Report: Blackwater Executives OK'd Bribes After Iraqi Shootings

Blackwater's then-president Gary Jackson approved the payments in late 2007 as the outcry over the killings grew, according to the New York Times. But company officials who spoke to the newspaper said they did not know who the cash was intended for or whether it was ever delivered.

In September 2007, 17 Iraqis were killed in Nisour Square when guards protecting a convoy of U.S. diplomats opened fire on a crowd. The killings drew harsh criticisms of the role of private contractors in war zones and particularly against Blackwater.

The company changed its name to Xe in February.

A spokesman for Xe called the allegations "baseless" and said the company would not comment about former employees. Blackwater's former vice chairman Cofer Black dismissed the Times story, saying that he was "unaware of any plot or guidance for Blackwater to bribe Iraqi officials." Cofer said he met U.S. officials to discuss the best course of action after the incident.

"Blackwater was directed to provide some financial compensation to relatives of those Iraqi victims which embassy officials described as called for by Iraqi custom," Black said in a statement. "During these meetings with embassy officials, Blackwater sought state department leadership in dispensing any such good faith compensation from Blackwater to the victims' relatives as Blackwater was subordinate to the state department as its security contractor."

A senior State Department official told the Times that U.S. diplomats were unaware of any payoffs to Iraqi officials.

Five Blackwater guards involved in the Nisour Square shooting will face trial on federal manslaughter charges in February. A sixth guard pleaded guilty in December. A number of Iraqi victims are also suing the company.