Report: Obama using Blackwater for assassinations in Pakistan

Report: Obama using Blackwater for assassinations in Pakistan

The Obama administration is using mercenaries with the firm formerly known as Blackwater to kidnap and assassinate high value targets in Pakistan, according to a published report.

The program, operated out of the US Joint Special Operations Command, "is so 'compartmentalized' that senior figures within the Obama administration and the US military chain of command may not be aware of its existence," an unnamed source with direct knowledge of the program told The Nation reporter Jeremy Scahill.

Xe Services, formerly known as Blackwater, is also allegedly involved in intelligence collection for a drone bombing campaign in the country.

More...

I find the 'compartmentalized' argument truly unbelievable.

I'm just curious when is it that those who support Obama come to the realization that not a single material difference has emerged between this current administration and the last one?

MORE:

Blackwater's Secret War in Pakistan

At a covert forward operating base run by the US Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) in the Pakistani port city of Karachi, members of an elite division of Blackwater are at the center of a secret program in which they plan targeted assassinations of suspected Taliban and Al Qaeda operatives, "snatch and grabs" of high-value targets and other sensitive action inside and outside Pakistan, an investigation by The Nation has found. The Blackwater operatives also assist in gathering intelligence and help run a secret US military drone bombing campaign that runs parallel to the well-documented CIA predator strikes, according to a well-placed source within the US military intelligence apparatus.

The source, who has worked on covert US military programs for years, including in Afghanistan and Pakistan, has direct knowledge of Blackwater's involvement. He spoke to The Nation on condition of anonymity because the program is classified. The source said that the program is so "compartmentalized" that senior figures within the Obama administration and the US military chain of command may not be aware of its existence.

The White House did not return calls or email messages seeking comment for this story.

The article continues:

A former senior executive at Blackwater confirmed the military intelligence source's claim that the company is working in Pakistan for the CIA and JSOC, the premier counterterrorism and covert operations force within the military. He said that Blackwater is also working for the Pakistani government on a subcontract with an Islamabad-based security firm that puts US Blackwater operatives on the ground with Pakistani forces in counter-terrorism operations, including house raids and border interdictions, in the North-West Frontier Province and elsewhere in Pakistan. This arrangement, the former executive said, allows the Pakistani government to utilize former US Special Operations forces who now work for Blackwater while denying an official US military presence in the country. He also confirmed that Blackwater has a facility in Karachi and has personnel deployed elsewhere in Pakistan. The former executive spoke on condition of anonymity.

His account and that of the military intelligence source were borne out by a US military source who has knowledge of Special Forces actions in Pakistan and Afghanistan. When asked about Blackwater's covert work for JSOC in Pakistan, this source, who also asked for anonymity, told The Nation, "From my information that I have, that is absolutely correct," adding, "There's no question that's occurring."

Amazing stuff.

In addition to planning drone strikes and operations against suspected Al Qaeda and Taliban forces in Pakistan for both JSOC and the CIA, the Blackwater team in Karachi also helps plan missions for JSOC inside Uzbekistan against the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, according to the military intelligence source. Blackwater does not actually carry out the operations, he said, which are executed on the ground by JSOC forces. "That piqued my curiosity and really worries me because I don't know if you noticed but I was never told we are at war with Uzbekistan," he said. "So, did I miss something, did Rumsfeld come back into power?"

Fascinating article...

[edit on 24-11-2009 by loam]

Thanks for the update Loam. Xe has always been on the leading edge of corporate/governmental collusion to do the dirty work that governments can't be seen as doing. However, the paycheck trail leads right back to those involved. We have lost any and all sense of responsibility by using these hirelings. Rather than conquering nations, today's armed forces seem to be better at assassination and destabilizing governments rather than defeating enemy ground forces. The very nature of warfare has changed recently into something that skips across international borders and is done very much in secret. Even the warrior's code has been transmuted into something impersonal and without honor - to carry out "mission objectives", regardless of how many infants and innocents may get obliterated in the process. Bottom line here is that it is all about money, he who has the dollars can call up their very own army anywhere in the world. I'm sure this a real comfort to all the multi-national corporations who may rub the locals the wrong way. This can only encourage more outrageous and dangerous behavior on their behalf.
I don't expect this type of behavior to do anything but get worse and even larger in scale as we careen into an unknowable future. God only knows what attrocities have been committed so far, I'm sure My Lai would look like a minor blip in comparison.

