Unity Resources Group

Unity Resources Group is an Australian-owned[1] private military and security consulting company.

Unity Resources Group
Private Company
IndustrySecurity, Consulting
Founded2000
FounderGordon Conroy
Headquarters
Singapore
,
Singapore
Websiteunityresourcesgroup.com

Background

Unity Resources Group (Unity) was established in Australia in 2000 and operates across the core markets of Australia, Africa, The Americas, the Middle East, Central Asia and Europe.[2]

It describes itself as having a "diverse client base, spanning government, non-government and multi-national business sectors".[3]

With the conclusion of the war in Iraq in 2003, Unity developed the business from a small consultancy through to independently winning and managing a number of large contracts with multi-national corporates and government agencies which continue to be serviced by Unity today.

The company is mainly staffed by Australian nationals.[4] However, in 2010 most of the guard duties at the Australian embassy in Baghdad were being done by Chilean military veterans.[5]

Unity is a member of the International Stability Operations Association, and was a member of the Private Security Company Association of Iraq before that organisation dissolved in 2011.[6]

Services

Unity offers the following services:[7]

  • Security Services
  • Advisory Services
  • Crisis Services
  • Aviation Services
  • Facilities Management

Unity has partnered with Tokio Marine HCC to provide its Kidnap and Ransom policyholders with crisis response services on a worldwide basis.[8]

Subsidiary companies
Australia
  • Unity Resources Group Pty Ltd
Asia
  • Unity Resources Pakistan Pvt Ltd
  • Unity Resources Group Pte Ltd
Middle East
  • Unity Resources Group Pte Ltd – Iraq
Africa
  • Unity Resources Group (Kenya) Ltd
Europe
  • Unity Resources Group UK Ltd
  • Unity Aviation Ltd

Incidents

On 17 January 2007, American aid worker Andrea "Andi" Parhamovich and three of her URG guards were killed when their convoy was ambushed by insurgents in the Baghdad neighbourhood of Yarmouk. Parhamovich was returning from a meeting at Iraqi Islamic Party headquarters when the well-planned attack occurred. There had been three reported attacks in and around Yarmouk in the previous five days.[9]

On 9 October 2007, employees of the company shot at an approaching car in Baghdad. Two civilian women, both in the front seat, were killed: Marou Awanis, 48, a mother of three, and Genevia Askander, 30.[10] The shooting has provoked strong outrage in Iraq, since it follows closely on the Blackwater Baghdad shootings of 16 September 2007 that led to the Iraqi government's attempt to ban Blackwater from Iraq.[11] Both women have been identified as Armenian Christians.[12][13]

The company defends the actions of its employees who fired over nineteen rounds of ammunition before speeding away from the scene and has since been cleared of any wrongdoing.[14][15] Unity is the security provider for USAID contractor RTI International. RTI was however not the client under protection when the shooting occurred.[16] The passengers in the back seat, including one child, survived the incident.[11]

In March 2006, a Unity employee was blamed in the shooting of a 72-year-old Australian at a checkpoint in Baghdad.[16] The victim, Professor Kays Juma, had been a resident of Baghdad for 25 years and drove through the city every day. It was alleged that he sped up his vehicle as he approached the guards.[17]

In May 2016, a bodyguard died at the Australian embassy in Baghdad when he was shot in the head. A colleague was allowed to fly back to Australia after being interviewed by Australian Federal Police. Both men were former Australian soldiers employed by URG.[18][19][20] In late 2019, an inquest into the death was being held in the Brisbane Coroners Court.[21]

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References
  1. Security company Unity Resources Group defends shooting by Mary Dunn, Herald Sun (Australia), 11 October 2007.
  2. "International Development – Unity Resources Group". devex.com. 2011. Retrieved 7 June 2011.
  3. About Unity Archived 11 October 2007 at the Wayback Machine from the Unity Resource Group website.
  4. Dubai security firm admits to latest Iraq shooting, ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Co.) & Reuters, 10 October 2007
  5. Mendes, Jessicah; Mitchell, Scott (15 September 2010). "Chilean mercenaries guarding Australian embassy". ABC News. Retrieved 15 May 2016.
  6. "Home – Unity Resources Group". Retrieved 22 April 2016.
  7. "Unity Resources Group | Risk Management". unityresourcesgroup.com. 2011. Archived from the original on 23 June 2011. Retrieved 8 June 2011.
  8. "Tokio Marine HCC | Specialty Insurance".
  9. Hastings, Michael (2008). I Lost My Love in Baghdad (First ed.). New York, NY: Scribner. p. 216. ISBN 978-1-4165-6097-5.
  10. McNeill, Sophie (21 November 2007). "The Killing of Mary Awanis". Special Broadcasting Service (Australia). Retrieved 14 May 2016.
  11. Aussies in Iraqi firing line by Tom Allard and Craig Skehan, The Sydney Morning Herald, 11 October 2007.
  12. 2 Women Killed in Security Shooting Are Buried in Iraq by Andre E. Kramer and James Glanz, The New York Times, 11 October 2007.
  13. Private security guards kill two Iraqi Christian women, Daily News wire services, 10 October 2007.
  14. Security company Unity Resources Group defends shooting by Mary Dunn, Herald Sun (Australia),11 October 2007.
  15. Threat Levels by Daniel Politi, Slate, 10 October 2007.
  16. Funeral for 2 Slain in Security Shooting by Qassim Abdul-Zahra, Associated Press, 10 October 2007.
  17. "Australia withdraws troops guarding Iraq embassy". ABC News. Retrieved 10 August 2011.
  18. Wroe, David; Murdoch, Lindsay (18 May 2016). "Former commando Sun McKay bound for Australia as investigation into embassy shooting death continues". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 20 October 2016.
  19. Welch, Dylan (18 May 2016). "Baghdad embassy shooting: Bodyguard found at scene of suspicious death en route to Australia". ABC News. Retrieved 20 October 2016.
  20. Greene, Andrew (21 May 2016). "Baghdad embassy shooting: URG lashes out at critics following bodyguard's death". ABC News. Retrieved 20 October 2016.
  21. Vujkovic, Melanie (5 November 2019). "Chris Betts coronial inquest hears Sun McKay labelled a 'loose cannon' in texts sent to DFAT staffer". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
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