WASHINGTON (AFP) — The White House on Tuesday kept at arm's length from a boiling dispute in Iraq, where authorities have ordered an end to operations by a private US security firm after it opened fire on civilians.
"I would just say, on behalf of the administration, that any loss of innocent life is deeply regretted," said Dana Perino, US President George W. Bush's chief spokeswoman.
Perino referred questions about Blackwater contractors, who are hired to protect US officials in Iraq including Ambassador Ryan Crocker, to the US State Department and declined to say what the company's legal status is in Iraq.
"I know the Department of State has said that they are going to look into the matter and that they would be open and transparent," she said.
Her comments came two days after Blackwater guards escorting US embassy officials opened fire in Baghdad's Al-Yarmukh neighbourhood, killing 10 people and wounding 13.
Iraq's interior ministry ordered the cancellation of the company's operating license after the incident Sunday.
Repeated calls to Blackwater in the United States for comment on the shooting and the reaction in Iraq have gone unanswered.
US and Iraqi sources in Baghdad said the shooting erupted after a bomb exploded near a US diplomatic convoy, but a US government incident report said armed insurgents fired on the convoy and Blackwater guards responded.
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