The DBA’s Exclusive Remedy- A License to Kill
Halliburton and its former KBR Inc. subsidiary knowingly sent military supply convoys into danger on roads in the Baghdad area.
High court won’t hear case against Halliburton
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court has ruled out reviving lawsuits against Halliburton Corp. over insurgent ambushes that killed civilian truck drivers in Iraq.
In its order Tuesday, the court said it will not review a federal appeals court ruling that threw out suits filed by truckers and their families claiming that Halliburton and its former KBR Inc. subsidiary knowingly sent military supply convoys into danger on roads in the Baghdad area.
The attacks killed seven KBR drivers and injured at least 10 others in April 2004.
The appeals court said a federal law prohibits the lawsuits because it provides workers’ compensation to civilian employees injured while under contract with defense agencies.
Man, 38, dies from deadly tropical disease after returning to the UK from Afghanistan
The Daily Mail October 6, 2012
A man diagnosed with a tropical disease after returning to the UK from Afghanistan has died in hospital, it has emerged today.
The 38-year-old was fighting for his life in a high security isolation ward at the Royal Free Hospital in London after contracting the deadly Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever (CCHF).
He was transferred by the RAF on a C-130 Hercules aircraft from the Brownlee Unit in Glasgow to the specialist high security unit at the Royal Free London on Thursday.
It is the first laboratory-confirmed case of CCHF in the UK, according to the Health Protection Agency (HPA).
Other passengers who sat close to him on an aircraft are undergoing daily health checks.
‘Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever can be acquired from an infected patient only through direct contact with their blood or body fluids, therefore there is no risk to the general public,’ the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust said.
‘We would like to extend our condolences to his family.’
The man, 38, was diagnosed when he returned to Glasgow on a flight from Kabul, Afghanistan, on Tuesday.
He had flown into Scotland on a connecting flight from Dubai.
Civilian Contractor Bitten by Bat in Contra Costa, Dies of Rabies
NBC Bay Area October 4, 2012
A Contra Costa man who was bitten by a bat in June, has died of rabies.
The 34-year-old unidentified man, died July 31st, in Zurich, Switzerland, according to the CDC. The man had previously been getting treatment in a Dubai hospital in the United Arab Emirates.
He had been a civilian contractor in Iraq, and traveled back and forth between the States and Iraq. The man is believed to have been on eight international flights between the time he was bitten and the time he died.
Rabies is almost always fatal after symptoms are present. It can be transmitted from person to person if the infected individual’s tears or saliva are introduced into another person’s open wounds or mucous membranes.
The CDC interviewed others believed to have come in contact with the man, and no secondary cases have been identified
At Least 121 Civilian Contractor Deaths in Third Quarter of 2012
According to the Department of Labor’s Defense Base Act Claim Summary Reports there were at least 121 Civilian Contractor Deaths filed on in the third quarter of 2012.
Keep in mind that these numbers are not an accurate accounting of Contractor Casualties as many injuries and deaths are not reported as Defense Base Act Claims. Also, many of these injuries will become deaths due to the Defense Base Act Insurance Companies denial of medical benefits.
Many foreign national and local national contractors and their families are never told that they are covered under the Defense Base Act and so not included in the count.
At least 18 death claims were filed for Iraq
At Least 90 death claims were filed for Afghanistan
At least 3,195 Defense Base Act Claims were filed during this quarter
At least 121 were death claims
At least 1,138 were for injuries requiring longer than 4 days off work
At least 85 were for injuries requiring less than 4 days off work
At least 1,879 were for injuries requiring no time off of work
A total of 90,680 Defense Base Act Claims have been filed since September 1, 2001
Kevin O’Rourke, Retired NYPD, Civilian Contractor, Killed in Afghanistan Insider Attack
HERNANDO –October 3, 2012
A 52-year-old contractor from Citrus County was one of two people killed last weekend in Afghanistan.
