Can civilians become mercenaries?

In simplest terms, a mercenary is an armed civilian paid to do military operations in a foreign conflict zone. For example, civilians conducting direct actions or training troops in foreign conflict zones are mercenaries because they are performing uniquely military functions.

Can you legally become a mercenary?

Under current laws and regulations, it is not illegal for a U.S. citizen to provide combat services as a foreign mercenary fighter. The closest legal prohibition to U.S. mercenaries might be found in the Neutrality Act (18 U.S.C.

Can a civilian become a mercenary?

Mercenaries are usually former military personnel who take on war combat jobs. Most western nations, including the US, have laws that prevent their citizens from acting as mercenaries.

Can you be a mercenary without military experience?

Whether or not you've been in the military, you follow the same method for joining a private military contractor company. Many contractors recruit prior military and nonmilitary professionals. In that case, a recruiter helps you determine the best position based on your interest and background.

Can US citizens hire mercenaries?

The use and recruitment of mercenaries are legally forbidden by the 1989 International Convention against the Recruitment, Use, Financing and Training of Mercenaries. A mercenary is defined as any person who is specially recruited locally or abroad in order to fight in an armed conflict.

Do you need military experience to get defense contractor jobs?

How much do Blackwater mercenaries get paid?

Average Blackwater Security hourly pay ranges from approximately $15.75 per hour for Security Officer to $17.49 per hour for Patrol Officer.

Is hiring mercenaries a war crime?

The 1989 International Convention made the recruitment, use, training, and financing of mercenaries illegal. It also forbids the recruitment of people to fight in an armed conflict or for private gain.

Are mercenaries well paid?

The average mercenary salary in the USA is $75,000 per year or $36.06 per hour. Entry level positions start at $50,000 per year while most experienced workers make up to $100,000 per year.

How much money do mercenaries make?

Some mercenaries make $500 to $1,500 per day. Interrogators are rumored to make up to $14,000 per week. The salary ranges from $89,000 to $250,000 per year. Employer, experience, expertise, specialty, location, and danger potential ultimately determine the paycheck.

How do I join Blackwater?

(1) Three (3) years of military, similar police, or local guard force experience. (2) Familiarity with physical security and access control matters. This experience and background may have been gained in any of the following assignments: U.S. Department of State Diplomatic Security Service.

Why are mercenaries banned?

By the 20th century, the market for force was defunct. The mid-century surge in underground private warfare prompted Geneva Protocols I and II in 1977 that banned mercenaries. The primary objection is that they were warriors without a state, fighting for money rather than national ideology.

Is it illegal to fight as a mercenary?

Mercenaries have been banned by several treaties like the UN Mercenary Convention, which prohibits states from recruiting, using, financing and training mercenaries and requires them to criminalize mercenarism domestically.

What is the largest mercenary company?

Currently Blackwater (Xe Services LLC, Academi) is the largest organization of its kind in the world. The company has a headquarters located in North Carolina.

What happens to mercenaries when captured?

If arrested, mercenaries are not entitled to the status of prisoners of war, but the detaining power can decide to treat them according to this status. They must always be treated humanely according to the fundamental guarantees of humanitarian law, as defined by Article 75 of API.

How do you become a US mercenary?

The majority of classic mercenary-like jobs on the market today typically require past military or law enforcement experience. Even better, is previous experience working in the special forces of the army, USMC, navy, or air force if seeking the higher paying security-related jobs available on the market.

What is a blackwater mercenary?

Government Contracts

During the war in Iraq, Blackwater was one of several private security companies use to guard officials, security guards, and military installations, train the Iraqi army and police forces, and provide other support for armed forces.

What do private mercenaries do?

PMCs specialize in providing combat and protection forces. Their work ranges from running small-scale training missions to providing combat units composed of up to several hundred highly trained soldiers equipped with powerful weapons platforms, including tanks and attack helicopters.

How much do black ops get paid?

The estimated total pay for a Black Ops is $41,513 per year in the United States area, with an average salary of $39,370 per year. These numbers represent the median, which is the midpoint of the ranges from our proprietary Total Pay Estimate model and based on salaries collected from our users.

How much does a Russian mercenary make?

The pay of Wagner private military contractors (PMCs), who are usually retired regular Russian servicemen aged between 35 and 55, is estimated to be between 80,000 and 250,000 Russian rubles a month (667–2,083 USD). One source stated the pay was as high as 300,000 (US$2,500).

What jobs do mercenaries do?

mercenary, hired professional soldier who fights for any state or nation without regard to political interests or issues. From the earliest days of organized warfare until the development of political standing armies in the mid-17th century, governments frequently supplemented their military forces with mercenaries.

What rights do mercenaries have?

According to the Geneva Convention Protocol 1, mercenaries are defined as “unlawful combatants” and do not, therefore, have the right to be considered combatants or to be taken as prisoners of war.

Can you fight for another country?

International law permits such service, but a state's internal law may prohibit it. U.S. nationals (including both citizens and other persons owing allegiance to the United States (8 U.S.C. §1101)) have performed foreign military service at various times since 1788.

How do I become a CIA contractor?

Why did US hire Blackwater?

Contracted by the State Department to protect American diplomats, the firm, since renamed Xe Services and more recently as Academi, has seized on the new avenues thrown open by the global war on terror following the September 11, 2001 attacks and snapped up security deals.