Team Infidel
Forum Spin Doctor
Baltimore Sun
October 27, 2008
NAIROBI, Kenya--Blackwater Worldwide and other private security firms - some with a reputation for being quick on the trigger in Iraq - are joining the battle against pirates active in one of the world's most important shipping lanes off the coast of Somalia. The growing interest among merchant fleets to hire their own firepower is encouraged by the Navy and represents a new and potentially lucrative market for security firms scaling back operations in Iraq. But some maritime organizations said that armed guards could increase the danger to ships' crews or that overzealous contractors might accidentally fire on fishermen. The record in Iraq of security companies such as Blackwater, which is being investigated for its role in the fatal shooting of 17 Iraqi civilians in 2007, raises concerns about unregulated activity and possible legal wrangles.
October 27, 2008
NAIROBI, Kenya--Blackwater Worldwide and other private security firms - some with a reputation for being quick on the trigger in Iraq - are joining the battle against pirates active in one of the world's most important shipping lanes off the coast of Somalia. The growing interest among merchant fleets to hire their own firepower is encouraged by the Navy and represents a new and potentially lucrative market for security firms scaling back operations in Iraq. But some maritime organizations said that armed guards could increase the danger to ships' crews or that overzealous contractors might accidentally fire on fishermen. The record in Iraq of security companies such as Blackwater, which is being investigated for its role in the fatal shooting of 17 Iraqi civilians in 2007, raises concerns about unregulated activity and possible legal wrangles.