War on terror mired in graft as Pentagon billions are probed

Source Times (UK)

The Pentagon's multi-billion-dollar operation to supply food and military equipment to US troops in Iraq and Afghanistan is run in chaos and corruption. American officials are taking millions of dollars in bribes and a local supplier is accused of having links to the Iranian nuclear weapons program. The war on terror has created a web of bribery, fraud and waste centered on US military contractors across two conflict zones, an investigation by The Times of London has found. A recent US Senate report stated that, in addition to offering contracts to companies with ties to Iranian intelligence, the Pentagon was hiring private security companies in Afghanistan that were suspected of having ties to the Taliban and links to criminal networks. Investigators for the US Special Inspector-General for Iraq Reconstruction were working on 110 suspected fraud cases at the latest count. At least a dozen US army procurement officers have been convicted of taking kickbacks for awarding Pentagon contracts to corrupt suppliers.