Iraqis raise Blackwater death toll to 17

Iraqis raise Blackwater death toll to 17
By Richard Lardner - The Associated Press
Posted : Monday Oct 8, 2007 7:14:30 EDT

An official Iraqi investigation into a deadly shooting involving Blackwater USA guards raised the number of Iraqis killed to 17 and said the gunfire was not warranted and those involved should face trial, the government said.

The final results showed that convoys from the North Carolina-based security company did not come under direct or indirect fire, before the men shot up a key intersection.

“It was not hit even by a stone,” government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said Sunday in a statement.

A U.S.-Iraqi commission also met for the first time Sunday to review American security operations after the Sept. 16 shootings in which Blackwater guards are accused of opening fire on Iraqi civilians in a main square in Baghdad.

The panel is one of at least three investigations involving Americans. The Moyock, N.C., security company contends its employees came under fire first. The incident has caused outrage among Iraqis and calls for the rules governing those protecting American diplomats to be overhauled.

The Iraqi investigative committee, which was ordered by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, put the casualty toll at 17 killed and 23 wounded, giving a higher number than other estimates, and it found that seven cars were burned or damaged. It said the shootings amounted to a deliberate crime and recommended those involved be held legally accountable.


Rest of article at: http://www.navytimes.com/news/2007/10/ap_blackwater_071008/