War Profiteers

Black & Veatch's Tarakhil Power Plant: White Elephant in Kabul

Thu, 19 Nov 2009

In a secluded valley a few miles from Kabul's international airport, $285 million in U.S. taxpayer dollars have flowed into a Black & Veatch-built power plant outside Tarakhil village. But, far from the public relations coup the project was intended to supply, the plant has run into problems with planning, cost over-runs and alleged corruption.

AFGHANISTAN: Paying Off the Warlords, Anatomy of an Afghan Culture of Corruption

Tue, 17 Nov 2009

Among the dozens of businesses with lucrative Afghan and U.S. taxpayer-financed reconstruction deals are two extremely well connected companies -- Ghazanfar and Zahid Walid -- that helped to swell the election coffers of President Hamid Karzai as well as the family business of his running mate, the country's new vice president, warlord Mohammed Qasim Fahim.

Spies for Hire: New Online Database of U.S. Intelligence Contractors

Mon, 16 Nov 2009

CorpWatch joins with Tim Shorrock today, the first journalist to blow the whistle on the privatization of U.S. intelligence, in releasing Spies for Hire.org, a groundbreaking database focusing on the dozens of corporations that provide classified intelligence services to the United States government.

FRANCE: France jails 'Angolagate' power players

Tue, 27 Oct 2009

A French court slapped jail terms Tuesday on the main players in a network that smuggled arms to war-torn Angola and included an ex-minister and the son of the late president Francois Mitterrand.

Uranium Corporation of India Limited: Wasting Away Tribal Lands

Wed, 07 Oct 2009

In Eastern India's Jharkand State, tensions are mounting between Indigenous tribal communities and the Uranium Corporation of India Limited, or UCIL. Heavy security at a May public hearing in Jadugoda prevented many local activists and villagers from entering. But outside the hearing, activists from the Jharkhandi Organization Against Radiation (JOAR) argued their case for protecting their health and the environment from horrific impacts of radioactive contaminated waste resulting from uranium mining.

AFGHANISTAN: Maladies of Interpreters

Mon, 21 Sep 2009

For most American troops, the only connection they have to the locals � whether soldiers in the Afghan army or villagers they�re trying to secure � is through their interpreters. Yet the way the military uses translators is too often haphazard and sometimes dangerously negligent.

US: Despite Slump, U.S. Role as Top Arms Supplier Grows

Sun, 06 Sep 2009

Despite a recession that knocked down global arms sales last year, the United States expanded its role as the world�s leading weapons supplier, increasing its share to more than two-thirds of all foreign armaments deals, according to a new Congressional study.

AFGHANISTAN: Wackenhut aids inquiry into its Afghanistan contractor

Thu, 03 Sep 2009

This week the Project on Government Oversight released damning allegations of deviant hazing at a camp for security guards in Afghanistan. Sparking questions from the State Department, POGO warned the problems are "posing a significant threat to the security of the embassy and its personnel."

AFGHANISTAN: Wackenhut aids inquiry into its Afghanistan contractor

Thu, 03 Sep 2009

AFGHANISTAN: Wackenhut aids inquiry into its Afghanistan contractor

Thu, 03 Sep 2009

CorpWatch Bribery Report Helps Spark Dutch Inquiry

Thu, 20 Aug 2009

US: New Hire Highlights Altegrity's Growing Ambition

Mon, 17 Aug 2009

For more than 12 years, Falls Church-based USIS quietly scrutinized the backgrounds of individuals who needed security clearance to work in the U.S. government or in the private sector. Now re-named Altegrity, the company has ambitions of securing government contracts for much more than investigation and data-collection.

US: DynCorp Billed U.S. $50 Million Beyond Costs in Defense Contract

Wed, 12 Aug 2009

A Defense Department auditor, appearing before the Commission on Wartime Contracting in Iraq and Afghanistan, testified Tuesday that DynCorp International billed the government $50 million more than the amount specified in a contract to provide dining facilities and living quarters for military personnel in Kuwait.

Mission Essential, Translators Expendable

Tue, 11 Aug 2009

Ohio-based Mission Essential Personnel supplies over 2,000 translators to the Pentagon in Afghanistan, who play a critical role in protecting local and military lives. These interpreters are a key communications link. But if they are wounded or killed, they are often left to fend for themselves. This special features video of CorpWatch interviews with three Afghan whistleblowers, recorded in country in April. Click through to hear their story.

US: Cash-rich SAIC hits the acquisition trail

Thu, 06 Aug 2009

Making a big splash in recent weeks, Science Applications International Corp. bought two companies, adding new capabilities in cybersecurity, energy and disaster recovery � areas in which government spending is expected to grow.