Why is Blackwater founder Erik Prince building a mercenary army for the United Arab Emirates? The Nation‘s Jeremy Scahill thinks the contracted guns will be much less involved in maintaining the peace than they will in suppressing any dissent within the country.

Joining Amy Goodman on Democracy Now! this morning, Scahill explains that the main purpose of Prince’s secret deal with the monarchy will be to crack down on any unrest from the country’s massive guest worker population. Prince has also discussed covertly sending private military contractors into other countries in the region to confront any influence from Iran—a move that would only fan the flames of tension in the Middle East. 

 Check out Scahill’s full response to Prince’s mercenary army and the implications it will have in the region.

—Kevin Gosztola