Armed guards who once worked for the defense contracting company Blackwater Worldwide — now renamed “Xe” — will remain in Iraq much longer than was previously reported, government officials told the AP Monday. Xe guards will continue work in Southern Baghdad and the company’s aviation wing will continue to provide air security for U.S. diplomats through September. After a group of Blackwater guards killed 17 Iraqi civilians in late 2007, the Iraqi government refused to renew Blackwater’s license to operate in Iraq. Last month, the State Department announced that it would replace Xe with Triple Canopy as its primary defense contractor in Iraq. But these statements by government officials show that the change is taking longer than once thought. (AP)A California federal judge said Monday that he will review records of FBI investigations into southern California Muslim groups who claim they were spied on inappropriately. As part of a three-year court battle by the ACLU and the Muslim groups, Judge Cormac Carney ordered the FBI to turn over more than 100 pages of evidence and electronic surveillance information that the agency has against the 11 Muslim groups. Upon review, Carney will decide whether the documents should be released to the public or protected by federal law. (LA Times)
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://talkingpointsmemo.com/?p=143614