Exclusive: First Images of Controversial Blackwater Incident

September 28, 2007 3:54 PM

From The Blotter:

ABC News has obtained the first images of the controversial Sept. 16 shooting incident involving Blackwater security forces.

The still images, taken at 11:50 that morning, show the car bomb explosion near a financial compound in western Baghdad that precipitated the incident.

A State Department official was visiting the compound when the bomb went off about 25 yards from the entrance. Immediately after the explosion, Blackwater is said to have called for reinforcements. In later images, two convoys of Blackwater security forces are seen arriving at the compound 10 minutes later to escort the official.

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As the two convoys escorting a State Department motorcade leave at 12:05 p.m., the third vehicle in the second convoy was attacked, according to Blackwater's version of events included in a sensitive but unclassified State Department report obtained by ABC News: "A white LN sedan had approached the motorcade at a high rate of speed from the south. The gunners [Blackwater forces] used hand and arm signals to stop the vehicle, then threw water bottles to get the driver’s attention. Local pedestrians also attempted to wave down the vehicle, but the vehicle continued at a high rate of speed. The gunners then engaged the vehicle with M4s [rifle] and later M240B [machine gun]."

The Blackwater account of the incident also describes the activities of Iraqi policemen (IPs) in the incident.

"An IP then ran to the vehicle, peered inside, then began to push the vehicle towards the motorcade. The gunners then engaged the vehicle again, and the IP ran away."

According to the account, Iraqi policemen started shooting from a shack and a tree line south of the convoys and an insurgent in civilian clothes started firing on the convoy from a dirt mound.

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In sworn statements given to State Department investigators and obtained by ABC News, Blackwater guards provide detailed accounts of the incident. At least four of them reported firing their weapons at the white sedan which approached the convoy.

"I turned and engaged the car with approximately 20 to 30 rounds from my M4 rifle. After I no longer felt the threat to my life, I turned back to cover my sector," wrote one guard.

Blackwater guards also reported coming under fire from gunmen dressed in civilian clothes and Iraqi police. When one of the men in civilian clothes fired in a guards' direction, he reported, "I fired one shot from my SR25 at the closest threat.  He went down and did not fire anymore."   

One guard reported observing the driver of another white sedan pulling his vehicle into the convoy, prompting the guard to fire his weapon at the roof of the car.

"The driver exited the vehicle and produced a small device in his hand and held it out in the direction of his vehicle. I perceived this device to be a trigger for an explosive device.  Fearing for my life and the lives of my team members, I fired several well aimed rounds center mass at the threat," he said.

As the Blackwater vehicle injured in the attack was being towed away, one guard reported coming under fire from a red bus, returning fire and warning civilians to take cover.

"As we were going over the curb, I noticed several civilians and I was motioning, and screaming that they get down and find cover," he said.

Other photos obtained by ABC News depict the level of damage caused by the vehicle explosion.

Included in the State Department report is a photo depicting the alleged damage to the Blackwater vehicle.

"During the encounter, numerous small arms rounds impacted the Command vehicle, including at least one round that ricocheted off of the ground and into the radiator, rendering the vehicle immobilized," according to the report.

Blackwater's account of the incident is very different from the description provided by the Iraqi Interior Ministry. According to the Iraqi account, Blackwater guards halted traffic and fired on a white sedan that failed to slow down as it approached their convoy. That car erupted in flames, killing the driver and a woman and Blackwater guards continued to fire their weapons as people fled the scene. According to the ministry, Blackwater guards killed a total of 11 people and wounded 12.

Blackwater has been involved in a series of other incidents over the year, and the Iraqi government has asked for the company to be banned in the country. Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice has asked for a "full and complete" review of the incident, along with four other incidents involving Blackwater guards killing civilians.

A Blackwater spokeswoman said, "We can't provide a comment except to say this is an ongoing investigation."

A State Department spokesman told ABC News, "Look, you know, I am sure that at a certain point, once the investigation is concluded, we can deal with all those questions. But I'm not trying to rule anything in. I'm not trying to rule anything out. I'm telling you that we have an investigation that is ongoing."

This post has been updated.

Marcus Baram contributed to this report.

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September 28, 2007 | Permalink | User Comments (53)

Report: Private Military Contractors Hurt War Effort

September 27, 2007 11:35 AM

Justin Rood Reports:

The United States' use of mercenary contractors like Blackwater in Iraq has led to unnecessary violence against civilians, inflamed Iraqi sentiment towards the United States and jeopardized military strategies to defeat the insurgency, a new report concludes.

"The U.S. government needs to go back to the drawing board and re-evaluate its use of private military contractors," finds the Brookings Institution's Peter Singer, who authored the report. 

In particular, he writes, using armed soldiers-for-hire to escort U.S. officials through Iraq, as they now do, "has created both huge vulnerabilities and negative consequences for the overall mission."

Singer says his report is based on talking with hundreds of subjects, "from private military firm employees to active and retired soldiers."

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The academic has studied private military contractors for over a decade, and is considered one of the foremost policy experts on the topic. His study was first reported on by TPMmuckraker.com.

Military contractors are "one of the most visible and hated aspects of the American presence in Iraq," Singer writes in his paper.  While most are "highly talented ex-soldiers," their role -- as a buffer between U.S. officials and the Iraqi populace -- makes their harshness the public face of the United States in Iraq.

"In an effort to keep potential threats away, contractors drive convoys up the wrong side of the road, ram civilian vehicles, toss smoke bombs, and fire weaponry as warnings, all as standard practices," Singer writes. "While understandable" as security measures, "it undermines the broader operation."

Blackwater, the private military contractor whom the government of Iraq wants to ban after a recent incident in which Iraqi civilians were killed, "has earned a special reputation among Iraqis," according to Singer, who says the company has been implicated in at least seven incidents of civilian harm.

The New York Times reported this morning that internal State Department records show Blackwater personnel have been involved in "dozens of episodes" in which they resorted to force, at a rate twice that of other private military contractors.  The company has won more than $1 billion in work with the U.S. government since 2002, mostly with the State Department.

"I think that most Iraqis understand that the United States -- whether it's our military forces, our diplomats or otherwise -- are there to support them in achieving their ambitions of achieving a secure, peaceful and stable country," State Department deputy spokesman Tom Casey said in response to the report's findings.

The firm did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

This post has been updated.

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September 27, 2007 | Permalink | User Comments (40)

'Classified' Iraq Corruption Report Posted Online

September 27, 2007 10:51 AM

Justin Rood Reports:

The State Department thinks the Iraqi government is larded with corrupt officials who protect their own at the expense of their country. But they don't want you to know they think that.

Amid a clash with Congress over details on the problem of corruption in Iraq, the State Department classified a previously unclassified new report which details the pervasiveness of fraud, intimidation and misdirection within Iraqi ministries.

However, the "Secret" stamp appears to have come down too late: a watchdog group obtained an early version of the report, stamped "Sensitive but Unclassified," and published it online.

Iraqi officials' malfeasance undermines the legitimacy of the Iraqi government and hamstrings its anti-corruption efforts, according to the version of the State Department report posted by the Federation of American Scientists, the group which made the document public.

"Currently, Iraq is not capable of even rudimentary enforcement of anti-corruption laws," it states.