Interesting that Blackwater has had to change it's name to Xe services.
They couldn't come up with a more bland and forgettable name if they tried. I'm sure they had to change the name so the Obama could claim he's making changes from the Bush regime, not using the same band of mercenaries for his illigal operations.

That's CHANGE for ya; change the names, but keep up the same old policeis.

I guess the "names have been changed to protect the innocent."

And in this case, "innocent" has been changed from it's original "guilty".

[edit on 24-11-2009 by FortAnthem]

was there ever any doubt that these things take place? It's the dirty part of our world that nobody likes to talk about but knows exists.

This is not surprising at all. When Obama was running for President, he used Blackwater as security when he visited Iraq. His personnal campaign paid for it then, now we all are paying for it now.

So, the US govt is trying to counter the rise of islamic militant fundamentalism in Central Asia? Glad to see my tax dollars well spent!

Quite a bit of foresight, fighting these nuts in Uzbekistan -- before that becomes the next big powder keg ready to go off.

Good job Obama!

star and flag

hey someone give Obama another nobel peace prize

Scary stuff. So according to Jeremy Scahill, who was today on democracynow, the Bush administration had since 2006 an agreement with the Pakistani government. This allowed U.S. forces and subcontractors to conduct special ops on Pakistani soil. No wonder, the Pakistanis are unhappy with their government.
Now, the number of Pakistani citizens killed by US predator drones has even increased under the Obama administration. The erosion of the Rule of Law continues and the only response from the White House when confronted with these crimes against humanity is silence.

Mercenaries constitute a public danger. It is only a question of time, when a sociopathic politician uses private contractors to target his opposition or civil rights leaders on US soil. Congress and the MSM either fail recognize this danger or are unwilling to act. If the people are also unwilling to act and fail to demand respect for human rights and accountability from their leaders, the future is bleak. It is like Frederic Douglas said: Power concedes nothing without demand. It never did and never will.

why is the compartmentalized thing so unbelievable to you? that's SOP.

reply to post by loam


Interesting.

Obama was allegedly going to be about "change" and "hope".

I sure have not seen any change from one Administration from the next, we sure hope he has a very Happy Thanksgiving.

I know what I'll be thankful for on Thanksgiving, thankful for the lying bastards in Washington D.C.

Whether the West victimizes other countries through organizations like Blackwater/Xe, or they victimize their own citizens through bypassing our Constitution and using Blackwater/Xe as cut-out Law Enforcement Officer's during hurricane relief like with Katrina to bypass Posse Comitatus, it's all the same.

It's all a shell game, Three-Card Monte, a conspiracy completely, to suck us dry of our money.

I see financial predators in Washington D.C., the Pentagon, and Department of Defense, and in each and every politician, Houdini found that out back when he was alive about the regular politics up to and including the White House.

The Secret Life of Houdini: The Making of America's First Superhero

Amazon Review :

"Kalush and Sloman appear to have raked through every known Houdini archive to produce the most comprehensive and controversial biography ever written about the man, with its contention that he was a spy who may have been murdered by a cult."-- Tony Barrell, "London Sunday Times"

The above review is pathetic, it used to be a lot longer, if I find my copy of it I will include in, meanwhile below is my Amazon Review.

SKL's Amazon Review :

Harry Houdini : The Man, The Myth, The Spy, The Secret Service Agent

A lot of people love reading about Harry Houdini the magician, the Handcuff King the escape artist but did you know that he was a spy & a Secret Service agent?

