Iraqis reach settlement over deaths with Blackwater over an incident which occured in 2007 in Baghdad and led to the death of at least 14 civilians.
The Xe security firm which is better known as Blackwater has reached a settlement in seven lawsuits filed against the contractor by families of Iraqis killed during what the suits called “senseless slaughter” by Blackwater guards.
The news of the settlement came a week after a federal judge dismissed the manslaughter charges against five Blackwater guards charged with killing at least 14 civilians in Baghdad Nisoor Square in September .
Iraq was enraged by the killings in which some victims were shot dead while they were trying to run away. The already weak bond between the Iraqi people and the American army got worse after the incident which led to Iraq banning Blackwater, which has changed its name to Xe.
Two of the lawsuits sought damages against Blackwater and its founder, Erik Prince, in the Nisoor Square shootings. Settlement terms were not released.
Other suits in the settlement involved Blackwater shootings in Baghdad and Hillah, Iraq, in 2006 and 2007.
A wounded victim, Sami Hawas Hamoud Abu al-Iz, told The Associated Press that Blackwater offered $100,000 to each family of a person who died, and $30,000 to those wounded. He said plaintiffs’ lawyers told victims they might not receive anything if they did not agree to a settlement.
The lawsuits alleged that Blackwater “fostered a culture of lawlessness amongst its employees.”
The suits also alleged that some Blackwater guards were “chemically influenced” by steroids and other “judgment-altering substances.”
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