How bad is it?  The anti-corruption advisor to Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki refuses to disclose his own financial holdings, the report says. Routine investigative reports by government anti-corruption watchdogs "cannot be trusted to truthfully reveal criminal activity against anyone protected by the violent or the powerful."

The report, which was first disclosed by the Nation magazine, details problems in nearly two dozen Iraqi government ministries as well as nongovernmental organizations.

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Steven Aftergood of the Federation of American Scientists said he had not been contacted by the State Department about the report, which he posted to his group's Web site on Wednesday. 

"No one has asked me to take it down," Aftergood told the Blotter on ABCNews.com, "and in the absence of a persuasive security rationale, we wouldn't."

The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The department classified the report in the middle of a spat with House Government Reform and Oversight Committee Chairman Henry Waxman, D-Calif. Waxman has been pressing the State Department to make several documents and officials available for a hearing on corruption in Iraq, including the anti-corruption report.

Waxman has postponed his hearing on the topic to Oct. 4.

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September 27, 2007 | Permalink | User Comments (48)

From China, With Love: Cyberwar the Next Big Threat to the U.S.?

September 26, 2007 6:12 PM

Brian Ross and Vic Walter Report:

The White House is preparing a new initiative to protect against what it fears could be a crippling attack against the U.S. by computer, from overseas, and in particular, from China.   

After a series of cabinet-level meetings this month at the White House, computer security analysts say the Bush administration is considering creating a new agency or cyberwar center to better protect the federal government's computers and find ways to help private companies and public utilities fend off computer attacks.

Those attacks, which could be just a few key strokes away, could shut down U.S. power grids and communication and banking systems, security analysts warn.

"Basically we would find the lights go out, the dial tone stop and we have no ability to access our money," Sami Saydjari, founder and president of the Cyber Defense Agency, told ABC News.

Internet security companies, such as Akamai in Boston, are currently tracking thousands of attacks against the U.S. government and corporate computer systems every day.

"We would not be in a good situation if we were to enter a cyberwar today," Akamai co-founder and chief scientist Tom Leighton said.

On most days, the single biggest source of those attacks is China.

World News Video: Cyberwar: The Next Threat to the U.S.?

"A Chinese general has talked about how they would reach out through cyberspace and turn off the American electric power grid before any conflict with the United States," said Dick Clarke, a former White House counterterrorism official and now ABC News consultant.

White House advisors say alarm bells sounded when this past June Chinese hackers got into the unclassified computers of Secretary of Defense Robert Gates.

"The intelligence community has come to the recognition that China and other foreign governments have free run of American computer networks," Clarke said.

In addition to long-distance hacking, U.S. experts are concerned Chinese-made computer equipment could be sabotaged in ways that are undetectable, the so-called Trojan horse attack.

"My fear is that there are many, many Trojan horses, many, many malicious codes in a large number of our critical systems," Saydjari said. "And that there are just waiting to be activated through some trigger at some time." 

The White House says it is asking for $6 billion in the latest budget to increase cybersecurity.

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September 26, 2007 | Permalink | User Comments (43)

House Republicans in the Red, Numbers Show

September 26, 2007 3:02 PM

Avni Patel Reports:

A crucial GOP fundraising committee is nearly broke, according to its latest monthly filing with the Federal Election Committee last week.

The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) reported $1.6 million in cash on hand and $4 million in debts as of Aug. 31. The group helps bankroll House campaigns for GOP candidates.

Its counterpart, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, reported $22.1 million, more than 10 times its Republican counterpart. 

Campaign finance experts say the latest numbers portend an ill future for GOP candidates, particularly newcomers who haven't had years in office to build up a war chest.

"If there's no money in the bank, it's going to be hard to take seats away from the Democrats," said Massie Ritsch of the Center for Responsive Politics, a Washington, D.C.-based campaign finance watchdog group.

Julie Shutley, a spokeswoman for the NRCC, disputed the dim forecast.

"We believe we are going to have every resource that we need to be competitive," said Shutley. 

Senate Republicans are in a state of relative poverty, also. The National Republican Senatorial Campaign has just over $7 million on hand, according to the new filings. The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee has more than $20 million.

While the Democrats' new congressional majority appears to have sapped much of the GOP  lawmakers' fundraising power, its national group, the Democratic National Committee, still lags behind its Republican counterpart.

The RNC reported raising $57.3 million so far this year, with $16 million on hand, while the Democratic National Committee raised $36.8 million so far this year, with $4.7 million on hand.

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September 26, 2007 | Permalink | User Comments (37)

Alleged Iranian 'Front' Represented by Mukasey Law Firm

September 25, 2007 3:12 PM

Brian Ross and Richard Esposito Report:

For more than 25 years, U.S. intelligence and law enforcement authorities say they have suspected the New York-based Alavi Foundation is a "front" for Iranian espionage and anti-American activities.

For more than 25 years, court records show the foundation has been publicly defended and represented by the New York law firm where attorney-general nominee Michael Mukasey is a partner: Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler LLP.

The foundation says the firm continues to represent it.

Mukasey personally handled at least one matter in court for the foundation.

That case, a real estate dispute, began in 1981 when reports first surfaced that the foundation, originally set up by the Shah, had been taken over by the new Ayatollah and the Islamic Republic of Iran. Mukasey took it to trial in 1984.

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The firm insists the foundation has no link to Iran's government.

"I think we've had a relationship that goes back 20 or so odd years with this foundation. This foundation has made all appropriate filings...since we've represented the foundation," said John Winter, a partner at Patterson Belknap. "The foundation is transparent...in accordance with the law. It is not an alter ego or a front for the Iranian government nor is it controlled by the government of Iran."

The case handled by Mukasey was settled in 1984, two years after the foundation was described in the New York Times as being controlled by the government of Iran.

More recently, the Alavi Foundation was described four years ago by New York Police Department intelligence chief David Cohen, a former CIA official, as "totally controlled by the government of Iran."

"The Alavi Foundation is a non-profit charitable organization ostensibly run by an independent board of directors but totally controlled by the government of Iran," Cohen said in the affidavit, filed in connection with a request by the police department to expand surveillance powers. "The foundation funds a variety of anti-American causes, including the four Islamic education centers it owns in New York, Maryland, Texas and California...Mosques funded by Alavi have organizations which support Hezbollah and Hamas."

A 2003 Washington Post story said the foundation was also suspected of obtaining "data about U.S. technology" in violation of the U.S. embargo imposed on Iran following the hostage crisis of 1979-81.

U.S. law enforcement and intelligence officials tell the Blotter on ABCNews.com that the Alavi Foundation continues to be under investigation and is closely monitored as a "front" for Iran. No criminal charges have ever been brought against the foundation.   

"And as I said, five different courts have looked at the allegations," Winter said. "In several of the cases, the plaintiffs have relied on affidavits [from former intelligence or law enforcement officers]...and those allegations have never been substantiated."

The foundation controls a 36-story Fifth Avenue office building in New York.

According to its 2006 IRS filing, the foundation has more than $85 million in assets, including $6.8 million in cash. It says it distributed more than $4 million for educational and religious programs across the United States.

A person who answered the phone at the foundation said its president, Farshid Jahedi, had "no comment," and referred all calls to Patterson Belknap.

Mukasey left Patterson Belknap in 1988 to become a federal judge and rejoined the firm last year.

A White House spokesperson said, "Judge Mukasey hasn't performed any legal work for the foundation in more than 20 years. Any inference that he would be associated with anything improper is irresponsible."