According to Bay News 9’s partner newspaper the Citrus County Chronicle, Kevin O’Rourke, who lived in the town of Hernando, was in Afghanistan as a civilian contractor with NATO, working for Engility, a law enforcement professional firm based in Alexandria, Va.
A former New York City police officer, O’Rourke missed being in the World Trade Center by 20 minutes on September 11, 2001. He spent hours that day helping a friend trapped in the rubble.
Friends say after 9/11, O’Rourke saw “a great need to go to (Iraq and) Afghanistan and to help the younger generation understand what we went through in New York.”
New York Post October 1, 2012
A retired NYPD sergeant working as a civilian contractor in Afghanistan was killed during an apparent “insider attack” by members of the Afghan military.
Kevin O’Rourke, 52, and an unidentified US soldier were slain Saturday in the clash with Afghan troops.
O’Rourke had been on the force for 20 years and worked as member of the NYPD’s elite Emergency Service Unit.
He was also one of the department’s scuba instructors, based at Brooklyn’s Floyd Bennett Field.
O’Rourke, originally from Long Island, retired in 2003 and later moved to Florida.
The soldier was the 2,000 service member to die in the 11-year conflict.
Three Afghan troops were also killed in the shootout at a checkpoint in the eastern part of the country.,
American Civilian Contractor killed, three wounded in Green on Blue
while three other U.S. citizens and one Afghan were wounded, police spokesman Wali Mohammad said on Sunday.
Kabul, Afghanistan (CNN) — Two Americans and three Afghan soldiers died in a firefight that may have involved insurgent forces, the International Security Assistance Force said Sunday.
One of the U.S. deaths was a soldier; the other, a civilian, U.S. officials said.
NATO soldier, civilian contractor killed by Afghan soldier
A NATO soldier, a NATO civilian contractor and several Afghan soldiers were killed by an Afghan soldier on Saturday in eastern Afghanistan, the latest in growing number of the so-called “green-on-blue” insider attacks in the country, the NATO said Sunday.
“An International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) service member and an ISAF civilian contractor died following a suspected insider attack in eastern Afghanistan yesterday,” the NATO-led coalition or ISAF said in a statement.
“It is also known that there were Afghan National Army (ANA) casualties,” it said, adding “a joint ANA and ISAF assessment is underway.”
The brief statement did not disclose the nationalities of the victims and the exact place of the incident under ISAF policy.
Troops mainly from U.S. have been stationed within the 100,000 strong NATO-led ISAF forces in eastern Afghan provinces.
Kyrgyz national killed in terrorist attack in Afghanistan
The Voice of Russia September 18, 2012
A Kyrgyz national died in a terrorist attack in Afghanistan earlier today, according to the Russian Embassy in Kabul.
The authorities are now checking up on the number of those injured.
Jeni Ayris,South African Civilian Contractor of Edinburgh, killed in Afghanistan suicide attack
SOUTH AFRICAN born Jeni Ayris, who lived in Edinburgh, was killed in the blast in Kabul.
The Daily Record September 19, 2012
A WOMAN who was killed in a suicide bomb attack in Afghanistan was due to return home this week.
Jeni Ayris, 46, who was born in South Africa but held a British passport, died in the blast in the capital, Kabul, yesterday, when a female insurgent drove a car full of explosives into a minibus carrying mainly foreign workers.
Her friend, Kirsten Bennett, from the Isle of Mull, said Ms Ayris was expected to return to Edinburgh this weekend.
Ms Ayris worked as a customer relations manager for South African aviation company ACS/BalmOral.
In a statement, the firm said: “ACS/BalmOral is deeply saddened by the loss of the lives of some of our staff in Kabul, Afghanistan, due to a suicide bombing attack that occurred on September 18.
“We are in the process of notifying the next of kin and our main focus now remains with the families of the innocent victims who tragically lost their lives. Our prayers and thoughts are with them and all our staff remaining in Kabul.”
Ms Ayris lived in the Morningside area of the Scottish capital for about 17 years.
She was born in the Durban region of South Africa, but left the country many years ago and had dual citizenship with the UK.
