U.S. Defense Officials Hired Contractors to Track and Kill "Militants" in Afghanistan

Axis of Logic ^ | 15 MAR 2010 | Dexter Filkins and Mark Mazzetti

[BCW]

Under the cover of a benign government information-gathering program, a Defense Department official set up a network of private contractors in Afghanistan and Pakistan to help track and kill suspected militants, according to military officials and businessmen in Afghanistan and the United States.

The official, Michael D. Furlong, hired contractors from private security companies that employed former C.I.A. and Special Forces operatives. The contractors, in turn, gathered intelligence on the whereabouts of suspected militants and the location of insurgent camps, and the information was then sent to military units and intelligence officials for possible lethal action in Afghanistan and Pakistan, the officials said.

While it has been widely reported that the C.I.A. and the military are attacking operatives of Al Qaeda and others through unmanned, remote-controlled drone strikes, some American officials say they became troubled that Mr. Furlong seemed to be running an off-the-books spy operation. The officials say they are not sure who condoned and supervised his work.

[BCW]

...and Islam hired "relief agencies" to re-supply and re-arm while peace negotiations are taking place...where's the story on that?

Who cares - welcome to 21st Century Jihadi Warfare M_F!

[Spok]

Isn’t that what we’re doing now with the drones? What am I missing?

[DonaldC]

Free markets work! lol

[theDentist]

Good for them! Kep at it!

And if this revelation causes serious concern and indigestion for the likes of Pelosi, Reid, Obummer, and any other scummy dems: all the better!!!

[pissant]

Cool. The more dead jihadis the better

[IbJensen]

Is this a great war or what?

They want to die and we want to kill them!

[ozzymandus]

Sounds good to me. What “logic” will MSNBC use to condemn this?

[Sacajaweau]

Makes sense to me....You don’t know who to trust...the deaths of the CIA agent is proof...Of course this is part of war..

[L,TOWM]

No problem with this at all — “letters of Marque and Reprisal” are specifically authorized by the US Constitution, now all we gotta do is find anybody in government that give’s a rat’s a$$ about the constitution and this is a non-issue.

[Past Your Eyes]

Wait till Code Pinko hears about this.

[verity]

No problem. These are shovel ready jobs.

[jch10]

Hey, sounds like a good idea to me.

[ryan71]

War crimes! The left will call for Obama to be brought up on war crimes.

[Drill Thrawl]

Mis-leading headline. Shocka!

The article says nothing about the contractors killing anyone.

[bunkerhill7]

They are called Privateers-It was used in War of 1812- it`s legal- That`s the fact Jack-

http://www.usmm.org/warof1812.html

[dasboot]

Wow...un-named sources...speculation...amounting to treason when the taliban begins exterminating every westerner in sight as a potential spy. Not only actual spooks...but the innocent, also. How do these journalists sleep at night? Death of patriots and apostles no barrier to a sick political agenda. Just awful. Sources and/or lyin’ SOB’s are gonna have to go to prison.

[Red Badger]

The Army has done this for two hundred years..................

[BCW]

“...for possible lethal action...”

I think they are linking DRONE strikes with this - and “suggesting” that those killed may have been innocent due to non-govt intel targeting...

[WOBBLY BOB]

que the BUSH/CHENEY/HALLIBURTON media screeds...

[Drill Thrawl]

Which is also what I got out of the article which is NOT what the headline says.