The firm concurred.

"Judge Mukasey has not been involved in the representation of the foundation since that time," Winter said.

Asked if Mukasey would recuse himself as attorney general from decisions involving the investigation of the Alavi Foundation, the spokesperson said, "As Judge Mukasey's long record of personal and professional integrity would suggest, he will take the most ethically appropriate action after discussions with government counsel."

This post has been updated.

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September 25, 2007 | Permalink | User Comments (36)

Accused Swedish Militant Extradited to the U.S.

September 25, 2007 12:36 PM

Richard Esposito Reports:

A suspect sought by the United States for allegedly plotting to establish a terror training camp in the northwest United States was extradited from the Czech Republic to the United States, where he arrived today.

Oussama Kassir, a Lebanon-born Swedish citizen who is an alleged associate of Abu Hamza al Masri, the radical cleric currently jailed on terror-related charges in Britain, was arrested on Sunday in the Czech Republic after a court ruled there was no reason to refuse a 2006 U.S. extradition request.

In August, an American credited with a key role in the terror training camp scheme pleaded guilty to terrorism charges n federal court in New York. James Ujaama, a Muslim convert from Seattle, admitted he tried to set up the camp in Bly, Ore., in 1999 and had informed Abu Hamza  that he and others were stockpiling weapons and ammunition in the United States. The charges carried a potential prison sentence of up to 30 years. 

The allegations against Kassir are similar to those leveled against Ujaama, who has cooperated with authorities, and other alleged co-conspirators: he allegedly wanted to teach military-style methods to Muslims seeking to travel to Afghanistan to fight or receive further training there. 

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According to a Seattle Times account in 2002, Kassir, an unemployed engineer, told the newspaper he was a "supporter" of Osama bin Laden: "I love al Qaeda ... I love Osama bin Laden."

"I am against President Bush because he killed too many Muslims," he said at the time, in a telephone interview from Stockholm. "I hate him to death."

Court documents say Ujaama found the rural property in Bly and then sought help from Abu Hamza to set up the camp. Abu Hamza allegedly responded by sending Kassir and Haroon Aswat to Seattle.

Both Abu Hamza and Aswat have been charged in connection with the Bly camp. Both are in custody in London. 

An announcement related to Kassir's extradition is expected later today in New York.

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September 25, 2007 | Permalink | User Comments (3)

Did Dems Cut a Hole in Their Own Ethics Law?

September 25, 2007 8:57 AM

Justin Rood Reports:

When no one was looking, someone cut a hole out of the Democrats' much-hyped ethics bill. A watchdog group which caught it suspects the Democrats of undermining their own effort to clean up Capitol Hill.

Dubbed "the biggest reform effort in a generation" by its sponsor, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., the Legislative Transparency and Accountability Act of 2007 represented the Democrats' plan "to change the way Washington works."

Some aspects were tough, like language ending lawmakers' free trips on corporate jets, or a section curbing gifts from lobbyists to lawmakers and staff.

But one provision was all but neutered with a subtle edit, committed sometime between the Senate's overwhelming vote to approve the bill and the application of the president's signature.

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The victim of the edit: a section that would boost public disclosure of earmarking. As it was approved by the Senate, the 2007 ethics bill required senators to disclose not only which earmarks they've requested, but also the name and location of each intended recipient.

For instance, a $1 million earmark for an Army purchase may in fact be directed at a manufacturer in a senator's home state. The bill also required senators to detail the purpose of the earmark.

But the law as Bush signed it requires senators to publicly swear that neither they nor their family will personally benefit from any of the earmarks they have inserted. House members must still disclose the companies who stand to gain from their action.

"This is like Lucy and the football. The Senate leadership yanked [the provision] away from us," said Steve Ellis, vice president of Taxpayers for Common Sense, which discovered it.

When asked for comment on the change, a spokesman for Reid told the Blotter on ABCNews.com, "In the course of finalizing the ethics law, we refined various provisions to make them rational, workable and cohesive." Of the final version, he said it "provides ample public disclosure of earmarks in a workable fashion."

Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., a longtime antagonist of the earmarking system, disagreed.

"Voters who expected greater transparency and openness in Washington won't be pleased to learn about another round of secrecy and deception," he said.

The disclosure provision was meant to cut down on earmark abuse -- instances where lawmakers use earmarks to funnel taxpayer money to pet projects or businesses belonging to major campaign donors.

An extreme version of earmark abuse brought down former Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham, who wrote tens of millions of dollars in earmarks for companies which bribed him with boats, a Rolls-Royce, antiques, prostitutes and cash. He pleaded guilty to corruption charges and is serving an eight-year, four-month prison sentence.

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September 25, 2007 | Permalink | User Comments (19)

Gitmo Underwear Scandal; Who Smuggled the Speedos?

September 24, 2007 4:09 PM

Stephen Grey and Brian Ross Report:

The discovery that two Guantanamo detainees were wearing unauthorized underwear -- Under Armour briefs and a Speedo bathing suit -- has apparently triggered a full U.S. Navy investigation.

In a letter last month to a lawyer representing the two detainees, a U.S. Navy Commander warned, "We cannot tolerate contraband being surreptitiously brought into the camp" and said, "Such activities threaten the safety" of Guantanamo staff, detainees and visiting lawyers.

The lawyer who received the letter, Clive Stafford-Smith of London, wrote back, "I have never received such an extraordinary letter in my entire career."

"I cannot imagine who would want to give my client Speedos, or why," Stafford-Smith responded about his client, Shake Aamer. He "is hardly in a position to go swimming, since the only available water is the toilet in his cell. I presume that nobody thinks that Mr. Aamer wears Speedos while paddling in his privy." 

Aamer, a Saudi Arabian, has been held at Guantanamo for more than five years, according to the Associated Press.

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The U.S. Navy Commander, whose name was redacted from copies of the letters provided to ABCNews.com by Stafford-Smith, said the investigation revealed "the briefs were not issued by JTF-Guantanamo personnel, nor did they enter the camp through regular mail."

Stafford-Smith rejected any implication that he or his colleagues had smuggled in the "contraband" underwear to their clients.

"Does someone seriously suggest," he asked, that he or his colleagues "have been stripping off to deliver underpants to our clients?"   

A U.S. military spokesman, Army Lt. Col. Ed Bush, told the Associated Press earlier this month the investigation was no laughing matter.

"There is no room for error when working in a dangerous environment, and constant vigilance is of the utmost importance," Bush told the AP.

Some 340 men are being held at the prison on suspicion of terrorism or links to al Qaeda.

President Bush has indicated he wants the Guantanamo prison shut down, but to date there have been no details on how or when that might happen.

Stephen Grey is a freelance journalist who contributes to ABC News.

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September 24, 2007 | Permalink | User Comments (48)

Armed Children in Iraq Featured in New Propaganda Video

September 24, 2007 2:42 PM

Maddy Sauer and Rehab El-Buri Report:

A new propaganda video from the al Qaeda-linked Islamic State of Iraq (ISI) features small children with AK-47 assault rifles. The narrator of the video refers to these young boys as the "new generation" of mujahedeen.

In one scene, a small child who appears to be around seven- or eight-years-old is holding an AK-47 and reciting what he says are quotes from the prophet Mohammed. Then a group of small children are seen, each holding an AK-47.

