After an unauthorized shootout happened in Iraq, the country has chosen to cancel the license of the private security firm, Blackwater USA.
The Iraqi interior ministry said the North Carolina based firm was banned from operating in Iraq after receiving notification that eight civilians died in the crossfire.
The Blackwater workers, who were contracted by the US State Department, appeared to have opened fire after coming under attack in Baghdad on Sunday. The company’s security guards were said to have fired at random citizens, wounding an additional thirteen people.
Blackwater workers are known to be heavily armed, however some are not properly trained and some not accountable except to their employers. Iraq’s interior ministry director of operations, Maj Gen Abdul Karim Khalaf, stated that they would prosecute any foreign contractors found to have used excessive force.
All Blackwater employees and other personnel have been told to leave Iraq immediately, with the exception of the men involved in the shootout. Iraq will conduct a criminal investigation against the men who committed the crime, as they will have to stand trial.
A spokeswoman for the US embassy in Baghdad later confirmed there had been a car bomb close by and that they had been shot at first, and that is why they reacted so viciously.
Blackwater USA has not yet released any statements.
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