Until now, all American contractors have avoided Iraq’s jurisdiction under a rule issued by the CPA in 2004 that said contractors were “immune from Iraqi legal process.”…
The SOFA explicitly ends that immunity for contractors working for the military or Defense Department. The agreement says nothing about contractors such as Blackwater that work for civilian agencies such as the State Department — and it is unclear how much their operations would be affected, if at all.
Adnan al-Asadi, a senior deputy in Iraq’s Ministry of Interior, said Iraqi police will be able to search the offices and vehicles of private security contractors, confiscate illegal weapons and expel companies operating without a license…
Doug Brooks, president of the International Peace Operations Association, a trade group in Washington, called the SOFA “terrible.” He said contractors will “have no protection” from arrest and detention.
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