Ms Ayris ran a South African themed cafe in the Tollcross area of Edinburgh, Ndebele, for about a decade.
At Least One Civilian Contractor Wounded in Camp Bastion Attack
In addition to the two U.S. Marines killed in the assault, eight military members and one civilian contractor were wounded.
Attackers in Afghanistan Wore US Uniforms September 17, 2012
International coalition officials say the insurgents who attacked a British military base in Afghanistan Friday, killing two U.S. Marines, were dressed in U.S. Army uniforms and were armed with automatic rifles, rocket propelled grenade launchers and suicide vests.
The coalition said in a statement Sunday the 15 militants were organized into three teams and “executed a well-coordinated attack” against the airfield on Camp Bastion in Helmand province.
The alliance say the attackers destroyed six Harrier jets and “significantly damaged” two more. The militants also destroyed three coalition refueling stations and damaged six aircraft hangars.
International troops killed 14 of the insurgents and wounded one, who is in custody. Earlier reports said 18 militants died in the attack.
In addition to the two U.S. Marines killed in the assault, eight military members and one civilian contractor were wounded.
Civilian Contractor Tyrone Woods, Retired Navy SEAL, killed in Libya Embassy Attack
CNN September 14, 2012
Tyrone Woods became a Navy SEAL after his mother suggested he join the military. Friday afternoon, Cheryl Croft Bennett will attend a ceremony to honor the life of her son Ty and grieve his loss after his death along side three other Americans in Tuesday’s assault on the U.S. consulate in the Libyan city of Benghazi.
Woods, who had retired from the Navy, handled security for diplomats and perished with fellow former SEAL Glen Doherty, computer expert Sean Smith and U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens
On Thursday, a U.S. official confirmed Woods was among the dead. “Tyrone’s friends and colleagues called him ‘Rone,’ and they relied on his courage and skill, honed over two decades as a Navy SEAL,” said Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in a statement.
“In uniform, he served multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. Since 2010, he protected American diplomatic personnel in dangerous posts from Central America to the Middle East. He had the hands of a healer as well as the arm of a warrior, earning distinction as a registered nurse and certified paramedic. All our hearts go out to Tyrone’s wife Dorothy and his three sons, Tyrone Jr., Hunter, and Kai, who was born just a few months ago.”
Al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri implies American captive, Warren Weinstein, is alive in terror group’s possession
Zawahiri implies Weinstein is alive and in Al Qaeda custody, not to be freed “until the Crusaders release our captives” including Omar Abdel Rahman and Aafia Siddiqui according to a translation by the SITE Monitoring Service.
The New York Daily News September 12, 2012
WASHINGTON — Core Al Qaeda’s No. 1 peeked from his spider hole this week, issuing pared-down demands for release of a 71-year-old American kidnapped last year in Pakistan.
Ayman al-Zawahiri, who took after last for the slain Osama bin Laden briefly mentioned captive U.S. development contractor Warren Weinstein during a video eulogy for a fallen lieutenant.
Afghanistan Black Hawk helicopter crash leaves 7 U.S. troops, 2 Navy SEALS, 1 EOD, 4 others dead, includes 1 Afghan Interpreter
Sean P. Carson, 32, was assigned to an explosive ordnance disposal mobile unit in San Diego. Carson was an Explosive Ordnance Disposal Petty Officer, first class.
Petty Officer 1st Class Patrick D. Feeks, 28, was one of seven Americans killed in the crash Thursday during a firefight with insurgents northeast of Kandahar, officials said.
Associated Press August 20, 2012
HONOLULU—U.S. Army officials say four soldiers based at Schofield Barracks in Hawaii were killed last week when a Black Hawk helicopter crashed in Afghanistan.
The Taliban claimed they gunned down the Black Hawk, leading to the crash on Thursday.
