What are private security companies doing in Iraq?
The same sorts of things they do here, I suppose. Enforcing the “No Horseplay” rule at the North Mosul Galleria mall food court. Patrolling parking lots in little white pickup trucks with a yellow flashing light on the top. Sitting at the front desk and handing us the clipboard so that we can sign-in. Well, not quite. Even though it is U.S. military policy to not farm out “mission critical” tasks to private firms, that’s exactly what happens in Iraq every day. Security at Baghdad-Jackson International Airport is furnished by an outfit called Custer Battles. Yeah, I know, calling your security firm Custer Battles is kinda like calling your construction company House of Cards, but the Virginia-HQ’d firm is actually headed by a duo named Scott Custer and Mike Battles. If guarding Iraq’s main airport isn’t a mission critical enough for you, try this: The occupation’s chief administrator, L. Paul Bremer, is protected by a security team provided by Blackwater, the North Carolina firm whose n
