more than two years. The man is married and has two children. No word was available from security authorities or the Iraqi government on the incident.
Labels: 10th Iraqi Army division, abduction, Arasat al-Hindiya, Baghdad, gunmen, r. Sameer Saleem al-Attar, sciences and technology ministry
Tuesday, July 03, 2007
Govt replaces top security commission in Basrah
Security
(AP) -- The Iraqi government replaced the top security commission in the country's second-largest city because of suspected links to Shiite militias as authorities prepare for British forces to reduce their presence in southern Iraq, officials said Monday. Basra, the capital of Iraq's oil-rich southern region, has been plagued by feuds between rival Shiite militias - blamed for killings of police officers and civilians as well as rocket and mortar attacks against British troops and Iraqi security forces.
The old security committee was disbanded after being accused of cooperating with some militias and other armed groups, said military and security officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly. The committee directs security efforts by the Iraqi military and police in the province.
Basra province police chief Maj. Gen. Abdul-Jalil Khalaf and Maj. Gen. Habib Taleb Abbas, head of the army's 10th Division, were named as the committee's new commanders, the officials said. The step takes place as Iraqi forces are preparing to take over security responsibility for Basra province in mid-August. Britain has withdrawn hundreds of troops from Iraq, leaving a force of about 5,500 based mainly on the fringes of Basra.
Last week, outgoing British Prime Minister Tony Blair said his country would withdraw even more troops within weeks, but he did not set a specific timetable. British and Iraqi forces have struggled to bring calm to Basra, about 340 miles southeast of Baghdad and the main route for Iraq's oil exports to the Persian Gulf. Attacks have increased against British troops in the province, killing seven in June.
In June 2006, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki declared a state of emergency in Basra following a rise in violence among mostly Shiite groups competing for power and infiltrating police and government institutions.
The old security committee was disbanded after being accused of cooperating with some militias and other armed groups, said military and security officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly. The committee directs security efforts by the Iraqi military and police in the province.
Basra province police chief Maj. Gen. Abdul-Jalil Khalaf and Maj. Gen. Habib Taleb Abbas, head of the army's 10th Division, were named as the committee's new commanders, the officials said. The step takes place as Iraqi forces are preparing to take over security responsibility for Basra province in mid-August. Britain has withdrawn hundreds of troops from Iraq, leaving a force of about 5,500 based mainly on the fringes of Basra.
Last week, outgoing British Prime Minister Tony Blair said his country would withdraw even more troops within weeks, but he did not set a specific timetable. British and Iraqi forces have struggled to bring calm to Basra, about 340 miles southeast of Baghdad and the main route for Iraq's oil exports to the Persian Gulf. Attacks have increased against British troops in the province, killing seven in June.
In June 2006, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki declared a state of emergency in Basra following a rise in violence among mostly Shiite groups competing for power and infiltrating police and government institutions.
Labels: 10th Iraqi Army division, Basra, Maj. Gen. Abdul-Jalil Khalaf, Maj. Gen. Habib Taleb Abbas, Shia militias
Friday, April 20, 2007
Iraq reviews Kuwait gas request
Gas, Kuwait
(MENAFN) - Iraq's Oil Minister said that the ministry is reviewing Kuwait's appeal for natural gas though Iraq's domestic market will be the priority, Gulf News reported. He went on to state that Iraq's central government will utilize the gas for supplying the country's power plants. A senior Kuwaiti Oil Ministry official announced that the Kuwaiti government will conduct further discussions with Iraqi officials in the near future on Kuwait's request and does not discard the possibility gas imports to start by the end of 2007. It is worth mentioning that the Kuwaiti government signed a preliminary contract with Iraq three years ago to purchase a maximum of 200 million cubic feet of Iraqi gas per day, though the agreement has not yet been fulfilled.
(MENAFN) - Iraq's Oil Minister said that the ministry is reviewing Kuwait's appeal for natural gas though Iraq's domestic market will be the priority, Gulf News reported. He went on to state that Iraq's central government will utilize the gas for supplying the country's power plants. A senior Kuwaiti Oil Ministry official announced that the Kuwaiti government will conduct further discussions with Iraqi officials in the near future on Kuwait's request and does not discard the possibility gas imports to start by the end of 2007. It is worth mentioning that the Kuwaiti government signed a preliminary contract with Iraq three years ago to purchase a maximum of 200 million cubic feet of Iraqi gas per day, though the agreement has not yet been fulfilled.
Labels: 10th Iraqi Army division, Gas, Kuwait
Monday, April 09, 2007
Brits hand over key base to Iraqis
Security
(AFP) - The British military today handed over a key base in the southern Iraqi city of Al-Basrah to the Iraqi army as part of its gradual withdrawal plans from the country. The military transferred the Shatt Al-Arab base, one of five occupied by the British military since the U.S.-led invasion in March 2003, to the 10th Iraqi Army division.
Iraqi army officials said at a ceremony marking the handover that their forces will soon take over other bases in and around Al-Basrah from the British military. Prime Minister Tony Blair said in February that Britain would begin withdrawing a quarter of its 7,000 troops in the coming months, although a recent pullout in Al-Basrah was described by a British commander as a repositioning in conjunction with a timetable.
Iraqi army officials said at a ceremony marking the handover that their forces will soon take over other bases in and around Al-Basrah from the British military. Prime Minister Tony Blair said in February that Britain would begin withdrawing a quarter of its 7,000 troops in the coming months, although a recent pullout in Al-Basrah was described by a British commander as a repositioning in conjunction with a timetable.
Labels: 10th Iraqi Army division, Basra, British base, Iraqi Army, Shatt al-Arab base
