Blackwater radio logs contend incoming gunfire

WASHINGTON - Radio logs from a deadly 2007 shooting in Baghdad contradict U.S. government claims that Blackwater Worldwide security guards were unprovoked when they killed 14 Iraqi civilians.

Five guards face manslaughter and weapons charges for their roles in the shootings. A sixth has pleaded guilty. Prosecutors said the men unleashed a gruesome attack on unarmed Iraqis, including women, children and people trying to escape.

Blackwater communication logs from the Sept. 16, 2007, shooting suggest otherwise. The logs, turned over to prosecutors, describe a hectic eight minutes in which the guards repeatedly reported incoming gunfire from insurgents and Iraqi police. Copies of the documents were obtained by The Associated Press.

Because Blackwater guards were authorized to fire in self-defense, any evidence their convoy was attacked will make it harder for the Justice Department to prove they acted unlawfully.

The logs, which document radio traffic heard by the company’s dispatch center inside the U.S.-controlled Green Zone, show that the Blackwater convoy known as Raven 23 reported taking small arms fire from insurgents within one minute of shutting down traffic in Baghdad’s Nisoor Square.

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Blackwater radio logs contend incoming gunfire

Ladies and Gentlemen, I would bet everything I have on what I believe to be a truth and a fact. These Blackwater contractors did NOT go crazy, they did NOT open fire on *innocent* civilians and they did NOT commit acts of murder upon innocent Iraqis.

These contractors, and our troops face an enemy that is NOT easily identifiable. We are basically fighting a *civilian* army, an insurgency, and they are NOT uniformed. It is damned near impossible to tell who is who, and at the risk of once again being labeled a racist by those that have NEVER been there, in the heat of combat, ALL of these people look the same!

Evidence of fire fight
It’s unclear why Iraqi police would fire on the Blackwater convoy. Prosecutors could argue the police fired because they believed Blackwater was attacking civilians. It also is common for insurgents to dress as Iraqi police or military officials.

And for those that may not know, not only do insurgents dress as Iraqi police, REAL Iraqi police are seriously infiltrated with radical insurgents.

One other fact that has been mentioned in previous stories that bears repeating here is this, the insurgents have, and WILL, hide behind innocent men, women and children when they open fire on OUR troops. It’s called using *human shields*, and it is THE most cowardly act that any cretin could employ.

But if you look at it from the insurgents side, it’s a great PR ploy. If civilians, non-combatants, get killed, and our guys, military or contractors are the ones that did the killing while engaged in a gunfight WITH the insurgents, WE come out looking like the bad guys, and the *innocent freedom fighters* win the PR battle in the Arab world.

There will always be *collateral damage* in combat, it’s the nature of the beast. It is my sincere belief that the Blackwater guys were being fired upon, from this very crowd of *civilians* and supposed Iraqi police. It is my sincere belief that these guys acted in exactly the correct manner with an almost perfect response.

Anyone that would argue otherwise has, as I said, NEVER been there. Never worn the uniform, never led in command and never put their ass on the line for this nation!