Monday, September 17, 2007

Private Armies Out

Blackwater Security who are under contract by the US State Department to operate in Iraq have had their licence cancelled by the Iraqi Government following an incident in which it killed 8 people and wounded 13 others.

There are 20,000 foreign private security workers in Iraq, making them the nation's second largest occupying force.

The first priority for troop withdrawals in Iraq should be for the removal of these private armies. Here is an article which spells out the depth of the problem.

The significance and menace of privatised military operations is spelt out in the book "Corporate Warriors" by P.W. Singer - here is the full book. The matter is also under investigation by the United Nations.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi Harry,

Sorry for this completely unrelated question, but what are your thoughts on Bob Wareing's de-selection and his decision to stand as an independent?

take care,

Mikael

Harry Barnes said...

Bob is 77. He failed to obtain enough nominations to gain automatic re-selection in the run up to the 2001 election, then he won the selection contest. But the writing was on the wall.

I like him, but feel that he became far too close to Milosevic. His wife was his close political companion, but died at a time that was difficult for him - in the late 90s or so. He seems to me to have decided at that time to hang on in Parliament because otherwise he felt he had no other life.

He is hard line Campaign Group and will probably feel very much at ease in running against New Labour as an Independent. It would not have been my style and he isn't too old to take up political blogging instead.

If he lives in his Constituency he could also have gone to its Constituency meetings to expose Twigg after the next election. And that would have given him a political mission that goes well beyond the next polling day. His only other option is to retain the seat. But I can't see that happening. I hope that he will have a re-think.

Anonymous said...

Thank you for your reply, Harry. It was both thoughtful and insightful. I didn't know any of the biographic details that you provided on Bob Wareing. Thank you.

Take care,

Mikael