DOD reviews use of contractors in Iraq

WASHINGTON, May 12 (UPI) -- A top U.S. military official says the Pentagon is reviewing its reliance on using private contractors in dangerous places like Iraq.

"We are contracting out a lot because off previous decisions that were made" to cut the size of the military, said Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Richard Myers at a Senate hearing Tuesday. "We have to see if those decisions we made are still right for this environment."

Nick Berg, an American contractor who was in Iraq looking for work, was kidnapped in April and murdered by his captors on Saturday. The gruesome beheading was videotaped and posted on an al-Qaida affiliated web site.

Contracts for reconstruction work and military support work are spread between several government agencies in the Pentagon, State Department and at the Coalition Provisional Authority headquarters in Baghdad. None can give a clear accounting of how many western civilians are in Iraq.

Pentagon officials estimate there are about 20,000 armed private security guards in Iraq. A Pentagon conference last fall told companies interested in working in Iraq to expect to spend about 25 percent of the contract award on security for their personnel.

The Pentagon relies heavily on contractors for non-military support to its troops, including running dining halls and recreation facilities.

From: http://www.menafn.com/qn_news_story.asp?StoryId=
CqkgHqeidDxmTAxjHCs1JB250CMfJDg9YCW