Army officials said Monday that among the seven Americans and four Afghans killed were: 37-year-old Chief Warrant Officer Brian Hornsby of Melbourne, Fla., 29-year-old Chief Warrant Officer Suresh Krause, of Cathedral City, Calif., 41-year-old Sgt. Luis Galbreath of San Juan, Puerto Rico, and 23-year-old Sgt. Richard Essex of Kelseyville, Calif.
The soldiers identified were part of Schofield’s 25th Infantry Division.
The crash happened during a firefight with insurgents in a remote area of southern Afghanistan. It’s one of the deadliest air disasters of a war now into its second decade.
Three of the Americans were U.S. Navy sailors – two were Navy SEALS and one was an explosive ordnance disposal sailor.
US Navy SEAL Petty Officer 1st Class Patrick D. Feeks
US Navy Petty Officer First Class EOD Sean P Carson
Luis Galbreath
Reuters August 16, 2012
Eleven people were killed on Thursday in a Black Hawk helicopter crash in southern Afghanistan, including seven U.S. soldiers and three Afghan allies, the NATO-led force in the country said.
CBS News August 16, 2012
NATO says 11 people, including at least three American troops, have been killed in a helicopter crash in southern Afghanistan.
The nationalities of the other casualties was not immediately confirmed, but a statement to the media from the international military coalition said the dead were, “four International Security Assistance Force service members, three United States Forces-Afghanistan service members, three members of the Afghan National Security Forces, and one Afghan civilian interpreter.”
Afghan officials told the Reuters news agency the crash took place in the Shah Wali Kot district of Kandahar province.
The wording suggests four of the dead were members of the International Security Assistance Force-Afghanistan (ISAF) from other allied nations, and three were Afghan service personnel, plus the civilian.
USAID officer killed in Afghanistan
Information about the slain interpreter was not available.
US aid worker killed in Afghanistan was former Prince George’s County planner
WASHINGTON — A U.S. government aid worker killed in a suicide attack in Afghanistan was a former master planner for Prince George’s County.
Forty-three-year-old Ragaei Abdelfattah was killed Wednesday in the eastern Kunar province along with three coalition service members and an Afghan civilian.
The Washington Post (http://tinyurl.com/8ow2c7k ) reports that Abdelfattah was a native of Egypt and a naturalized American citizen who came to love the United States. He was married and had two teenage sons from a previous marriage.
In addition to his work for Prince George’s County, Abdelfattah spent five years with the Maryland-National Capital Parks and Planning Commission.
His wife, Angela Ruppe, says Abdelfattah was fulfilled by the development work he was doing in Afghanistan.
Huffington Post August 10, 2012
A suicide bomber in eastern Afghanistan killed three troops, a U.S. aid worker and an Afghan interpreter on Wednesday, CNN reported.
According to the Department of Defense, the attack occurred when an insurgent detonated a suicide vest in Sarkowi, Kunar Province.
Army Command Sgt. Maj. Kevin J. Griffith, 45, the senior enlisted soldier of the 4th Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division from Fort Carson, Colo., died in the explosion. Also killed were Army Maj. Thomas E. Kennedy, 35, of West Point, N.Y., Air Force Maj. Walter D. Gray, 38, of Conyers, Ga., and USAID Foreign Service Officer Ragaei Abdelfattah.
Several troops were also injured in the attack, but details were not released.
A 24-year Army veteran, Griffith had been deployed to Afghanistan in March after serving three tours in Iraq. He was posthumously awarded a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart, the Casper Star Tribune reported.
Kennedy joined the Army in 2000 and also received the Bronze Star. At the time of his death, he was serving on his third deployment, including two tours in Iraq.
Gray was an Air Liaison Officer and flight commander attached to Fort Carson through the 93rd Air Ground Operations Wing at Moody Air Force Base, the Colorado Springs Gazette reported. Although commissioned as an officer in 1997, he was previously an enlisted Airman and one of the Air Force’s first career Air Liaison Officers.
Abdelfattah recently began his second voluntary tour in Afghanistan to continue supporting the country’s stability and long-term development.
