The Nisour Square massacre occurred on September 16, , when employees of Blackwater Security Consulting now Constellis , a private military company contracted by the United States government to provide security services in Iraq , shot at Iraqi civilians, killing 17 and injuring 20 in Nisour Square, Baghdad , while escorting a U. Blackwater guards claimed that the convoy was ambushed and that they fired at the attackers in defense of the convoy.
The Iraqi government and Iraqi police investigator Faris Saadi Abdul stated that the killings were unprovoked. State Department has said that "innocent life was lost", [ 13 ] and according to The Washington Post , a military report appeared to corroborate "the Iraqi government's contention that Blackwater was at fault".
However, after "Raven 23" entered Nisour Square, Watson was ordered to "lock down the traffic circle to expedite the travel of [the other Blackwater team]". During opening arguments for a criminal trial held in , defense lawyers representing former Blackwater members of Raven 23 argued the men felt the approaching Kia was a credible threat as a possible car bomb, and opened fire in self-defense. Prosecutors argued the men did not face hostile gunfire when they began shooting, and continued to shoot despite the lack of threats.
The Kia continued to roll forward after the driver was killed, according to an eyewitness, and Raven 23 continued to fire on it, killing the passenger the driver's mother ; eventually, the Kia was struck by a grenade and was incinerated. A State Department spot report published the same day as the incident stated that eight to ten attackers opened fire on Raven 23 "from multiple nearby locations, with some aggressors dressed in civilian apparel and others in Iraqi police uniforms" after the convoy had entered Nisour Square, [ 26 ] starting at p.
Raven 23 "returned defensive fire" and withdrew from Nisour Square with one of its BearCat vehicles in tow. As Raven 23 was departing Nisour Square, several members continued to discharge their weapons, causing additional civilian deaths and injuries. Army convoy arrived at p. An Iraqi government account of the incident stated that as the convoy drew close to Nisour Square, a Kia sedan with a woman and her adult son in it was approaching the square from a distance, driving slowly on the wrong side of the road, and that the driver ignored a police officer's whistle to clear a path for the convoy.
