Trump pardons Blackwater contractors convicted of Iraq massacre

The incident in Baghdad's Nisoor Square deeply strained US-Iraqi ties and marred the reputation of the paramilitary company.
An Iraqi woman walks past 24 September 2007, at a burnt car on the site where Blackwater guards who were escorting US embassy officials opened fire in the western Baghdad neighbourhood of Yarmukh, a shootout which left, 16 September 2007, nine civilians and a policeman dead. Iraq said today that it will await the outcome of an investigation into the killing of 10 people during the shootout before taking any action against the company. AFP PHOTO/ALI YUSSEF (Photo credit should read ALI YUSSEF/AFP via Getty I
An Iraqi woman walks past a burned car on Sept. 24, 2007, at the site where Blackwater guards opened fire in the western Baghdad neighborhood of Yarmukh. - ALI YUSSEF/AFP via Getty Images
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Jared Szuba
@JM_Szuba

As one of his final acts in office, US President Donald Trump granted full pardons to four former Blackwater paramilitary contractors convicted of killing 14 Iraqi civilians in a 2007 massacre in Iraq's capital.

Nicholas Slatten, who is believed to have fired the first shots, was sentenced to life in prison in 2014 for his role in the contractors' indiscriminate shooting in Baghdad's Nisoor Square. Paul Slough, Evan Liberty and Dustin Heard were found guilty of manslaughter and weapons charges for their roles in the incident.

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