Blackwater And The CIA

Prince in the tactical-operations center at a company base in Kabul.
Photograph by Adam Ferguson. Photo from Vanity Fair

Blackwater Guards Tied to Secret Raids by the C.I.A. -- New York Times

WASHINGTON — Private security guards from Blackwater Worldwide participated in some of the C.I.A.’s most sensitive activities — clandestine raids with agency officers against people suspected of being insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan and the transporting of detainees, according to former company employees and intelligence officials.

The raids against suspects occurred on an almost nightly basis during the height of the Iraqi insurgency from 2004 to 2006, with Blackwater personnel playing central roles in what company insiders called “snatch and grab” operations, the former employees and current and former intelligence officers said.

Read more ....

Update: Blackwater Tied to Clandestine CIA Raids -- Washington Post

My Comment: The New York Times (and others) are a little bit late to the show .... Vanity Fair did a complete profile (and revelation of Blackwater's ties to the CIA) last week. That link is here.

But the New York Times still provides a few more details, especially on Blackwater's missions with CIA hunter killer teams in Iraq from 2004 to 2006.