Several United Nations experts claim that President Trump violated international law when he pardoned four United States contractors who killed Iraqi civilians.
Last week, Trump announced pardons for several people, including Nicholas Slatten, Paul Slough, Evan Liberty, and Dustin Heard. The men were formerly with Blackwater, which is now known as Academi, and were convicted of killing civilians in Nisour Square in Baghdad, Iraq, in 2007. The U.N. group, consisting of five experts, blasted the move in a Wednesday statement.
“Pardoning the Blackwater contractors is an affront to justice and to the victims of the Nisour Square massacre and their families,” said Jelena Aparac, chairwoman-rapporteur of the U.N.’s working group on the use of mercenaries.
“The Geneva Conventions oblige States to hold war criminals accountable for their crimes, even when they act as private security contractors,” Aparac continued. “These pardons violate US obligations under international law and more broadly undermine humanitarian law and human rights at a global level.”
Slatten, who fired the first shots during the 2007 incident, was sentenced to life in prison on a first-degree murder charge, and the three other guards were convicted of manslaughter and weapons charges. In total, 14 civilians were killed, and more than a dozen were wounded.
In addition to the four former contractors, Trump also announced pre-Christmas pardons for George Papadopoulos and Alex van der Zwaan, both of whom were charged in connection with special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation. The president pardoned two former congressmen and commuted the sentence of a third.
Trump has also reportedly asked aides about preemptive pardons and about pardons for his family and himself. President-elect Joe Biden is set to be inaugurated next month.
