WASHINGTON - An international human-rights organization said Wednesday that a lack of political will -- not a fuzzy legal framework -- should be primarily blamed for the dearth of prosecutions against private security contractors accused of abuses in Iraq.

Human Rights First said the U.S. Department of Justice has failed to hold such contractors, including Blackwater USA of Moyock, N.C., accountable for accused abuses, amounting to what the organization calls a "culture of impunity."

"The biggest obstacle is not the law, but political will," said Maureen Byrnes, executive director of the group, which is based in New York City and Washington.

Still, the group said that clarifying the law -- along the lines of a bill written by U.S. Rep. David Price of Chapel Hill -- would ensure that prosecutors have a path for investigating allegations of criminal activities by guards.

Paul Bresson, a spokesman for the Department of Justice, said the problem has nothing to do with political will. He said it is more difficult and takes longer to investigate criminal cases in Iraq because of the complexity of the situation.

"We strongly disagree with the report's conclusions," he said.

An estimated 35,000 private security contractors work in Iraq now for 181 companies, providing security for military bases, private businesses, foreign dignitaries and the U.S. Department of State. They are part of a larger force of about 180,000 private contractors - more people than the military has in Iraq.

There have been several allegations of abuses, the most recent in the fall by a group of Blackwater guards escorting a convoy through Baghdad on Sept. 16. Iraqi officials say guards killed 17 civilians and wounded 24 without provocation in Nisoor Square. An investigation into the incident is in progress.

Scott Horton, who wrote the Human Rights First report, said the group is not trying to end all work for private security contractors.

Rather, he said, the agency wants contractors held accountable.

"That shows a collapse of accountability," Horton said. "This problem didn't drop from the sky. It results from policy decisions. ... The situation here is the justice department has gone AWOL."

The House bill by Price, a Democrat, would bring all private security contractors under the U.S. criminal code. The bill also tries to force the administration to act on prosecutions. It would require, for example, that the Department of Justice dispatch FBI agents to Iraq to investigate allegations of abuse.

"It's maddening to see contractors act as if they're above the law," Price said Wednesday.

The White House strongly opposes Price's bill, saying last fall that the bill contains vague language, wrongly extends U.S. criminal jurisdiction overseas and could strain FBI resources.

Despite the opposition, Price's bill passed the House by a veto-proof margin in October, shortly after the Blackwater incident in Baghdad.

A Senate version, sponsored by Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois, has been referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee.

The committee chairman, Sen. Patrick Leahy of Vermont, has been working with GOP Sens. Jeff Sessions of Alabama and Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania to craft bipartisan support for the bill. But White House opposition remains strong, and no timeline exists for when the bill might get through the committee.

"The bill has been slowed by White House opposition," Price said. "We need their cooperation right now in getting this done. ... It needs to get on the Senate floor."

A White House spokeswoman could not be reached for comment.