Published on Friday, March 21, 2008 by ABC News
Blackwater ‘Blood Money’ Angers Iraqis
Two Iraqi Families of Victims Killed by Blackwater Guards Tell ABC News They’ve Refused Compensation From the Company

by Addel Faiq
At least two Iraqi families of victims killed by Blackwater security guards in September tell ABC News they have refused compensation offered by the company.

The father of a 9-year-old boy, who says his son was one of the 17 civilians killed when Blackwater guards, escorting a diplomatic convoy, opened fire at Baghdad’s Nisour Square on Sept. 16, says he is trying to file a lawsuit against the company. He told ABCNews.com that Blackwater offered him $20,000 through an Iraqi prosecutor, but he refused the money.

Another Iraqi who lost both his wife and son in the incident says he too has refused the company’s offer of compensation of $20,000 for each victim.

Adel Jabur Shamma, who was injured in the incident, says he was bed-ridden for six months after being shot in the thigh. He says he was given $10,000 by the Iraqi prosecutor who is mediating between the families and Blackwater, but that the amount isn’t nearly enough to cover his surgery. He says he took the money because he had no other choice.

While a federal grand jury in Washington, D.C. investigates the deaths, Blackwater has been operating behind the scenes in Iraq to offer condolence payments to survivors and families of the dead.

The company released a statement this afternoon saying: “At the request of U.S. Embassy Baghdad, Blackwater has reached out to the families of those killed or injured in Nisoor Square on September 16 as part of this condolence payment process. These are customary condolence payments, and are not an admission of guilt, but recognize that Iraq is an extremely dangerous place. When faced with an enemy intent on maximizing civilian casualties, innocent people will tragically be caught in the crossfire; when that happens, their suffering should not go unrecognized.”

Officials familiar with the case told ABCNews.com last month that Blackwater had resisted U.S. government demands that the company pay at least $100,000 per death, claiming the U.S. government itself hasn’t paid that much in similar situations.

As ABCNews.com has reported, the federal grand jury criminal investigation is focusing on two or three Blackwater guards who opened fire, claiming they perceived a threat. Other Blackwater guards have testified to federal agents, however, that they saw no such threat.

Several of the Iraqi families have already filed lawsuits against Blackwater in U.S. courts, alleging the security guards were guilty of “war crimes.”

http://www.abcnews.go.com/Blotter/story?id=4489251&page=1

At least you keep perservering with cutting and pasting. Definately not a quitter in that arena.

Your a patriot and a real American, Madisonman

I Loves me a good Falafel

thank you all for your support in my quest to place interesting articles out there for public comment

We are commenting..... and ours are being read because they don't have 843,000 words...

Sorry about your loss. And I am part of the "public". TYVM!

take it or leave it you can choose to do what you will and I will do what I do.

That is not in dispute... I just write my own words, is all.

Here we have a whole story geared to make people angry at blackwater without anything substancial to base a real opinion on. As i said in the last thread... It's kinda hard to get made at security guards for war crimes without hearing specifically what the war crimes were, and the situations that went along with the crimes as well as testimonies of the guards. I'm not disagreeing with you madison, we just need a bit more detail before getting angry. I'm not going to lie, i've heard a few conflicting stories on how Blackwater conducts their business. Some are good and some are bad. I'm just trying to point out that as a COMBAT veteran i know that even the most honest of mistakes can result in the deaths of unarmed people.

If you keep replying to the cut and paste....this will go on forever....

You seem like a smart, patriotic man. Your words might be better served in a thread you start. JMO.

and I share interesting articles worthy of comment and in the hopes of shedding some light on the unenlightened again you can take it or leave it or comment on it but it seems to me you would rather comment on myself rather than the well written articles I post. Its reaaly not about me Lilith I am not here for your approval nor will I adjust things to suit what you think a proper post should entail

Good for you!

We are all entitled to our opinions.