**Xe, the US security firm formerly known as Blackwater, has reached a settlement in a number of lawsuits over the killings of Iraqi civilians.**The lawsuits sought compensation for deaths and injuries incurred in such incidents as the killing of 17 Iraqis in 2007.
The settlement comes a week after a judge dismissed all criminal charges against five Blackwater employees.
The amount of the settlement has not been disclosed.
The civil lawsuits accused the firm’s founder, Erik Prince, of cultivating a climate of recklessness.
“Mr Prince personally directed and permitted a heavily-armed private army… to roam the streets of Baghdad killing innocent civilians,” one of the lawsuits said.
Xe released a statement saying it was pleased a settlement had been reached:
“This enables Xe’s new management to move the company forward free of the costs and distractions of ongoing litigation, and provides some compensation to Iraqi families.”
On 31 December 2009, a US federal judge dismissed all charges against five Blackwater guards who were accused of opening fire on a crowd in Baghdad’s Nisoor Square, killing 17 civilians.
District Judge Ricardo Urbina said the US justice department had used inadmissible evidence.