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To: Knighty Tin who wrote (264838)	10/27/2003 4:17:02 PM
From: Pogeu Mahone	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 436258

U.S. contractors weigh risks of working in Iraq Reuters, 10.27.03, 3:31 PM ET By Sue Pleming WASHINGTON, Oct 27 (Reuters) - U.S. contractors helping to rebuild Iraq weighed the risks of operating in such a hostile environment on Monday, after a string of deadly coordinated attacks in Baghdad. Suicide bombers struck four times in Baghdad on Monday, killing 35 people and wounding 230 in attacks that included one on the Red Cross. On Sunday, rockets pounded a hotel where a top Pentagon official was staying, killing a U.S. colonel and injuring 17 others. Government contractors, many of them with hundreds of millions of dollars in business at stake, said publicly they were committed to Iraq but privately voiced concern over the long term and said they wanted to keep a very low profile. "We are reluctant to become targets and so even to announce that we are staying there tells people that we are there on the ground and puts us at risk," said one U.S. contractor, who asked not to be named. The U.S. government has awarded billions of dollars in contracts in Iraq, and security plans for these companies change daily to avoid flashpoints, especially in Baghdad. Ellen Yount, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Agency for International Development, said the security of contractors and USAID's own staff was the agency's prime concern. Staff and contractors staying at Baghdad's Rashid Hotel had been evacuated after Sunday's attack. "From a logistical point of view this will put certain constraints on us but we continue to move forward with our work under these conditions," Yount told Reuters, stressing most work outside of Baghdad was going on as planned and on target. Some contractors are looking at cutting expatriate staff, but Yount said it was too soon to say whether this would happen. "We have not seen wide-scale, scaling back that would negatively affect the work we have been doing," she said. The biggest U.S. government contractor in Iraq is a subsidiary of Halliburton, the oil services company once run by Vice President Dick Cheney, which has so far clocked up more than $3.5 billion worth of business in Iraq. Halliburton (nyse: HAL - news - people) spokeswoman Wendy Hall said three employees had been killed in Iraq so far and security remained a top priority. "For safety and security reasons for our employees located in the region we do not detail our assessments and precautions in support of our efforts," she said in response to an e-mailed question about security issues. San Francisco engineering company Bechtel has a contract worth more than $1 billion with USAID and says working in Iraq is the most challenging job it has done to date. "Obviously these type of situations are of concern and of course we have to go back and look at our planning and make sure that from a security front we are doing what we should be doing to keep people safe," said spokeswoman Alison Abbott. USAID has issued several grants to NGOs and U.N. agencies, many of which have slashed their staffing since the bombing of the U.N.'s Baghdad headquarters. Richard Alderslade, the World Health Organization's senior external relations officer for health policy, said WHO had a small number of international staff in Iraq and was operating mostly from neighboring countries. He said the targeted attacks on the Red Cross could have serious consequences. "It will definitely cause a serious reflection about the presence of international agencies and will not help with the U.N. returning," he said. Copyright 2003, Reuters News Service