In Iraq, the Iraqi Interior Ministry says it’s probing allegations the private military firm Blackwater authorized around $1 million to bribe Iraqi officials following the September 2007 killings of seventeen Iraqi civilians in Baghdad. The New York Times revealed this week the payments were approved after the Iraqi government called for Blackwater’s expulsion from Iraq, threatening the company’s lucrative annual contract. It’s unknown if any Iraqi officials ultimately accepted the payments. Meanwhile, former Blackwater vice president Cofer Black has denied an account from other former company executives that he confronted Blackwater founder Erik Prince about the bribes. In a statement, Black said he was “unaware of any plot or guidance for Blackwater to bribe Iraqi officials.”