Security Contractors' Strike Shuts Baghdad Airport to Civilian Traffic

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Security Contractors' Strike Shuts Baghdad Airport to Civilian
Traffic
Fri Jun 24, 2005 11:00 AM ET
By Luke Baker
BAGHDAD (Reuters) -

Security contractors at Baghdad airport went on strike on Friday as
part of a contract dispute between their British employer and the
Iraqi government, shutting down most of the country's civil aviation.

Staff working for British-based Global Risk Strategies walked off the
job at 5 p.m. (1300 GMT) and the company said operations to secure the
airport would be suspended indefinitely.

"We have suspended our operations at the airport," said Giles Morgan,
a spokesman for Global in London. "We'll resume work to ensure the
airport's security as soon as we've reached a satisfactory agreement
with Iraq's Ministry of Transport."

The U.S. military said plans were in place for soldiers to step in and
take over the contractor's guard duties, ensuring that the airport can
continue to be used for military operations. But all civilian use will
be blocked.

Sources with Global in Baghdad said the dispute centered on the Iraqi
government's failure to pay the company for its contract, a deal worth
several million dollars. Iraqi officials said the issue was being
dealt with but did not elaborate.

Global employs some 500 people at the airport, many of them Nepalese
former soldiers with British Gurkha units. The company took over the
contract to protect the airport in June 2004.

A spokeswoman for the Iraqi Transport Ministry said the issue had been
handed over to the prime minister's office, which did not immediately
respond to calls. Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Ja'afari is visiting the
United States.

The British consulate in Iraq said in a statement that Iraq's Ministry
of Transport had given it no indication of how it intended to resolve
the problem.

With resistance attacks on roads around the city, Baghdad airport is
the capital's main link to the outside world.

It is in near constant use by the U.S. and British military as well as
commercial operators, with around 50 commercial flights a day. Royal
Jordanian and Iraqi Airways have daily flights from Baghdad to Amman
and other destinations.

A U.S. military spokesman said the strike would not affect its
operations. One side of the airport, a vast complex on the western
outskirts of Baghdad, is dedicated to military use, with a separate
runway and air traffic control.

Commercial flights in and out of Baghdad have been suspended in the
past, either for security reasons or because of bad weather, but it is
the first time a contract dispute has threatened to close the airport.