Video: 'New Generation' of Mujahedeen

The narrator is heard over the footage saying, "In conclusion we say to Bush, the Muslim ummah [Muslim community] that you have tried with all your strength to wage war against, is an ummah [community] that will never die. And it has, with the blessings of God, allotted for you a new generation of Mujjahideen."

The video, which was posted online, features the al Furqan logo, the media wing of the ISI. The 20-minute video contains clips of IED explosions and various other scenes that are typical of previously released ISI propaganda videos.

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September 24, 2007 | Permalink | User Comments (51)

New York AG Takes on Facebook

September 24, 2007 2:23 PM

Richard Esposito and Krista Kjellman Report:

New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said his office is launching a full investigation into the social networking site Facebook and its safeguards against sexual predators.

"My office is concerned that Facebook's promise of a safe Web site is not consistent with its performance in policing its site and responding to complaints," Cuomo said of the investigation. 

In recent weeks, AG investigators posing as underage Facebook users were "repeatedly solicited by adult sexual predators" and granted unrestricted access to "a wide range of pornographic images and videos," including such groups as "*For girls that love to share naked pics*" and "Porn Star Trials," according to Cuomo's letter to Facebook. 

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The review also found that Facebook failed to respond or was slow to respond to complaints filed by investigators posing as the parents of the solicited underage users.

In one instance, less than a week after creating a profile, an investigator posing as a 14-year-old girl says he was solicited by a user claiming to be a 24-year-old man.

"Do you have any nude pics?" the male user asked.

The investigator said he filed a complaint with Facebook as the teen's mother, only to receive one response saying Facebook "will review the reported material and remove anything that violates our Terms of Use." 

According to the Terms of Use posted on the Facebook site, users "agree not to use the Service or the Site to...upload, post, transmit, share or otherwise make available any unsolicited or unauthorized...solicitations" nor "solicit personal information from anyone under 18."

The 24-year-old man's profile is still available on the Facebook site today.

In his subpoena to Facebook, Cuomo requested a record of complaints concerning sexual solicitation of underage teens and access to pornographic material received by Facebook and the networking site's corresponding responses.

"Parents have a right to know what their children will encounter on a Web site that is aggressively marketed as safe," he said.

"We take the concerns of the Office of the New York Attorney General very seriously," Facebook spokesperson Brandee Barker said in a statement issued today, noting the company would work closely with "all state attorneys general." "We strive to uphold our high standards for privacy on Facebook and are constantly working on processes and technologies that will further improve safety and user control on the site."

This post has been updated.

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September 24, 2007 | Permalink | User Comments (5)

Anti-War YouTube 'Vet' Admits He Is Faker

September 21, 2007 3:11 PM

Brian Ross and Vic Walter Report:

A Washington man, whose claims to have slaughtered civilians as a U.S. Army Ranger in Iraq were seen by millions on YouTube, admitted in federal court in Seattle today that he was a fake and a liar.

Jesse Adam Macbeth, 23, pleaded guilty to charges he faked his war record.

"He was in the Army for 40 days before he was kicked out of boot camp for being unfit," said U.S. Attorney Jeffrey C. Sullivan.  "He was never in Iraq."

Photos: Operation Stolen Valor

Macbeth's story of killing men and women as they left a Baghdad mosque included claims that he was a U.S. Army Ranger and had received the Purple Heart for injuries suffered in combat in Iraq.

His interview was translated into Arabic and distributed in the Middle East, said the U.S. attorney.

"Macbeth's lies fueled hostility to our servicemen in Iraq and here at home," Sullivan said.

Federal prosecutors and investigators with the Office of the Inspector General for the Department of Veterans Affairs say they are in the midst of a crackdown on phony heroes.

"The phony war hero phenomenon plagues the American landscape and tarnishes the service of thousands of veterans who have served honorable," said Douglas Carver, special agent in charge of the VA's inspector general operation in the west.

World News Video: Phony War Vets

In another recent case, investigators uncovered a man who posed as a U.S. Marine Chaplain, officiating at the weddings and funerals of Marines.

Reggie Lee Buddle, 59, of Puyallup, Wash., was sentenced to two years of probation in July after pleading guilty to charges he wore a Marine Captain's uniform and insignia.

Buddle, who never served in the Marines, participated in an opening ceremony of the Washington state Senate last year, delivering the opening prayer.

Macbeth, the phony U.S. soldier who claimed to have committed atrocities, was sentenced to five months in jail.

He told the judge today he wanted to apologize to "the real American heroes."

He said he lied about his military record in order to get money and treatment from the VA hospital. 

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September 21, 2007 | Permalink | User Comments (117)

U.K. Counterterrorism Chief to Retire

September 21, 2007 12:48 PM

Maddy Sauer Reports:

The chief counterterrorism official in Britain is retiring after five years on the job.

Peter Clarke announced today he will retire from the Metropolitan Police in January 2008 after 30 years there and five years as the national coordinator of terrorist investigations.

During his tenure, Clarke led the investigation into the July 7, 2005 bombings on the London Underground and a bus, which killed 52 people. Numerous attempted attacks, including a copycat bombing on July 21, 2005 and this summer's attempted attack on a London nightclub, along with various terrorist threats at Heathrow airport also occurred under Clarke's watch.

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Clarke's efforts against terror were praised by his colleagues today.

"Peter Clarke is a dedicated public servant, often working behind the scenes, who made an immense contribution to protecting the public and in doing so has undoubtedly saved lives," said Len Duvall, chair of the Metropolitan Police Authority.

"Peter Clarke has performed outstandingly. His contribution to the fight against terrorism has been truly significant,” said Commissioner Sir Ian Blair.

Clarke is retiring in order to pursue a range of new appointments and projects, according to the Metropolitan Police Authority. His successor has not yet been named.

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September 21, 2007 | Permalink | User Comments (0)

Musharraf Shuffles Pakistan's Military Ranks in Preparation for His Possible Departure

September 21, 2007 11:23 AM

Gretchen Peters Reports:

Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf shuffled the top ranks of the country's military today, giving the world a sense of what a post-Musharraf army might look like, a key issue for the Pentagon, which considers the Pakistani leader a crucial ally in the war on terror. 

Musharraf promoted several faithful subordinates into key positions and freed up his two most trusted deputies apparently to step into the No. 2 and 3 slots.

Analysts say the appointments indicate Musharraf plans to stick to his promise -- made by his lawyer this week before the country's Supreme Court -- to relinquish his post as army chief if re-elected president by the legislature next month.

"These are all trusted deputies of Musharraf," said Talat Massood, a retired defense secretary for Pakistan. "We can expect they will continue to support him and continue his policy of supporting the war on terror."

Musharraf promoted Maj. Gen. Nadeem Ijaz Taj to run the spy agency, Inter Services Intelligence (ISI). And he promoted Maj. Gen. Mohsin Kamal to take over the 10th Corp based in Rawalpindi. Both men are now lieutenant generals, according to a statement from the military's public affairs office.

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Their promotions free up the current ISI chief, Lt. Gen. Ashfaq Ahmed Kiani, and the current Rawalpindi Corp Commander, Lt. Gen. Tariq Majid, to rise to the positions of vice chief, the No. 2 slot, and chief of general staff, the No. 3 job.

"No surprises here," said a Western official of the appointments. "He's trying to line up his best men ahead of the elections."