I can prove it with one book & a few well versed words here.

The book I am talking about is one I am just over half way through & it is entitled "The Secret Life of Houdini : The Making of a Superhero."

This book is awesome & I encourage everyone to read it and enjoy the story of Harry Houdini from beginning to end.

It tells about the man, the myth, the spy, the Secret Service agent who was a performer who made the world love him & his shows & continually conquered his every demon, including his own self loathing while continually re-creating himself for the world at large.

Yes this book still fits into this world of the wide web that is the internet.

The book is all about how all of Harry Houdini's having been a major instigator in World War I in the propaganda & success of America while Harry Houdini, or some may know him better as Ehrich Weiss, a Jewish man who changed his identity to fit better into the world and to better sell himself to the world as an entertainer at large for War World I in the rise of Germany the first time it came to power.

The fact that the book is from archival data and letters both from & to Harry Houdini is what makes this book so intriguing.

Please feel free to enjoy the book & I would love to hear anyone else's opinion & thoughts on this subject.

A lot of people do not know that the Secret Service was a spy agency at one time and was connected to the spy world like the C.I.A., N.S.A., D.I.A. & the rest of the alphabet Intelligent Agencies.

Harry Houdini taught our American Dough Boys how to escape from handcuffs, being tied in ropes, & how to escape from torpedoed ships by being on stage in an ampitheater & having actually being a teacher of the American military.

I highly suggest this book to anyone who's interested in Houdini, his thoughts on America, and as well the conspiracies back in his day and age.

Let's put it this way, if I had a trillion dollars, I would buy every copy I could get my hands on, and create a non-profit business on education, and give them all away to the people of the nation not connected to the bastards in power.

Like Houdini, I've discovered a lot of troubling things about the apparent way things are told to us, verses the reality of the situation of what really happens behind closed doors, in the fields of battle, and the hallways of power.

Look, they've updated their website, yet again.

Xe Services LLC

Or, go to Wikipedia for a good read.

Blackwater/Xe

Quote from : Blackwater/Xe

Xe Services LLC (pronounced /ˈzi/), still usually referred to as "Blackwater", is a private military company founded as Blackwater USA in 1997 by Erik Prince and Al Clark.

In October 2007, the company was renamed Blackwater Worldwide. Blackwater has a wide array of business divisions, subsidiaries, and spin-off corporations but the organization as a whole has courted much controversy.

Based in North Carolina, Xe operates a tactical training facility (36°27′N 76°12′W / 36.45°N 76.2°W / 36.45; -76.2) which the company claims is the world's largest, and at which it trains more than 40,000 people a year, mostly from US and other military and police services.

The training consists of military offensive and defensive operations, as well as smaller scale personal security.

The company announced on February 13, 2009, that it would operate under the new name "Xe".

In a memo sent to employees, President Gary Jackson wrote that the new name "reflects the change in company focus away from the business of providing private security."

A spokesman for the company stated that it feels the Blackwater name is too closely associated with the company's work in the occupation of Iraq.

Spokeswoman Anne Tyrrell said there was no meaning in the new name, which the company took over a year to arrive at in an internal search.

Xe is currently the largest of the US State Department's three private security contractors. Of the 987 contractors Xe provides, 744 are US citizens.

At least 90 percent of the company's revenue comes from government contracts, of which two-thirds are no-bid contracts.

Xe provided security services in Iraq to the United States federal government, particularly the Central Intelligence Agency on a contractual basis.

They no longer have a license to operate in Iraq: the new Iraqi government made multiple attempts to expel them from their country, and denied their application for an operating license in January 2009.

However, the company is still under contract with the State Department and some Xe personnel will likely remain working illegally in Iraq at least until September 2009.

Would you like their newsletter?

USA Training Newsletter

Or, maybe you just want to read my thoughts on the organization, before the change of Administration's and their quick and shady name change?

