Poland Decorates Blackwater Men for Valor - First Awards to Foreigners Since World War II

The government of Poland has bestowed its Silver Star and Bronze Star combat medals on foreigners for the first time since World War II - and Blackwater security men were the recipients.

Polish Ambassador to Iraq Edward Pietrzyk (fourth from right) presented the awards on behalf of his government in a January, 2008 ceremony to recognize the Blackwater guards for evacuating him by helicopter after an October 2007 assassination attempt. Poland is one of the most important NATO allies in Iraq.

The State Department's internal State Magazine has the story in its April, 2008 issue. The award ceremony was considered so important that US Ambassador Ryan Crocker (third from right) and General David Petraeus (left) attended and posed for pictures with the contractors. The above photo, picturing some of the Blackwater men, appears in the magazine.

Here's how the State Department describes the event:

"On January 25, Poland's ambassador to Iraq, Edward Pietrzyk, honored the heroism of 18 members of the US Embassy in Baghdad's regional security office who helped rescue his motorcade when it came under attack in Baghdad in October.

"The motorcade was struck by four roadside bombs and a barrage of small-arms fire from more than two dozen assailants. One member of the Polish Special Forces security detail was killed, several were wounded and Pietrzyk was severely burned.

"During the midday attack, the Polish security detail contacted the RSO's tactical operation center, which dispatched two helicopters. The arriving personnel found the motorcade group sheltering in a residential compound and provided first aid while evacuating the wounded. Ambassador Pietrzyk was flown to a combat surgical hospital and later to Poland. After several months of treatment, he returned to Iraq.

"In the award ceremony, with gloves still protecting his badly burned hands, the ambassador pinned on the shirts of his rescuers Poland's Silver and Bronze Star medals, the first time these awards had been given to foreigners since World War II.

"Attending were US Ambassador Ryan Crocker and General David Petraeus, commander of the Multi-National Forces - Iraq. Ambassador Crocker noted the long history of Polish-US mutual assistance.

"The award recipients are employees of the contractor Blackwater and work with the RSO to protect Mission Iraq staff."

Click here for a PDF of the April 2008 State Magazine. Scroll down to page 3 for the Blackwater rescue story.

Poland decorates Blackwater men for saving ambassador's life

Poland's ambassador to Iraq has decorated Blackwater security professionals for their role in rescuing him and his aides after an October 3 assassination attempt in Baghdad.

Ambassador Edward Pietrzyk was badly burned in the ambush, and one of his guards was killed. He is pictured, bandaged, being rescued by troops. A Blackwater guard is shown at center-left in the blue-gray tee shirt, to place the ambassador on one of the company's "Little Bird" helicopters.

Speaking with reporters on February 4, US Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker revealed that the Ambassador Pietrzyk bestowed medals on the Blackwater men: "Last week, the Polish Ambassador decorated about a dozen of them for saving his life back in October."

Wounded Polish ambassador makes slight recovery

Poland's Ambassador to Iraq, whom a Blackwater helicopter team rescued last week after an assassination attempt in Baghdad, is starting to recover from his injuries.

Ambassador Edward Pietrzy is suffering burns on 25 percent of his body and in his respiratory tract after terrorists bombed and shot up his diplomatic convoy October 3.

Polish external radio says Pietrzy is being awakened from an induced coma and is in "serious but stable" condition.

Since the attack, Poland has moved its Baghdad embassy into the Green Zone, AHN reports.

The US Embassy in Baghdad called Blackwater to send in one of its "Little Bird" helicopters to rescue Ambassador Pietrzy and his aides immediately after learning of the attack (see picture). The US military had no available aircraft or crew in the area who could land a helicopter in the street to recover the diplomat.

Photos show pilot skill in rescuing Polish envoy

Photos of the dramatic October 3 rescue of Polish Ambassador Edward Pietrzy show just how risky the maneuver was for the skilled Blackwater helicopter pilot.

It's no small thing to land a helicopter with its spinning rotor blades into a city street. Apart from possible terrorists and insurgents, the real dangers to the crew were the many lightposts and telephone and electrical lines that bordered the landing area.

In the top photo, the Blackwater "Little Bird" is shown landing, with high lamp posts on the right and what appear to be telephone or electrical poles on the left. The lower photo shows phone or electrical wires strung across the street. The slightest pilot error, shift in weight or unexpected wind could have caused havoc with the helicopter and with the people on the ground. The mission, however, was a complete success.

Positive press amid the feeding frenzy

While the press piles on Blackwater, usually ignoring or minimizing the company's unmatched accomplishments in Iraq, we find some bright spots in the media reporting and commentary. They include:

Bob Orr, "Blackwater: Who are these guys?" CBS News, October 5. Weighing what Blackwater's detractors and supporters say, Bob Orr of CBS News (pictured) writes, "Blackwater is effective. No Blackwater client has ever been killed. And the fact is there aren’t enough soldiers to do the jobs taken on by Blackwater and other security contractors. Add to that Blackwater’s intense training program and the fact that its employees are not amateurs – most come from elite military commando units, like Delta Force and Navy SEALS."

Even a Blackwater arch-critic, bestselling author of a book on the company, concedes a positive word. As Orr reports on CBS Evening News, "Some on Capitol Hill want Blackwater to be reined in. But, Jeremy Scahill, who wrote a book on the rise of Blackwater, says it's doing the jobs an already-stretched military can't handle. 'It's become one of the most powerful private actors in the so-called war on terror,' Scahill said."

Oliver North, "Henry Waxman should suspend vendetta against Blackwater," Fox News, October 4.

"Blackwater credited with diplomatic rescue," AeroNews.com, October 4. "Accused of cowboy tactics in Iraq and Afghanistan, the subject of Congressional hearings and the most despised private US security firm operating in American theaters of operations, Blackwater USA demonstrated Wednesday that even under fire, it can still get it right," the aviation industry news service reports.

"Witness the extraction of the critically wounded Polish ambassador to Iraq, blasted along with a member of his staff by a roadside bomb in downtown Baghdad.

"Gen. Edward Pietrzyk, Poland's ambassador to Baghdad, was suffered burns to his head, arms and hands as well as wounds to his leg in a blast that killed one of his employees and an Iraqi civilian. He and the other wounded members of his party were airlifted from the bomb site by helicopters operated by Blackwater USA."

"CBS News reports Blackwater's helos landed in the narrow street and picked up all the wounded, even though the contractor wasn't involved in protecting the Polish convoy. In spite of the effort, Blackwater is still under heavy fire from Iraqi government officials."

Greg Pollowitz, "Blackwater in the news, rescuing Polish ambassador from a horrific car bombing," National Review Online, October 3. Caption on article: "Underreported news."