dwell on the corrupt deals through which many of the security contracts were awarded but admits to being "stunned by the sheer numbers of cowboys, Walter Mittys and posers I saw". All of them had legal immunity while working in Iraq. And to maximise profits, the security companies plumped for cheap labour: as a result the Iraqi parliament is now defended by former Ugandan soldiers and homesick ex-policemen from Peru.

And there was another reason why the Americans and their allies in Iraq - including Britain - liked employing security companies. They were truly cannon fodder: a way of keeping down politically sensitive casualties in the US or British armies because nobody cared if a former South African or Croatian soldier was blown apart.