CACI International

The Arlington, Virginia based CACI International has reincarnated itself under various names since it was founded in 1962 by Harry Markowitz, the 1990 Nobel laureate for Economics.[1] Presently, it employs 9500 individuals working in its more than 100 offices in North America and Europe. According to its website, it provides 'IT and network solutions' in an era of 'defense, intelligence and e-government'.[2] Between August and December 2003, CACI was awarded 11 contracts, worth about $66 million for work in Iraq alone.[3] In 2004 CACI was the subject of five different government investigations.[4]

CACI was one of the two companies named in the report by Major General Antonio M. Taguba on the Abu Ghraib Scandal. Steven Staphanovic, one of its employees, was said to have 'allowed and/or instructed MPs (military police), who were not trained in interrogation techniques, to facilitate interrogations by 'setting conditions' ... he clearly knew his instructions equated to physical abuse.'[5]

CACI has strong Israeli ties and according to Robert Fisk '[o]ne of Staphanovic's co-workers, Joe Ryan - who was not named in the Taguba report - now says he underwent an 'Israeli interrogation course' before going to Iraq.' J.P. London, the CEO of the company, visited Israel on a trip sponsored by an Israeli lobby group along with U.S. congressmen and other defense contractors. In early 2004 he also attended an 'anti-terror" training camp in Israel where he 'was presented with an award by Shaul Mofaz, the right-wing Israeli defense minister'. [6]

While the Interior Department's inspector general had blocked the Army placing new orders with CACI, this did not prevent the Army from awarding a new four-month contract for 'interrogation services' worth $15.3 million in August 2004 and a $16 million renewal of its earlier contract in early 2005.[7]