Three from Democracynow.org

Court Martial of First Officer to Refuse Iraq Deployment Ends in Mistrial The court martial of the first US army officer to refuse to fight in theIraq war has ended in a mistrial. On Wednesday, a military judge halted the case against First Lieutenant Ehren Watada over possible inconsistencies in a pre-trial agreement Watada made with prosecutors. Geoffrey Millard of Truthout.org reports from Fort Lewis in Washington. Listen/Watch/Read
http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/02/08/1611225

Blackwater USA Takes Congressional Hot-Seat as Landmark Hearing ProbesMercenary Firm's Role in Iraq The private security company Blackwater admitted on Tuesday for the first time that one of its employees shot and killed an Iraqi guard inside the Green Zone in December. The disclosure came during a landmark hearing on the role of private contractors in Iraq. Among those to testify was Katy Helvenston. Her son Scott was one of the four Blackwater employees killed in Fallujah in 2004. Katy Helvenston joins us to talk about why she wants Blackwater held accountable for her son's death. We're also joined by Jeremy Scahill, author of the forthcoming book, Blackwater: The Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army.
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http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/02/08/1611238

The Missing Billions: Ex-Iraq Occupation Chief Paul Bremer Questioned on Oversight, Spending of Iraqi Money Three former Army officers and two civilians have been indicted for diverting $3.6 million in Iraq reconstruction money to a contractor in exchange for cash, luxury cars and jewelry. The announcement came one day after the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform held a hearing about how billions of dollars set aside for the Iraq Reconstruction have gone missing. Corpwatch Managing editor Pratap Chatterjee attended the hearing. He joins us from Washington.Listen/Watch/Read
http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/02/08/1611246