US soldiers: Blackwater attacked fleeing Iraqi civilian

October 13, 2007
US soldiers: Blackwater attacked fleeing Iraqi civilian

The Blackwater security forces that opened fire on a public square in Baghdad last month,
leaving 17 dead, attacked fleeing Iraqi civilians in a "criminal event," according to American
soldiers on the scene just minutes after the incident. News of the Army report comes just a day
after the families of three Iraqis killed in the September 16 incident, along with another Iraqi
man who was injured, filed a lawsuit against Blackwater in US federal court. The fallout over the
incident has made it increasingly difficult for contractors to operate in Iraq, and also
Afghanistan.

The Washington Post says that according to their report, the US soldiers – after
investigations at the square and interviews with witnesses and Iraqi police – found no
evidence that any Iraqis had fired weapons and concluded that there was "no enemy activity
involved." They did find evidence, however, that indicated Blackwater contractors fired on
civilian vehicles fleeing the square.