Kiani and Majid are widely considered Musharraf's most trusted lieutenants, "his go-to guys" as one Western diplomat put it. Senior officials in the army have told foreign diplomats these two men are expected to be promoted into the top slots, but that Musharraf is keeping it close to his chest which man gets which post.

The two men who currently hold the No. 2 and 3 jobs -- Gen. Eshan Saleem Hyatt and Lt. Gen. Eshan ul Haq -- are set to retire on Oct. 7, the day after the National Assembly will elect a president for a five-year term. Musharraf is seeking re-election, and his aides have warned he will not step down as army chief if he is not re-elected.

Analysts and Western officials say both men are moderates, with favorable views of the West and of America. Gen. Kiani, an avid golfer who's considered the most intellectual of Pakistan's senior officers, studied at Fort Leavenworth, Kan.

Gen. Majid was Musharraf's star pupil years ago at the Command and Staff College in Quetta, the rigorous post-graduate program all Pakistani officers must pass through if they want to rise above the rank of colonel. He fits the bill, say insiders, both in terms of his age and past experience, to take over the army.

Lt. Gen. Nadeem Taj, who moves into the position of spy chief, is also a close confidant of Musharraf and related to the president's wife. The ISI chief would also work very closely with U.S. officials, and NATO commanders running the coalition effort in neighboring Afghanistan. 

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September 21, 2007 | Permalink | User Comments (5)

Congress Wants Testimony From Blackwater Boss

September 20, 2007 5:05 PM

Krista Kjellman Reports:

The founder and chairman of Blackwater USA, the private security contractor, has been told to appear next month before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.

In a letter today to Blackwater chairman Erik Prince, Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., said the hearing would concentrate on "the mission and performance of Blackwater USA and its affiliated companies in Iraq and Afghanistan."

Blackwater's role in providing security for the State Department in Iraq has been the focus of intense scrutiny this week after a firefight in Baghdad left as many as 20 civilians dead,  allegedly killed by Blackwater guards.

The incident, which is now under investigation by both Iraq and the United States, is not the first time Blackwater has been accused of shooting Iraqi civilians.

In his letter, Waxman touched on that performance record.

"Another question will be whether the specific conduct of your company has advanced or impeded U.S. efforts," he wrote.

Click Here for Full Blotter Coverage.

Blackwater says its employees "heroically defended" the U.S. officials they were assigned to protect. As for Prince's requested appearance before the congressional committee, Blackwater did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Next month's hearing will not be the first time Blackwater has been the subject of a congressional hearing.

This past February, families of the four contractors killed in a ghastly 2004 ambush in Fallujah testified before Waxman's committee on how they believed Blackwater tried to cover up what led to that tragedy.

The families told Congress they had discovered their men were sent out by Blackwater in unarmored cars, without automatic weapons, no maps and no tail-gunner to provide back-up as had been promised. 

Blackwater's general counsel told the committee the security contractor didn't cut any corners in providing for its workers and said Blackwater had met its obligation to equip the men in Fallujah adequately on the day of the ambush.

"They just let him out there to die; they did not provide anything for him," Donna Zovko, the mother of one of the murdered contractors, said.

Her son, Tom Zovko, reached earlier this week, had a similar sentiment for Blackwater when asked for his thoughts on the most recent incident in Baghdad.

There is "absolutely no one that this company has to be accountable for," he told ABC News. They always "have a type of golden parachute to get out of it."

The families of the slain contractors are currently involved in a lawsuit against Blackwater that has been tied up in "legal limbo for three years." Blackwater, which filed a counter lawsuit, maintains the men all knew the risks when they signed on to go to Iraq.

"We're not giving up," Zovko said of the suit. "We were wronged; our family members were wronged by people they were trying to help and that they trusted and for what?"

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September 20, 2007 | Permalink | User Comments (38)

Lawmaker: State Stonewalling Iraq Fraud Inquiry

September 20, 2007 2:13 PM

Kirit Radia and Justin Rood Report:

The State Department won't give Congress access to key documents and officials with information on corruption in Iraq, a key Democratic lawmaker charged Wednesday.

In a letter to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice yesterday, Rep. Henry Waxman, Calif., chairman of the Oversight and Government Reform Committee, threatened to subpoena a batch of reports on the Iraqi Commission on Public Integrity that he says State won't turn over.

"[I]t is clear that the reports are directly relevant to the Committee's review and should be turned over immediately," Waxman wrote.

The Iraqi commission is supposed to investigate fraud and corruption within the troubled Iraqi government.

Waxman said he would also subpoena testimony from three officials if State did not make them available voluntarily. He acknowledged that the department had allowed his staff to interview one official, James Mattil.

Click Here for Full Blotter Coverage.

A State Department spokesman said he wasn't aware of the letter or of his department's response.
"We certainly make every effort to comply with requests from Congress," he said.

Corruption and the rule of law are major concerns in Iraq. Recently, the U.S. Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction James Bowen told ABCNews.com that death threats and assassination attempts against judges are common, and corruption investigators work under a cloud of fear. 

Fueling sectarian tensions, the Commission on Public Integrity, operating within the Shia-dominated Interior Ministry, has only been successful in bringing cases against Sunni politicians, Bowen said.

U.S. and Iraqi officials have acknowledged that the problem of political corruption in Iraq is serious and undermines the government's ability to function.

The letter marks the second time this week Waxman has criticized the State Department. On Tuesday, Waxman chided the department's Inspector General Howard Krongard for alleged improprieties involving his office's investigations. Krongard denied the allegations.

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September 20, 2007 | Permalink | User Comments (6)

Bin Laden: Armed Rebellion Against Musharraf 'Obligatory'

September 20, 2007 9:27 AM

Brian Ross and Maddy Sauer Report:

In a tape posted on an al Qaeda Web site this morning, Osama bin Laden says Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf's "loyalty, submissiveness and aid" to America "makes armed rebellion against him and removing him obligatory."

"He is a traitor to Islam and Muslims," bin Laden says in an audio statement posted over what appears to be previously seen video of the al Qaeda leader.

"We have been extremely late in carrying it out," bin Laden says, referring to rebellion against Musharraf, "so we should make up for lost time."

Watch an Excerpt of Bin Laden's Message.

The comments were addressed to the "people of Pakistan," but al Qaeda simultaneously released transcripts in English and Arabic as well as Pashtun.

Musharraf has been under growing pressure from the United States to crack down on safe havens inside Pakistan that U.S. intelligence officials say have allowed al Qaeda to re-establish training camps.

There have been at least five assassination attempts aimed at Musharraf in the last few years, which he blamed on al Qaeda-connected groups.      

This post has been updated.

September 20, 2007 in Osama bin Laden | Permalink | User Comments (33)

Secret Service Will Accompany Iranian President If He Goes to Ground Zero

September 20, 2007 9:02 AM

Richard Esposito Reports:

The United States Secret Service will accompany Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to Ground Zero if he ultimately decides to go to the site of the Sept. 11 attacks, sources in the New York City government and United States Secret Service said. 

His aides made the request in early September, police officials said, and it was rejected.

As a result of speculation that President Ahmadinejad might still have an interest in visiting the area surrounding the site, the New York City Police Department issued a statement saying it would also oppose such a visit.

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According to that statement, "A request earlier this month to permit a visit by Iranian President Ahmadinejad to Ground Zero during the United Nations General Assembly was rejected in a meeting which included NYPD, Secret Service, and Port Authority officials."

