A private security guard fatally shot an Iraqi taxi driver, Iraqi officials said Monday, in the latest incident involving what Iraqis believe are unprovoked killings by contractors hired to protect Americans, AP reported. U.S. Embassy spokesman Philip T. Reeker said DynCorp International, a Falls Church, Va.-based company, reported a «security incident» Saturday involving one of its teams and that the embassy's regional security office was «following this closely.» But Reeker could not confirm any details of the incident, including whether anyone was killed or wounded. «These are very upsetting incidents for everyone involved,» Reeker told reporters. DynCorp International is among three firms _ along with Blackwater Worldwide and Triple Canopy _ under contract to protect American diplomats and other officials in Iraq. Iraqi officials said the shooting took place Saturday at 12:45 p.m. across from a children's playground in Baghdad's Atafiyah neighborhood, when a taxi driver pulled up close to a convoy of seven U.S. vehicles driving through the area. Security personnel signaled for the taxi to pull away, and then one of the guards opened fire on the car, they said.
