What Are Your Thoughts on The Blackwater Massacre and Military Contractors?

[DoctorTaco]

First, they are a great way to manipulate numbers. Send 10,000 troops to the capital of Awesomestan. Once the US public gets weary of this action, remove 8,000 troops. But, replace them with 12,000 defense contracts from Academi. The US taxpayer is still fitting the bill. But, to the American public, it looks like we have a smaller footprint in the country since we have been told that we removed 8,000 US troops.

Second, if one of these employees of Academy gets killed in the capital of Awesomestan, the US media can create wall to wall coverage of "American killed in the streets of Awesomestan". This will give the DOD cover to send in an additional 15,000 US troops into the country. Now, we have even more, paid for by the US taxpayer, than we had at the start of this conflict.

Third, these companies are a great retirement plan for many in the US military.

Those contractors are also not beholden to the Geneva convention because they are not technically, officially United States soldiers.

 

[Blayt7hh]

Same thing happened in the Roman Empire near the end.

They actually started doing that fairly early- well before they transitioned from republic to the empire. But it is similar to what the US does now, offering it as a path to citizenship for those that serve out their time honorably.

 

[ColemanwastheGOAT]

They actually started doing that fairly early- well before they transitioned from republic to the empire. But it is similar to what the US does now, offering it as a path to citizenship for those that serve out their time honorably.

I meant how later in the empire they started relying too heavily on mercs.

 

[Ruprecht]

Don't have any experience with US PMCs, but local contracts for the gold runs in Papua New Guinea and the Government contract to employ British mercenaries Executive Outcomes / Sandline International with Russian Hind-D helicopter gunships to wipe out resistance in Bouganville (the contract fell through, the helicopters were buried at a dump in Darwin for decades) has certainly left an impression.
Dirty deeds, done dirt cheap.

 

[Blayt7hh]

I meant how later in the empire they started relying too heavily on mercs.

This is true too. Fortunately America is nowhere near close to so that yet. It wo t happen within our lifetime.

Terminators on the battlefield on the other hand might…

 

[LeonardoBjj]

- PMC's are a part o war. They become big again at the end of the second war. Now we have powerhouses like Wagner.

An Israeli-style Wagner Group': The ultra-Orthodox military unit in Washington’s crosshairs​

For the first time, the United States is expected to impose sanctions on an Israeli military unit. The Netzah Yehuda Battalion, initially set up to accommodate Israel’s ultra-Orthodox Jews but which quickly expanded to become a popular unit for radical right-wing settlers, has over the years been accused of a series of human rights abuses against Palestinians in the West Bank.

By:Sébastian SEIBT

The first word of the prospective sanctions emerged over the weekend when several Israeli and American news outlets reported that the Biden administration was gearing up to sanction Netzah Yehuda. Citing three unnamed US sources “with knowledge of the issue”, news website Axios said US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was expected to announce the unprecedented move against the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) “within days”. The sanctions relate to human rights abuses committed by the unit in the West Bank prior to Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel, it said.

‘A unit every army should be ashamed of’​

The news sparked angry reactions in Israel. “The IDF must not be sanctioned!” Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu wrote in a post on X, describing the prospect of the sanctions as “the height of absurdity and a moral low” at a time when Israeli forces are fighting a war in Gaza against Hamas.
Benny Gantz, Netanyahu’s political rival and a key centrist minister in Israel’s war cabinet, responded in a similar manner: “We have great respect for our American friends, but imposing sanctions on the unit is a dangerous precedent and sends the wrong message to our shared enemies at a time of war.”
One of the main reasons for the anger is that the US would need to invoke the 1997 Leahy Laws to sanction the battalion. Leahy has previously been used to blacklist Indonesian military units accused of kidnapping and murdering political activists, as well as members of the Pakistani army involved in assassination campaigns in Afghanistan.
“Sanctions on an IDF unit is a terrible stain on the Israeli Defence Forces. If you look at the groups [previously targeted by] US sanctions you will see that it is not going to be good company for the IDF to be part of,” Ahron Bregman, a political scientist and an expert on the Israel-Palestinian conflict at King’s College in London, said, adding “the Israelis will fight hard to try and prevent it”.
He noted, however, that even though the Netzah Yehuda is an integral part of the IDF, it is “a unit every army should be ashamed of”.
“My fellow Israelis will hate me saying it but Netzah Yehuda is a sort of an Israeli-style Wagner Group,” he said.
Omri Brinner, an Israeli analyst and specialist in Middle East geopolitics at the International Team for the Study of Security Verona (ITSS), said it was a bold comparison. "It's not some private military group fighting for money. They are an integral part of IDF."

