‘Pentagon’ Archives
A U.S. Force of 300,000 to 360,000 Supporting the Iraq War?
Writer Don Monkerud adds up the numbers of US troops and contractors in Iraq for tompaine.org: + First he takes the high estimate of 120,000 contractors from the Associated Press. + Then adds the currently reported total U.S. military in Iraq at 145,000. + Plus another 20,000 for President Bush's surge strategy. THAT ADDS UP TO: 285,000. THEN [...]
American Contractor Claims he was Tortured by U.S. in Iraq: ‘My Name Used to Be 200343’
by David Phinney April 5, 2007 -- A year ago, Donald Vance learned what its like to be falsely accused by the U.S. military of aiding terrorists. He was held without charge for more than three months in a high-security prison in Iraq, and interrogated daily after sleepless nights without legal counsel or even a phone call to his family. On [...]
Slap on the Hands: List of Iraq-Related Contractors Receiving Penalties
by David Phinney March 21, 2007 -- Government investigators told the Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday that they were focusing on debarment and suspensions of individuals and companies as an approach to punishing wrongdoing by contractors in Iraq. To Date: 14 individuals and companies have been suspended from future US government [...]
‘Human Trafficking is Slavery’
Even by US-Funded Contractors in Iraq
....And US-funded contractors taking away passports from low-paid migrant workers in Iraq is a crime under US law. That's a red flag indication of labor trafficking. The Pentagon found the practice is/was widespread under KBR..... Why wasn't any subcontractor busted? This is a very important question.... read on. (more…)
‘Ghost Soldiers’ Fill Iraqi Military and Police Forces
No one knows how many police officers trained on the US dime or Iraqi soldiers remain in the field, and logistics -- those things having to do with supplies, maintenance, and transport -- is a mess, according to Charles J. Hanley with the Associated Press. The Pentagon said Iraq's defense and interior ministers also are aware of "ghost" soldiers [...]
A Billion Here, a Billion There….
It all adds up $10 Billion Missing: Cash intended for the reconstruction effort in Iraq has been misplaced, squandered or otherwise lost through sloppy bookkeeping, job delays and bloated expenses. Sometimes work was just paid for, but never performed. How Much Cash Recovered? About $18 million. Government investigators made those admissions made [...]
Factoids: Concerning Management of Iraq
FASCINATING ASSERTIONS: Made by a former US State Department advisor to the Iraqi Interior Ministry and reconstruction team, Marshall Adame: 1) With the exception of the British, Italians, Japanese and very few others, the US picked up the tab on other coalition forces. KBR/Halliburton has provided much of the logistics support, food and camps [...]
War Costs: Who’s Counting?
Defense Contracting in Iraq: The non-partisan Congressional Research Service gives the lowdown on contracting in Iraq as we know it today."The Department of Defense is the largest agency in the federal government. It obligated nearly $270 billion on contracts for goods and services in FY2005 -- an 88 percent increase over the amount obligated in [...]
Afterburn: Halliburton Feels Dubai Heat
The news media explores the motive: Is Halliburton CEO Dave Lesar opening a new headquarters office in Dubai as a quick exit strategy from the political heat? Halliburton Watch: Charlie Cray's critical eye seeps into the coverage. "Halliburton is moving to UAE at a time when it is being investigated in the U.S. for bribery, bid rigging, defrauding [...]
Halliburton Packs its Bags for Dubai
Halliburton, which rocketed to being the sixth largest US Defense contractor during the war in Iraq, is opening a corporate headquarters in Dubai of the United Arab Emirates. The engineering and oil services giant claims that a change of scene will better position it for new business in the oil-rich region. Reuters broke the story on Sunday. AND [...]
