A US court decision on Thursday to drop charges against five Blackwater security guards accused of the deaths has unleashed anger in Baghdad.

Human Rights Minister Wejdan Mikhail told AFP she was "astonished" by the decision to dismiss the criminal charges against the guards.

"There was so much work done to prosecute these people and to take this case into court and I don't understand why the judge took this decision," she said.

Government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said "the Iraqi government has started to take the necessary measures to bring Blackwater to justice for the killing of 17 Iraqi citizens."

He also called in his statement for the US Justice Department to appeal the decision.

Asked later by state-funded broadcaster Al-Iraqiya what specific measures were being taken, he replied: "We will use all possible means and our relations with the United States to prosecute the criminals from this company (because) a real crime has been committed.

"The Iraqi government has put all of its institutions to work. ... We will not forget the victims' blood."

Earlier, Dabbagh said an Iraqi investigation had shown that the guards were responsible for the deaths of the civilians.

US Federal Judge Ricardo Urbina dismissed the charges against the five, saying prosecutors violated their rights by using incriminating statements they had made under immunity during a State Department probe.

The case was among the most sensational that sought to hold Blackwater employees accountable for what was seen as a culture of lawlessness and a lack of accountability as the company operated in Iraq.

The guards, who had been part of a convoy of armoured vehicles, had been charged with killing 14 unarmed Iraqi civilians and wounding 18 others during an unprovoked attack at a busy Baghdad roundabout using guns and grenades.

Iraq says 17 people were killed.

"One of them has said what happened in Nisur Square, how they killed innocent Iraqi people that were just in their cars without any weapons," Mikhail said. "I am very astonished and I am waiting for the US embassy to give me the judge's decision (in full)."

"What happened was very bad, because so many innocent Iraqi people -- young, students -- were shot by someone who liked to shoot unarmed people."

Mikhail said she requested a meeting with US embassy officials in Baghdad. The embassy did not immediately confirm that the meeting would take place or, if it did, who it would involve.

The judge's ruling was welcomed by Blackwater chief executive Joseph Yorio, who said: "The company supports the judge's decision to dismiss the charges."

"From the beginning, Xe (Blackwater) has stood behind the hundreds of brave men who put themselves in harm's way to protect American diplomats working in Baghdad and other combat zones in Iraq."

The firm renamed itself Xe after the Iraqi government banned it last January over the killings.

Foreign security teams in Iraq long operated in a legal grey area, but under a military accord signed with Washington in November 2008, Baghdad won a concession to lift the immunity to prosecution previously extended to US security contractors.

Ordinary Iraqis expressed anger at Urbina's ruling.

"Dropping the charges against those guards disrespects the lives of the innocents who were killed," said Abu Uday, a university professor who did not want to give his first name.

Blackwater ended its operations in Iraq in May, after the US State Department refused to renew annual its contracts.

The company first came under scrutiny on March 31, 2004, when four of its employees were killed by an angry mob in Fallujah, then a Sunni Arab insurgent stronghold.

Headquartered in North Carolina, Blackwater was one of the largest security firms operating in Iraq with about 1,000 staff, and had been employed to protect US government personnel since the 2003 invasion.

earlier related report
Iraq expresses astonishment over dropping of Blackwater case
Baghdad (AFP) Jan 1, 2010 - Iraq expressed astonishment Friday over the dropping of charges against Blackwater guards accused of killing 14 civilians in 2007, one of the bloodiest incidents involving a private security firm here.

The decision by a US judge to dismiss the criminal charges also sparked outrage among Iraqis and Baghdad's government spokesman vowed that it would "act forcefully and decisively to prosecute the Blackwater criminals".

"I was astonished by this decision," Human Rights Minister Wejdan Mikhail told AFP. "There was so much work done to prosecute these people and to take this case into court and I don't understand why the judge took this decision."

US federal judge Ricardo Urbina on Thursday dismissed the charges against the five, saying prosecutors violated their rights by using incriminating statements they had made under immunity during a State Department probe to build their case.

The case was among the most sensational that sought to hold Blackwater employees accountable for what was seen as a culture of lawlessness and a lack of accountability as it carried out its duties in Iraq.

The guards, who had been part of a convoy of armoured vehicles, had been charged with killing 14 unarmed Iraqi civilians and wounding 18 others during an unprovoked attack at a busy Baghdad roundabout using guns and grenades.