But the Netzah Yehuda is no ordinary unit. Created in 1999, it was initially set up to accommodate ultra-Orthodox Jews into the army by allowing them time to maintain their religious practices and limiting interactions with female soldiers. Israel’s ultra-Orthodox community is normally exempt from the state’s strict military service. Over the years, the unit’s special status and benefits – it has a dedicated rabbi and its members have time set aside for prayers – has generated heated debate in Israel, with some criticising the special treatment it has been accorded.

https://www.france24.com/en/middle-...thodox-military-unit-in-washington-crosshairs

Mali: Army, Wagner Group Atrocities Against Civilians​

Investigations Needed Into Indiscriminate Drone Strikes, Summary Killings

• Malian armed forces and Wagner Group foreign fighters unlawfully killed and summarily executed several dozen civilians in counterinsurgency operations in Mali’s central and northern regions since December.
• Mali’s Russia-backed transitional military government is committing horrific abuses and is leaving the regional group that could provide scrutiny into its human rights situation.
• The mandate of the United Nations Human Rights Council’s independent expert on human rights in Mali, who assists the Malian government to protect human rights, should be renewed and given adequate resources.

(Nairobi) – Malian armed forces and Wagner Group foreign fighters have unlawfully killed and summarily executed several dozen civilians during counterinsurgency operations in Mali’s central and northern regions since December 2023, Human Rights Watch said today. Military drone strikes on a wedding celebration on February 16, 2024, and during a burial on February 17, 2024, killed at least 14 civilians, including 4 children.

Mali has long been engaged in an armed conflict with Islamist armed groups linked to Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State. The recent abuses have occurred at a time when Mali’s relations with the United Nations and neighboring West African governments have sharply deteriorated. In December, the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA), pulled out of the country at the request of Mali’s transitional military authorities, raising concerns about the protection of civilians and the monitoring of abuses. In January, the transitional authorities announced that Mali would leave the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), which would deprive victims of gross human rights violations of the ability to seek justice through the ECOWAS Community Court of Justice.

“Mali’s Russia-backed transitional military government is not only committing horrific abuses, but it is working to eliminate scrutiny into its human rights situation,” said Ilaria Allegrozzi, senior Sahel researcher at Human Rights Watch. “The Malian authorities should urgently work with independent experts to monitor human rights violations and ensure that those responsible are held to account.”

Between January 1 and March 7, Human Rights Watch interviewed by telephone 31 people with knowledge of the incidents in central and northern Mali. These included 20 witnesses to abuses, as well as community leaders, activists, international organization representatives, journalists, and academics. On March 1, Human Rights Watch sent letters to Mali’s justice and defense ministers detailing its findings and inquiring about alleged abuses. The Malian authorities did not respond.

Witnesses reported serious abuses by the Malian armed forces and the Wagner Group, the Russia-linked military security contractor, during counterinsurgency operations against Islamist armed groups in the villages of Attara, in Timbuktu region; Dakka Sebbe and Nienanpela in Segou region; Dioura and Gatie Loumo in Mopti region; Ouro Fer, Nara region. They said that in most of the operations, foreign, non-French-speaking armed men described as “white” or “Wagner" took part. In Dakka Sebbe, the operation was carried out almost entirely by Wagner fighters. In Attara, more Wagner fighters were identified than Malian soldiers.