"The site is closed to visitors because of construction there. That was the only request," Deputy Commissioner for Public Information Paul Browne said. "Requests for the Iranian president to visit the immediate area would also be opposed by the NYPD on security grounds."

Officials said that as far as they were aware, that was the only request for a site visit made by the Iranian president.

Vote: Should Ahmadinejad be allowed to visit ground zero?

Ahmadinejad -- and other extremely high-risk protectees -- have a security detail only slightly less extensive than that of the United States president, sources say. It includes heavily armored limos, NYPD bomb technicians and emergency service personnel. A large Secret Service protective detail and NYPD Highway Patrol units lead the way.

While the city opposes the proposed visit Iran's president was determined to make it, the United States Secret Service is required to accompany him.

"We do not comment on itineraries," Michael Seremetis, a spokesperson for the United States Secret Service, said.

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September 20, 2007 | Permalink | User Comments (93)

A Deal Too Good To Be True?: Katrina Victims Say Mortgage Lender Misled Them

September 19, 2007 6:00 PM

Brian Ross and Joseph Rhee Report:

Thousands of homeowners devastated by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita are accusing their mortgage lender of recanting on its promise to suspend their mortgage payments in the immediate aftermath of the hurricanes.

In what they now consider a deal too good to be true, homeowners say Countrywide Home Loans promised they wouldn't have to make payments on their mortgages for three to six months.

World News Video: More Pain Years After Katrina

From its corporate headquarters in California, the country's largest mortgage lender issued a press release about the offer and put it in writing to homeowners, adding, "Late charges will not be assessed."

"There would basically be a freeze on our payment, and our payments would be put on the back end," Donna Hellmer of Hammond, La., told ABC News.

Donna and her husband Andrew didn't make the payments. But then Countrywide sent them a notice of default, demanding the missed payments plus late fees in a lump sum, a total of $4,300 due in 30 days.

Click Here for Full Blotter Coverage.

"They basically told me this was the deal, 'You pay the lump sum, or you're going to be foreclosed on,'" recalled Hellmer, who, along with her husband Andrew, had to take out a new loan to pay Countrywide and keep their home.

The story is one Chad and Rebecca Goodwin of Houston, Texas, know all too well.

They too faced foreclosure and are now suing Countrywide after capturing on tape what their lawyers say is an important admission by a Countrywide representative:

"What they promised me was that it would be tacked on to the end of my loan," Chad says on the call, according to the recording.

"A lot of people were told that, but it wasn't the case," the Countrywide employee says. "Unfortunately, what happened is we were hoping our banks would let us do it, and they wouldn't."

Listen to the Countrywide Call.

According to the Goodwins' lawyer, Jill Bowman, that is just a cover-up. "Quite frankly what happened is they decided not to keep this promise," she told ABC News. "I think because it was going to cost them money."

For the Hellmers in Louisiana, Countrywide's broken promise means paying $200 more a month than they were before Hurricane Katrina.

"They took advantage of people while they were down," she said. "They created more of a financial hardship for us than the hurricane did." 

Countrywide has denied the allegations, and in a statement to ABC News, says it "has been diligently working with customers to develop individual repayment plans."

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September 19, 2007 in Hurricane Katrina | Permalink | User Comments (38)

Despite Repeated Incidents, Blackwater, Others 'Rarely' Investigated

September 19, 2007 12:40 PM

Brian Ross Reports:

Despite repeated reports of shootings of Iraqi civilians by Blackwater and other U.S. private security contractors, the incidents were "rarely" the subjects of full investigations, current and former State Department officials tell the Blotter on ABCNews.com.

"We get almost weekly reports of such shootings, but it is close to impossible to go the crime scene and interview witnesses," said one current State Department official formerly based in Baghdad.

The contractors are responsible for filing incident reports, the officials said, but the State Department could do little to follow up.

Blotter: Contractor Rules in Iraq: Fire Only 'Aimed Shots'

"To conduct a forensic investigation and go talk to witnesses where people can go to 10 different hospitals is nearly impossible in a war zone," the official said.

Another official told ABCNews.com that the standard practice was for the contractor to be quickly moved out of the country.

"They would just disappear, often within hours," said one former official who dealt directly with Blackwater and other contractors.

In the most recent case involving as many as 20 civilians allegedly killed by Blackwater security guards, State Department spokesperson Sean McCormack says a full investigation is now underway by the State Department's Bureau of Diplomatic Security.

Officials said they want to know how many, if any, bullet holes there are in the Blackwater vehicles, to confirm the Blackwater guards' version of events that they were fired upon.

Blackwater says its employees "heroically defended" the U.S. officials they were assigned to protect. 

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September 19, 2007 | Permalink | User Comments (35)

U.S. School Shooting Death Toll: 323

September 19, 2007 10:06 AM

Richard Esposito Reports:

Three hundred twenty-three students have died in documented school shootings over the past 15 years, making it by far the largest cause of violent deaths in school.

It outranks the documented 111 combined deaths by strangulation, stabbing and slashing, hanging, beating and kicking, heart attacks, a half dozen deaths from unknown causes and two persons who jumped to their death over the same time period, according to data from the National School Safety Center for grades K through 12.

With 55 million students in grades K through 12 and another 15 million in college, the numbers point to a situation that is far from epidemic, law enforcement officials say.

Photos: U.S. School Shooting Death Toll: 323

But the incidents are headline-grabbing and deeply troubling because only infrequently can police or school officials identify in advance a student or other school community member who might launch a violent attack. It is also the kind of violence, like terrorism, that leaves in its wake a lasting fear of further violence. As a result, law enforcement is too often in the position of responding to a situation that has already gone bad, or what cops call "an active shooter" scenario.

In an effort to find some answers to these difficult questions, the New York City Police Department hosted a full-day conference Wednesday, bringing in officials charged with the responses to Columbine and the Lancaster, Pa., Amish school hostage situation and fatal shooting as well as Tom Ridge, the official charged with overseeing the review of the Virginia Tech massacre last April 16.

Click Here for Full Blotter Coverage.

"This could have happened at just about any campus in America," Ridge said of that incident in which 33, including the shooter Seung-Hui Cho, were killed.

Ridge pointed out that a key failure in the response to that incident was the delayed and vague communication from the school adminstration to its students and teachers.

"Inadequate," is how Ridge characterized the warning that came about two hours after the first two homicides.

In analyzing the threat from school shooters, officials said the commonalities between incidents show that for the most part, school shootings are "rarely impulsive" and profiles of shooters differ to the point of randomness. As a result, a good part of the presentation focused on enhancing school security and communication within the school or campus community, integrating outside law enforcement with school security  as well as the methods law enforcement could use to respond to a shooting or hostage situation in progress.

"We hope to glean some insights about better protecting our campuses through an examination of these horrible events," New York Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly told ABC News before the start of the conference.

In a recent spate of back-to-school bomb threats at campuses across the country, what became apparent in each university's response was that in the aftermath of the massacre at Virginia Tech, school security officials have beefed up their methods of alerting campus community members to a violent situation or threat in progress and what actions should be taken, issuing an all-clear when the situation is over and posting a summary of what occurred on school Web sites.

