The U.S. State Department has renewed a contract for the Blackwater private military company to protect American diplomats in Iraq, officials said.

The company's contract renewal comes after an investigation into several of its guards suspected of taking part in a September shooting that killed 17 Iraqis in Baghdad, The New York Times reported Saturday.

Investigations by the FBI, the State Department and the Pentagon have not led to any U.S. charges against Blackwater personnel.

We cannot operate without private security firms in Iraq. If the contractors were removed, we would have to leave Iraq, said Patrick F. Kennedy, the under secretary of state for management.

It is reported some Blackwater employees may still face legal difficulty, as a federal grand jury is still examining evidence linked to the killings.

In a separate case, an ex-Blackwater guard reportedly may face charges for alleged involvement in the 2006 fatal shooting of an Iraqi guard.

In a third incident, two ex-Blackwater employees were sentenced to non-jail punishments after entering guilty pleas on weapons charges.

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