Blackwater : Right-Wing Conservative America, Whether You Like It Or Not...

...or how about after the current Adminstration took over...

Blackwater : Left-Wing Liberal America, & Shifting Alliance, Leading Because It's For Our Future...

Be sure and drop by ADVISOR's last thread on these guys, there's a video I linked in about the topic of this thread.

Blackwater...eh hem *cough* "Xe" recent developments.

Oh, and be sure to ask Santa for this DVD for Christmas.

State of Play

Amazon Review :

The superlative British miniseries becomes a smart, soap opera-free film courtesy of The Last King of Scotland's Kevin Macdonald.

His writers, including Tony Gilroy (the Bourne series) and Billy Ray (Breach), haven't simply condensed and Americanized the six-hour series--they've reinvented it.

Now set in Washington D.C., veteran journalist Cal McAffrey (Russell Crowe, replacing Brad Pitt, who dropped out over script changes) still collaborates with editor Cameron Lynne (a delectably imperious Helen Mirren) and junior reporter Della Frye (Rachel McAdams) on a story involving Cal's politico pal, Stephen Collins (Ben Affleck), but there's a new subtext behind their plunge into sex scandals and corporate malfeasance, since this State of Play also eulogizes old-school beat reporting, and in interviews, Macdonald has acknowledged the influence of newsprint classics like All the President's Men (the Watergate Hotel even shows up as a location).

So, while Cal and Della, the Globe’s blogger, try to determine whether the congressman’s aide Sonia (with whom he was having an affair) died at her own hands or the hands of another, they're also fighting for their careers and the survival of their ailing paper.

Stephen's political rival Senator Fergus (Jeff Daniels), does his best to stymie their efforts, but PR flack Dominic Foy (Jason Bateman) becomes a reluctant ally.

Though fans of the series may miss a few characters, like Cameron's son (played by James McAvoy in the BBC version), Oscar-winning documentarian-turned-filmmaker Macdonald remains true to its spirit.

Be sure to stay through the poignant end credits, during which he returns to his doc roots. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

State of Play


Based on a true story, re-written for America, it screams BLACKWATER.

Privatizing US Military: Blackwater, Xe, Triple Canopy, etc


[edit on 24-11-2009 by SpartanKingLeonidas]

Last time I checked, being at war meant that you are supposed to actually kill the bad guys. Do you suppose there were any top secret assassination attempts of Hitler and his high command during WWII?

The clerics who mastermind terrorist bombings are bad guys. They would have no compunction and would in fact delight in slaughtering your family, women and children included, if they could get away with it.

Taking these guys out saves lives. There is a reason the good Lord has allowed governments to maintain justice via violence if necessary. Some kinds of entrenched evil can not be removed any other way. Sorry to have reality slap you in the face.

Yeah...too bad Bush didn't employ that strategy to take Saddam Hussein out. Could have spared a million or so lives.

reply to post by SevenThunders


You seem to be missing a crucial point here. If we were not dicking around in their back yards, firing off missiles killing many innocent people for every single alleged Al Qaida / Taliban or other scary designated opponents, then we wouldn't have the troubles we are seeing today.

Taking these guys out saves lives

Are you freakin' kiddin' me?

What of the collateral damage - the innocent lives destroyed for every supposed bad guy they bag? Hell, they have even, going back over some reports, killed the same Al Qaida / Taliban leaders more than once, each time though with the same collateral damage.
Such a nice term isn't it - Collateral Damage - sanitized speak for dead people. Is it any wonder, given the amount of dead innocent people, that the anger and "Death to America" chants are growing in these places?

Edit to add. Your sig would lead one to believe that you are a Christian. As such, you seem to be missing a few of the commandments that your own "Good Lord" set forth. I seem to remember something about "Thou shalt not kill" being in there somewhere.
Using Religion in your call for death to others makes you no better than the mad clerics and crazy fundamentalists whose death you call for.

[edit on 25-11-2009 by Britguy]