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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| US 'to drop Blackwater in Iraq' | US 'to drop Blackwater in Iraq' |
| (30 minutes later) | |
| Blackwater should be dropped as the main private security contractor for US diplomats in Iraq, a US State Department panel has recommended. | Blackwater should be dropped as the main private security contractor for US diplomats in Iraq, a US State Department panel has recommended. |
| Its report, commissioned by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, says the company's contract should not be renewed when it expires next year. | Its report, commissioned by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, says the company's contract should not be renewed when it expires next year. |
| Ms Rice ordered the review after Blackwater guards killed 17 Iraqi civilians in Baghdad in September 2007. | Ms Rice ordered the review after Blackwater guards killed 17 Iraqi civilians in Baghdad in September 2007. |
| Five guards have been charged with manslaughter over the shootings. | Five guards have been charged with manslaughter over the shootings. |
| The incident triggered outrage in Iraq and led to a debate about the role there of private security companies - upon which the US relies heavily. | |
| A decision on the recommendation will be left to the incoming Obama administration, which will be in office when Blackwater's contract comes up for renewal. | A decision on the recommendation will be left to the incoming Obama administration, which will be in office when Blackwater's contract comes up for renewal. |
| Scrutiny | |
| Based in North Carolina, Blackwater was one of the first private security firms to work in Iraq following the US-led takeover. | |
| It provides guards and security for American and other diplomats in the country. | |
| But the company has been under intense scrutiny since its guards opened fire at a busy Baghdad intersection in September 2007, killing 17 Iraqi civilians. | |
| Blackwater says the guards' convoy came under attack from insurgents. | |
| Five of its employees have now been charged in the US with manslaughter and other offences, but the company itself has not faced charges. | |
| It is not clear how the US might replace Blackwater. | |
| But the report recommended that the State Department increased the presence of its Diplomatic Security Service in Iraq, the Associated Press news agency reported, citing an unidentified US official. |