Wagner personnel first deployed to Bamako, Mali’s capital, by December 2021 with support from the Russian armed forces. Human Rights Watch has previously documented grave abuses by Malian security forces and allied fighters believed to be from the Wagner Group. In August 2023, Russia vetoed a UN Security Council resolution that would have extended the work of the panel of experts tracking abuses by armed groups and Malian security forces and Wagner fighters, curbing efforts to bring accountability for conflict-related violations.

On January 26, scores of Malian soldiers searching for Islamist fighters in Ouro Fero village went door-to-door and arrested 25 people, including 4 children. Later that day, villagers found their bodies about four kilometers from Ouro Fero. “We found the bodies on a hill, charred, bound by the hands, and blindfolded,” said a 26-year-old villager who helped bury the bodies. “They had all been shot in the head.”

On February 16, a Malian drone strike on an outdoor wedding celebration in Konokassi killed at least five men and two boys and wounded three others. The following day, as villagers attempted to bury the bodies, a second drone strike hit a group of people at the Konokassi cemetery, killing five men and two boys and injuring six others. Villagers said that while the Al-Qaeda-linked Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wa al-Muslimeen, JNIM) controls the areas around Konakassi, none of their fighters were at the wedding.

https://www.hrw.org/news/2024/03/28/mali-army-wagner-group-atrocities-against-civilians

- The comic-book character Deathstroke become disappointed with the army proporses, when they asked him to blow a hospital full of terrorists. It's was a hospital full of civilians, marjority children!

This four decades ago. The art copies the life?

 

[ColemanwastheGOAT]

This is true too. Fortunately America is nowhere near close to so that yet. It wo t happen within our lifetime.

Says you.

 

[Cole train]

Says you.

I mean us military does most of heavy lifting in military operations and most people serving have citizenship and those who dont have a green card

Theres no foreign legion in usa where you can just turn up on gates without visa and entire organization is 90 percent foreigners. PMC companys in west dont do serious offensive roles like wagner but instead do more defensive stuff

Of course thing might change in future

 

[KBE6EKCTAH_CCP]

PMCs are the future for sure. Probably a place to funnell as much migrants as possible, since most are worthless except cannon fodder. You'll have Congolese fighting Somalis somewhere in the Pacific.

LOL bro you are going hard today :-D

 

[Islam Imamate]

I was wondering why those war criminals were pardoned. Then I saw this..

Just one of many little insidious things that he did while in office.

 

[Michaelangelo]

someone plays way too much metal gear

You can never play too much Metal Gear imo

 

[Blayt7hh]

Says you.

Well yeah because evidence

 

[LeonardoBjj]

Kremlin deploys propaganda outlets to whitewash Wagner’s footprints in the Sahel​

Souleymane Amzat​

Beninese Analyst
“…Unlike Western troops which were always often on the opposite side of the fighting in the Central African Republic, Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger, Russian troops have helped various states to regain the territory.’’
Source: Sputnik Africa

The United States is discussing with Niger the withdrawal of American troops from its soil, the U.S. Defense Department announced April 23. There is no timeline set for the exit and the U.S. will continue working with partners in the Sahel region to address the terrorism threat, Pentagon press secretary Maj. General Pat Ryder said.

Since taking power in a July 2020 coup, Niger’s junta has been resolute in breaking ties with the Western allies, first terminating two military contracts with the European Union followed by the expulsion of the French troops, and now shifting away from its longtime traditional ally, the United States.

"As yet another major player in the Sahel succumbs to military rule and Russian influence, Niger’s actions signal a profound geopolitical transformation, potentially reshaping the balance of power and stability in West Africa,” reported Defense One analyst Aja Melville on Tuesday, April 23.

Embracing Russia is convenient for the junta. Unlike Western allies, Moscow does not condition partnership and military aid on ethical and political stipulations, Melville wrote.

A week earlier, the first deployment of the Russian defense ministry’s African Corps, a remake of the notorious Wagner Group, arrived in Niger to install a Russian-made air defense system and train the junta’s troops, state broadcaster Tele Sahel reported.

To expand its influence in the African region, Russia has launched a complex of diplomatic, economic, and military initiatives, from hosting annual African forums under President Vladimir Putin’s patronage to funding a massive propaganda campaign to whitewash Russia’s image from the stain of violence and corruption left by Wagner troops.

