Report of the Inquiry into the Role and Oversight of Private Security Contractors in Afghanistan: Free Audiobook and Listening Guide

Report of the Inquiry into the Role and Oversight of Private Security Contractors in Afghanistan, credited to United States Senate Committee on Armed Services, is available as a LibriVox volunteer audiobook. This guide identifies the recording, its source summary and its audio tracks.

About the work

The LibriVox catalogue summary, preserved with the recording, reads:

LibriVox recording of The Inquiry into the Role and Oversight of Private Security Contractors in Afghanistan. The Inquiry into the Role and Oversight of Private Security Contractors in Afghanistan, which reported in September 2010, was precipitated by events in August 2008, when US forces bombed the Afghan village of Azizabad. This gave rise to a public dispute between the US Government and the United Nations about the level of fatalities caused by the attack and about whether those killed had been civilians or Taliban-linked insurgents. Allegations soon emerged that the attack had been based on false information deliberately fed to the US military by Afghan employees of ArmorGroup, a private security contractor, and that these employees were engaged in murder and anti-coalition activities. A key local contact of ArmorGroup, who they dubbed "Mr Pink", was subsequently convicted of espionage and sentenced to death, but was later freed. According to the committee's chair, Carl Levin, the investigation "uncovered a significant amount of evidence that a number of security contractors working under Department of Defense contracts and subcontracts funneled US taxpayer dollars to Afghan warlords and strongmen linked to murder, kidnapping and bribery, as well as to Taliban and anti-coalition activities". (Summary by Carl Manchester)

Recording facts

• Recording title: Report of the Inquiry into the Role and Oversight of Private Security Contractors in Afghanistan
• Author credits: United States Senate Committee on Armed Services
• Language: English
• Original MP3 tracks: 22
• Listed recording duration: 6:04:36

Catalogue topics

• non-fiction
• government
• report

Track guide

1. 01 - Executive Summary — 29:01
2. 02 - Conclusions — 10:53
3. 03 - Introduction — 12:30
4. 04 - Background, 8/21/08, Contractor Personnel — 19:02
5. 05 - ArmorGroup Hires; Ambush on Mr White; IED... — 14:31
6. 06 - Pink Murders/Killing Has Impact/Fallout — 12:08
7. 07 - ArmorGroup meets, Feud Continues, Pink is Now — 15:10
8. 08 - ArmorGroup Mine Action, AGMA Identifies — 16:25
9. 09 - Weapons Confiscated, Lead Up, The Azizabad Raid — 11:56
10. 10 - Reaction, Reports Claim, AGMA Finds — 14:34
11. 11 - White III's Men Observed, Improvised Explosive Devices, ArmorGroup and ArmorGroup Mine Action Wind Down — 11:53
12. 12 - EODT Relies on Local Strongmen to Staff U.S. Contract — 22:40
13. 13 - Wahab, Haji Dawoud — 19:11
14. 14 - Commander Blue, US Military Oversight — 17:13
15. 15 - The Need For Government Oversight, Government Oversight — 15:48
16. 16 - Rules Governing Armed Private Security Contractors — 4:49
17. 17 - Arming Authority — 18:19
18. 18 - Training — 26:14
19. 19 - Performance — 24:56
20. 20 - Private Security Personnel and Military Functions, Accuracy, Reliability, and Completeness, DOD Database — 13:04
21. 21 - Private Security Contracting and Long-Term Stability — 25:42
22. 22 - Task Force Established, Committee Action, Additional Views — 0:26

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