In the West Nickel Mines Amish School shooting, 10 young Amish girls were taken hostage. Five were killed and five wounded before the shooter -- a milkman --  killed himself, changing forever an important part of a rural community's life.

That school, one of 180 one-room schoolhouses in the community, had no electricity, no phone and no security. While the Amish use cellphones, faxes and other modern communication devices in business, they tend to shun the technology in their homes and schools.

In the aftermath of the school shooting, the Anabaptist Christian community, descended from immigrants from Germany, tore down the school and returned the site to pasture.

And in a gesture that illustrates the ability of the communal beliefs of the Amish to survive the incident and the media onslaught that accompanied it, the people of Lancaster raised a scholarship fund for the shooter's children to ensure they would be able to attend college.

This post has been updated.

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September 19, 2007 | Permalink | User Comments (14)

Contractor Rules in Iraq: Fire Only 'Aimed Shots'

September 18, 2007 5:04 PM

Brian Ross Reports:

The Blackwater security guards accused of killing nine civilians in an Iraqi firefight are supposed to "fire only aimed shots," according to a copy of the USCENTCOM Rules of Engagement, obtained by the Blotter on ABCNews.com.

State Department officials refused to make the rules public today, saying they were "classified."

The copy of the rules, provided to ABCNews.com by another private security company that operates in Iraq, is stamped "unclassified, 10 March, 2005."

"The rules are you are not supposed to spray and pray," said one security contractor, explaining that private guards are not allowed to open fire without an identified target.

Click Here for Full Blotter Coverage.

The Rules of Engagement make it clear, however, that nothing in them "limits your inherent right to take action necessary to defend yourself."

The incident involving the Blackwater guards occurred as a car bomb went off near a building where U.S. embassy personnel were being protected by Blackwater.

The rules allow the use of deadly force "in defense of persons as specified in your contract" but require "graduated force."

The USCENTCOM rules also require contractors to "fire with due regard for the safety of innocent bystanders."

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September 18, 2007 | Permalink | User Comments (25)

Big Barbecue for CIA: Bush 41 Guest of Honor

September 18, 2007 3:46 PM

Justin Rood Reports:

The CIA threw a 60th birthday party barbecue for itself at its Langley, Va., headquarters today, with former President George H.W. Bush as the special guest of honor.

According to a CIA statement, Bush, the director of the CIA from 1976 to 1977, spoke to some 1,500 CIA employees and criticized "doomsayers who know so little about what you do."

Click Here for Full Blotter Coverage.

In an unusually detailed description of the event, the CIA statement says Bush was invited to attend the outdoor event by CIA director Michael Hayden, and "cut a birthday cake and lunched on a barbecue menu that included pulled barbecue pork, barbecue chicken, hamburgers, cole slaw, German potato salad, baked beans and brownies."

There was no mention of French Fries or the type of beverages served.

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September 18, 2007 | Permalink | User Comments (18)

Whitewash of Embassy Labor Abuses Suggested

September 18, 2007 3:35 PM

Justin Rood Reports:

The State Department's chief internal watchdog has "partisan political ties," which have led him to improperly interfere with his office's work and obscure fraud allegations and security issues which might embarrass the White House, according to allegations received by a House Democratic chairman.

Some subordinates believe that State Inspector General Howard Krongard's "foremost mission" is "to support the Bush administration," wrote Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., chair of the Government Reform and Oversight Committee, in a letter to Krongard released Thursday.

As one of several examples of Krongard's alleged meddling, Waxman noted Krongard's probe of allegations that the contracting firm First Kuwaiti was abusing its foreign workers constructing the new, $592 million U.S. embassy compound in Baghdad.

Last September, Krongard personally investigated accusations the company was "kidnapping" foreign workers to work in Iraq against their will and subjecting them to dangerous working conditions. Krongard concluded the allegations could not be proved.

Click Here for Full Blotter Coverage.

But Waxman said in his letter today that Krongard followed "highly irregular" procedures, which "raise questions" about his work. According to Waxman, there is no evidence that Krongard interviewed any accusers, two of whom have since testified before Waxman's committee about what they saw. In fact, there is no evidence that Krongard interviewed any employees who had been at the worksite, aside from six workers who had been chosen for him by First Kuwaiti, Waxman wrote.

In the six pages of notes Krongard took during the investigation, "there are no answers noted to many...questions" he was allegedly asking the workers about their alleged mistreatment, Waxman wrote.

Waxman also charged Krongard with running a highly politicized office; jeopardizing an investigation by tipping off a presidential appointee he was being examined; hiding security problems from Congress; and refusing to investigate or cooperate with Justice investigators on allegations of fraud by State Department contractors.

The chairman said the claims were based on documents and interviews with seven current and former employees at the Office of Inspector General.

"The allegations, as described to me and in certain media reports, are replete with inaccuracies including those made by persons with their own agendas," said Krongard, who has not read Waxman's letter since he has been out of the country, traveling to Afghanistan and Iraq. "I have been committed to discharging my statutory responsibilities...to the best of my ability and without regard for personal interest."

In his letter, Waxman requested numerous documents and interviews with several of Krongard's subordinates and invited Krongard to testify at an Oct. 16 hearing to address the allegations.

This post has been updated.

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September 18, 2007 | Permalink | User Comments (5)

Cybersquatting: The New Gateway Scam to Identity Theft?

September 17, 2007 5:07 PM

Krista Kjellman Reports:

Americans are falling victim to a growing Internet crime wave known as cybersquatting, according to legal and trademark experts.

Cybersquatters are individuals or companies that create Web addresses that are remarkably similar -- perhaps only one or two letters off -- from addresses for well-known companies or products. For example, known cybersquatting Web sites include dellcomputersystem.com instead of dell.com and samslcub.com instead of the correctly spelled samsclub.com.

Cybersquatters' goal is to hijack Web traffic from legitimate Web sites to their counterfeit sites and turn a profit.

While some cybersquatters make money by filling their sites with typical pay-per-click (PPC) ads, others take a more devious approach.

"Cybersquatters are getting more sophisticated as they are trying to take advantage of consumers," Alan Drewsen, executive director of the International Trademark Association (INTA), told ABCNews.com. "As the number of domains increase, it just increases the possibility of this fraudulent behavior."

Click Here for Full Blotter Coverage.

Some "sophisticated" tactics include cybersquatter-controlled sites designed to look like bank Web sites that trick consumers into revealing sensitive personal information and phishing, the use of fraudulent e-mails to bring traffic to those fake sites.

These methods have serious ramifications for consumers. In 2006, 3.5 million adults admitted to revealing sensitive personal or financial information to a phisher, according to market analyst Gartner Inc. Of those, 2.3 million lost money, with each victim losing an average of $1,244.

"Cybersquatters are targeting well-known brand owners and consumers more and more," Drewsen said. "Consumers rely on genuine Web sites for a safe online experience, and we are working to protect that experience."

To bring the problem of cybersquatting to light, five Fortune 500 companies and INTA members, including Microsoft Corp., Dell Inc., Time Warner Inc., Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and Yahoo! Inc., filed legal actions in the last week against a total of 22 cybersquatting operations.

"The problem [of cybersquatting] is becoming so prevalent," Drewsen said of the group effort.

That's a fact not lost on Microsoft, Aaron Kornblum, a senior attorney on Microsoft's Internet safety enforcement team, said.

In the last year, Microsoft has launched 15 legal actions and recovered more than 2,000 domain names and more than $1.17 million in illegal profits.

