UAE hired ex-Blackwater boss to form army
The billionaire founder of Blackwater Worldwide, a scandal-plagued US security firm accused of abuses in Iraq, was hired by the crown prince of Abu Dhabi to put together an 800-member battalion of foreign troops, The New York Times reports. Citing unnamed US officials and corporate documents, the newspaper said that Erik Prince, who came to live in the United Arab Emirates last year after his security business faced mounting legal problems in the United States, is using $529 million from the sheikhdom to complete the mission. The force is intended to conduct special operations missions inside and outside the country, defend oil pipelines and skyscrapers from terrorist attacks, and put down internal revolts, the report said.
San Francisco Chronicle: Foreign mercenary army in United Arab Emirates