US Army auditor who attacked Halliburton deal is fired

Bunnatine Greenhouse, a senior civilian auditor of military contracts for the Army Corps of Engineers, went public last year with her concerns about a no-bid contract given to Kellogg Brown & Root (KBR). She told a congressional hearing that the decision was "the most blatant and improper abuse I have witnessed" in 20 years as a government contract supervisor.

She will now be removed from her post and offered a junior position in a different department. The Pentagon said she was offered the opportunity to retire early, but she turned it down.

Three Democratic Congressmen demanded an official investigation before the demotion goes into effect. Pentagon officials have denied the move has anything to do with her opinions on the KBR contract.

As the senior civilian in charge of procurement at the Army Corps of Engineers, Ms Greenhouse developed a reputation as a stickler for proper procedure and won high marks in her performance reviews. Those reviews began deteriorating at almost the same time she began speaking out against the KBR contract, causing her lawyer to accuse the Pentagon of malicious retaliation.

Pentagon officials have denied that her demotion is linked to her opinions on the KBR contract.