“With the work of people such as Ragaei, the civilian surge we launched in Afghanistan in 2009 has made a tremendous impact, strengthening the capacity of the Afghan Government and laying a foundation for long-term sustainable development. Though we are shocked and saddened by this loss and will miss Ragaei, our efforts will continue,” Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said.
Information about the slain interpreter was not available.
Associated Press at Sacbee August 9, 2012
WASHINGTON — The Obama administration says a U.S. government aid worker was killed in a suicide attack in Afghanistan.
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton condemned Wednesday’s attack by two men wearing suicide vests in the eastern Kunar province.
Clinton’s statement said USAID foreign service officer Ragaei Abdelfattah, three coalition service members and an Afghan civilian were killed. A State Department diplomat was injured.
Mark McGowan, Ex Soldiers, Private Security Contractor dies in Afghanistan
Ex-soldier dies in Afghanistan
Mr McGowan had previously served in the Parachute Regiment.
It is thought he left the Army to become a private security contractor, joining the lucrative “circuit”, as it is known.
The 32-year-old was engaged to be married and had two young children, Manus and Mila.
No details surrounding his death were available last night.
Luke Duffy June 27, 2012
I regretfully announce the loss of yet another fallen comrade and great friend,
Marc McGowan, sadly passed away yesterday while in Afghanistan.
He was a man of great character and a true friend. Always quick to laugh and see the funnier side of almost any event and situation, Marc was a man that could be relied upon to carry you through even the toughest of times.
Marc and I served together in the Parachute Regiment where we developed a strong bond that remained to this day. He will be missed by everyone who knew him.
Sleep well my friend.
U.S. civilian killed by Afghan gunmen
Kidron engineer killed in Afghanistan July 26, 2012
WOOSTER — A Kidron man taken hostage in Afghanistan in 2008 and held captive for 56 days before being released was shot and killed Monday in a rural part of that country.
Al Geiser, 65, of Kidron, was with two Afghans, one a business partner and close friend and the other a co-worker, and returning from a job that was part of a hydroelectric project when they were killed, according to a press release issued by Carl Wiebe, pastor of Kidron Mennonite Church.
The Associated Press reported gunmen killed three people in an ambush on a van in northern Afghanistan, and one of the victims was an electrical engineer who lived in the country for decades. However, the AP story did not contain the information of the American killed.
(AP) CNN News KABUL, Afghanistan – July 24, 2012
The U.S. embassy and Afghan officials say an American civilian who reportedly worked as an electrical engineer in northern Afghanistan has been killed by gunmen.
The U.S. Embassy on Tuesday could not provide further details because of privacy laws, but three Afghan security officials say the man, an electrical engineer working in Afghanistan for about 30 years, was shot Monday by gunmen as he rode in a mini-bus in northern Parwan province. The gunmen, two or three in number, also killed two Afghans, the driver and one of the man’s colleagues, they said.
Shirin Agha, the police chief in Parwan’s Siahgerd district, said on Tuesday that the American had been dressed in Afghan clothes and had a long beard
Overseas Civilian Contractors
CIVILIAN CONTRACTOR CASUALTIES
THE BEST KEPT SECRET OF THE WARS
At Least 59 Civilian Contractor Deaths Filed on in Second Quarter of 2012
At Least 49 Civilian Contractor Deaths Filed on in First Quarter of 2012
At Least 418 Civilian Contractor Deaths in 2011
Our Fallen Contractors Memorial
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A United Nations Mine Action Employee has filed a lawsuit against
for negligence after stepping on a landmine resulting in an immediate below the knee amputation in an area previously cleared by and certified clear of landmines by Ronco Consulting.
The United Nations board of inquiry found that Ronco failed to find the mine that injured Mr Fartham as well as three other mines.
The complaint states that Ronco Consulting, acting through it’s agents and/or employee’s, breached it’s professional duty of care to Fantham and did not exercise the reasonable care and skill expected of professional mine clearance companies.
Ronco Settles Negligence Lawsuit with UN Mine Action Employee
Ex Pat 2011 Tax Information UPDATED
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