"One of them has said what happened in Nisur Square, how they killed innocent Iraqi people that were just in their cars without any weapons. I am very astonished and I am waiting for the US embassy to give me the judge's decision (in full)," the Iraqi human rights minister said.

"What happened was very bad, because so many innocent Iraqi people -- young, students -- were shot by someone who liked to shoot unarmed people."

Mikhail added that she had requested a meeting with US embassy officials in Baghdad. The embassy did not immediately confirm that the meeting would take place or, if it did, who it would involve.

The judge's decision was welcomed, however, by the company's chief executive Joseph Yorio, who said: "The company supports the judge's decision to dismiss the charges."

"From the beginning, Xe has stood behind the hundreds of brave men who put themselves in harm's way to protect American diplomats working in Baghdad and other combat zones in Iraq."

The firm renamed itself Xe after the Iraqi government banned it last January over the killings.

Government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said Iraq would "act forcefully and decisively to prosecute the Blackwater criminals."

He added that an Iraqi investigation had shown that the five guards were unquestionably responsible for the deaths of the civilians.

According to Iraq, 17 civilians were killed in the shooting, but the guards were charged with 14 deaths.

Foreign security teams in Iraq long operated in a legal grey area, but under a military accord signed with Washington last November, Baghdad won a concession to lift the immunity to prosecution previously extended to US security contractors.

Ordinary Iraqis expressed anger at Urbina's decision to dismiss the charges.

"Dropping the charges against those guards disrespects the lives of the innocents who were killed," said Abu Uday, a university professor who did not want to give his given name.

"The rights of the families of the victims must be guaranteed, those who lost their sons because of the rashness of guards who tried to show off their abilities with no respect for people's lives."

The top US commander in Iraq General Ray Odierno said he feared a backlash against private security firms working here.

"We all know that it was not US soldiers, sailors or marines who did this, it was a private security company," Odierno told a press conference.

"What I worry about is there will be backlash against private security companies that continue to operate (in Iraq). I wouldn't like to see that."

Blackwater ended its operations in Iraq in May, after the US State Department refused to renew annual contracts for the company.

Headquartered in North Carolina, Blackwater was one of the largest security firms operating in Iraq with about 1,000 staff, and had been employed to protect US government personnel since the 2003 invasion.

earlier related report
Odierno fears for security firms after Blackwater case fails
Baghdad (AFP) Jan 1, 2010 - The top US commander in Iraq said on Friday that he feared a backlash against private security firms working here after a US judge dismissed criminal charges against five Blackwater security guards.

Speaking to reporters at Camp Victory on Baghdad's outskirts, General Ray Odierno said Iraqis would be unhappy with the decision because they are likely to feel that the group escaped justice.

"We all know that it was not US soldiers, sailors or marines who did this, it was a private security company," Odierno told a press conference.

"What I worry about is there will be backlash against private security companies that continue to operate (in Iraq). I wouldn't like to see that."

US federal judge Ricardo Urbina on Thursday dismissed the charges against the five, who were accused of fatally shooting 14 people in Baghdad in September 2007.

He said prosecutors violated their rights by using incriminating statements they had made under immunity during a State Department probe to build their case.

Odierno said that Iraqis were likely to be "upset" over the decision, noting that they would regard the five as effectively having escaped justice on a technicality.

"Of course, people are not going to like it because they believe that these individuals ... should be punished," Odierno said.

"I worry about it because clearly there were innocent people killed during this attack, and that's concerning to anyone, that innocent people were killed," he added.

The case was among the most sensational that sought to hold Blackwater employees accountable for what was seen as a culture of lawlessness and a lack of accountability as it carried out its duties in Iraq.

The guards, who had been part of a convoy of armoured vehicles, had been charged with killing 14 unarmed Iraqi civilians and wounding 18 others during an unprovoked attack at a busy Baghdad roundabout using guns and grenades.

The men had faced firearms charges, and up to 10 years in jail on each of 14 manslaughter counts.

US prosecutors had alleged that the guards "specifically intended to kill or seriously injure Iraqi civilians," and, according to court documents, alleged that one of the guards told another that he wanted to kill Iraqis as "payback for 9/11," bragging about the number of Iraqis he had shot.

The five defendants were security guards employed by Blackwater Worldwide, which has since been renamed as Xe Corporation.

Attorneys for the guards have said they did not fire their weapons with criminal intent but thought they were under attack.

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