Instrumental in spreading disinformation on the African continent is Russia's state-owned multilingual news agency Sputnik, which on April 13 featured an interview with a Beninese analyst Suleiman Azmat, who praised Niger’s transition towards Russia.

Polygraph.info researched the analyst’s background but could not verify his association with any think-tanks or institutions in Benin.

‘’Unlike Western troops which were always often on the opposite side of the fighting in the Central African Republic, Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, Russian troops have helped various states to regain the territory,’’ Azmat said.

Those claims are false.

The United States invested in strengthening security of the Sahel region more than $3.3 billion over the last two decades. This does not include humanitarian, medical, and economic aid. Between 2001 and 2020 the U.S. trained at least 86,000 counterterrorism troops in the region, including nearly 18,000 in Niger.

Before the July 2023 coup, the U.S. maintained a significant military presence in Niger in agreement with the Nigerien government. Two U.S. military bases, the Air Base 101 and the $100 million Air Base 201 are hosting some 1,100 personnel. Both are strategically located to enable American forces to use drones in counterterrorism operations against the local branches of al-Qaeda and the Islamic State across West Africa.

Before being expelled from Mali in 2023, France’s 5,100-strong military mission to root out violent jihadists in the Sahel acted as part of Operation Barkhane, which helped killing Adnan Abou Walid al-Sahrawi, head of Islamic State in the Greater Sahara.


France’s withdrawal from Mali left a bitter aftertaste when the bases it once occupied were taken over by Russia’s Wagner paramilitary group.

Contrary to Sputnik’s analysis, Russian impact in the Sahel has been far from positive and Azmat’s assertions echo Kremlin narratives. Russian officials refer to Wagner Group as “Russian instructors” who have “saved” the African countries and are further “strengthening peace and stability.”

Russia created a ‘’disinformation and propaganda ecosystem’’ to falsely portray Wagner as “playing a positive role’’ in the Sahel, the U.S. State department said on February 8.

Wagner Group activities in the African countries are tainted with corruption, violence and war crimes.

In one such well-documented instance in Central African Republic, Wagner forces “used indiscriminate killing, abductions and rape to gain control of a key mining area near the city of Bambari, with survivors describing the attacks in detail.”

Following the 2021 military coup in Mali, Wagner Group deployed 400 mercenaries reinforced with L-39 jets, Sukhoi-25 fighters, and Mi-24P helicopter gunships, supposedly to fight local jihadists.

A year after Russia’s arrival, the situation in Mali worsened, with at least 2,000 civilians killed in surging violent attacks, The Associated Press reported, citing data from the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project.

Wagner Group personnel were involved in a significant number of civilian deaths and casualties, the report said.

After the arrival of the Russian troops, “…the Islamic State extremists have almost doubled the territory they control in Mali in less than a year,” the United Nations panel of experts concluded on August 3, 2023

Human Rights Watch alerted in its 2024 report that the human rights situation in Mali “significantly deteriorated during 2023, as attacks against civilians by Islamist armed groups … and large-scale abusive counterterrorism operations by Malian armed forces and associated foreign fighters surged.”

In Burkina Faso, the Russian Africa Corps, Wagner’s rebranded incarnation, has been expanding its presence since January, with arms shipments and some 400 troops arriving to supposedly help restore security and peace.

Violence, however, has continued to escalate, with more than two million people displaced, and health and education systems crippled.

“In Burkina Faso in 2023, deaths from terrorism were up 68 percent’’ the Global Terrorism Index said in its 2024 report, produced by the Institute for Economics and Peace.

The GTI also reported that the epicenter of global terrorism has shifted out of the Middle East and into the Central Sahel region of sub-Saharan Africa, which now accounts for over half of all deaths from terrorism.

‘’The Sahel is the most impacted region, representing 43% of global terrorism deaths, 7% more than the year prior,’’ GTI said.

https://www.voanews.com/a/fact-chec...agner-s-footprints-in-the-sahel-/7583909.html