"Billions of dollars are being made in this consumer diversion," Kornblum said, explaining that Microsoft is only one of many companies targeted by cybersquatters.

In their three lawsuits filed in the last week, aimed at operations in Bronx, N.Y., Indiana and Canada, Microsoft is working to win the rights to domain names, such as microsoftword2007.com and wwwxbox360.com. Microsoft accuses the owners of these domain names and others of being cybersquatters who allegedly filled their pages with pay-per-click ads to turn a profit.   

"Consumers rely on trademarks and brands to know that they are dealing with a trusted entity [and getting] a good or service of the high quality that they demand and expect to receive from that brand, and [cybersquatters] are preying on that good will and preying on that promise," Kornblum said.

So how should consumers protect themselves from "preying" cybersquatters?

INTA says consumers should:

- Type the names of desired Web sites into a search engine, such as Google or Yahoo!, rather than directly into the browser.

- Bookmark frequently visited pages.

- Be aware of e-mails with generic greetings or that ask the recipient to update his account's username and password.

- Report suspicious Web sites both to the "company whose trademark is being abused" and to organizations, such as the Internet Crime Complaint Center.

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September 17, 2007 | Permalink | User Comments (14)

Budget Shortfall May Shutter White House Probe

September 17, 2007 12:21 PM

Justin Rood Reports:

A task force probing allegations of illegal activity by Karl Rove and other former and current White House officials is in jeopardy due to lack of funding, according to its spokesman.

Without a last-minute infusion of nearly $3 million, the special task force may be unable to pay its staff and buy the kind of technical assistance it needs to investigate allegations that White House political operatives may have improperly injected politics into government activities, according to Jim Mitchell, spokesman for the U.S. Office of Special Counsel.

In April, Special Counsel Scott Bloch announced that a new, six-member task force from his office would probe the use of private e-mail accounts by White House aides, the firing of at least one U.S. attorney by administration appointees and presentations of political data by White House aides to other officials in government.

The cost of the task force for 2008 would be $2.89 million, according to OSC estimates. But Bloch started the probe long after he submitted his 2008 budget request. And now he's having a hard time convincing those holding the nation's purse strings to loosen up and give him some last-minute extra funding.

The House of Representatives has already approved a budget for OSC that does not include any extra money for the task force. In an accompanying report, it directed OSC to work with the White House's Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to request the spending.

Click Here for Full Blotter Coverage.

On the Senate side, the panel reviewing OSC's budget is aware of the problem but doesn't look eager to jump in. Documents obtained by the Blotter on ABCNews.com imply the Senate too will decline to add extra funds for the task force. In a draft report, that panel too will point the investigators to ask the White House to support its request.

Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., who chairs the panel, did not respond to a request for comment.

If congressional Democrats are reluctant to back Bloch, it may be because of concerns about his appropriateness. Bloch, whose office investigates whistle-blower retaliation complaints and discrimination disputes as well as allegations of inappropriate political activity by government employees, has twice been accused by watchdog groups and former employees of letting politics determine investigative decisions.

Bloch is also reportedly under investigation by a White House-run panel, the President's Council on Integrity and Efficiency (PCIE), over allegations he retaliated and discriminated against his own employees. Bloch has denied the charges.

With Bloch and the White House investigating each other's alleged misbehaviors, it isn't hard to understand why relations between the two have been strained for some time.

Then in June, Bloch issued a blistering report on another White House appointee, General Services Administration chief Lurita Doan. He found she had engaged "in the most pernicious of [prohibited] political activity" by encouraging her subordinates to find ways to support Republican candidates.

Doan has denied the charges in Bloch's report, which recommended she "be disciplined to the fullest extent." The White House has taken no action regarding Doan.

A spokesman for the White House budget office declined to say whether it would recommend extra money to pay for the task force. Noting that President Bush has already sent his budget request to the Hill, the spokesman said it would be inappropriate to interfere with the congressional appropriations process at this point.

OSC spokesman Jim Mitchell says his office doesn't know what to expect. 

"We talked extensively with OMB about our need for staff, space, equipment, computer forensic analysis equipment," he said, but have heard nothing back. "I don't know if we should take that as a denial."

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September 17, 2007 | Permalink | User Comments (14)

CIA Bans Waterboarding in Terror Interrogations

September 14, 2007 5:00 PM

By Brian Ross, Richard Esposito & Martha Raddatz

The controversial interrogation technique known as waterboarding, in which a suspect has water poured over his mouth and nose to stimulate a drowning reflex, has been banned by CIA director Gen. Michael Hayden, current and former CIA officials tell ABCNews.com. (Image above is an ABC News graphic.)

The officials say Hayden made the decision at the recommendation of his deputy, Steve Kappes, and received approval from the White House to remove waterboarding from the list of approved interrogation techniques first authorized by a presidential finding in 2002.

The officials say the decision was made sometime last year but has never been publicly disclosed.

One U.S. intelligence official said, "It would be wrong to assume that the program of the past moved into the future unchanged."

A CIA spokesman said, as a matter of policy, he would decline to comment on interrogation techniques, "which have been and continue to be lawful," he said.

Click Here for Full Blotter Coverage.

The practice of waterboarding has been branded as "torture" by human rights groups and a number of leading U.S. officials, including Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., because it amounted to a "mock execution."

Today, in New Hampshire, Sen. McCain told ABC News, "I have sought that result for years. Waterboarding is a form of torture. And I'm convinced that this will not only help us in our interrogation techniques, but it will also be helpful for our image in the world."

While new legislation reportedly gave the CIA the leeway to use waterboarding, current and former CIA officials said Gen. Hayden decided to take it off the list of about six "enhanced interrogation techniques."

While welcoming the move, some critics say the CIA did not go far enough.

"I can say it's a good thing, but the fact remains that the entire program is illegal,"  John Sifton of Human Rights Watch told ABCNews.com.

As a result of the decision, officials say, the most extreme techniques left available to CIA interrogators would be what is termed "longtime standing," which includes exhaustion and sleep deprivation with prisoners forced to stand, handcuffed with their feet shackled to the floor.

"It is a very severe form of torture which causes tremendous psychic toll to people," said Sifton.

It is believed that waterboarding was used on fewer than five "high-value" terrorist subjects, and had not been used for three to four years.

Its most effective use, say current and former CIA officials, was in breaking Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, known as KSM, who subsequently confessed to a number of ongoing plots against the United States.

A senior CIA official said KSM later admitted it was only because of the waterboarding that he talked.

Ultimately, KSM took responsibility for the 9/ll attacks and virtually all other al Qaeda terror strikes, including the beheading of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl.

"KSM lasted the longest under waterboarding, about a minute and a half, but once he broke, it never had to be used again," said a former CIA official familiar with KSM's case.

Kappes' role at the CIA puts him in charge of day-to-day CIA operations.

A career intelligence officer, he left the CIA in disagreement with the leadership of Porter Goss, the former Republican congressman, who George Bush chose to replace George Tenet in 2004. 

When Goss in turn was replaced in May 2006 by Gen. Hayden as director of Central Intelligence, he moved quickly to get Kappes to return.

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September 14, 2007 | Permalink | User Comments (102)

Old Spies Never Die; They Just Outlast Political Bosses

September 14, 2007 4:18 PM

Richard Esposito Reports: