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UK to set out details of second Iraq abuse inquiry

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

London, Nov 25, IRNA -- The British government is due Wednesday to set out details of a second public inquiry into alleged war crimes committed by UK troops in Iraq following years of litigations.

The new inquiry is into claims that 20 Iraqi prisoners were killed and nine others mistreated by British forces following a firefight in 2004, according to solicitors acting for six of the nine survivors.

The probe will examine “whether UK soldiers murdered a number of Iraqis and tortured another 9 survivors on the night of 14 May 2004, throughout which they were interrogated,” according to a statement by Public Interest Lawyers (PIL) obtained by IRNA.

“These allegations are incredibly serious yet the Government has continuously delayed dealing with them since they were first made in 2004,” said Phil Shiner of PIL.

Shiner said that the government has accepted a public inquiry only after it “reluctantly handed over documents showing that even (former prime minister) Tony Blair was to be briefed about the allegations in 2004 and that the Royal Military Police’s investigation had been misrepresented to the Court.”

The public inquiry is the second and follows the start of the Baha Mousa inquiry, which has so far led to the only British soldiers convicted of war crimes to confess a whole British unit was involved in the abuse of the Basra hotel worker and others held in 2003.

Shiner said that he hoped the new inquiry will finally lead to the “truth” about what happened at Camp Abu Naji. There is “very credible evidence there was clear ill-treatment” of the Iraqi civilians, he said.

The Ministry of Defence has insisted that the Iraqi lives were lost during the so-called "battle of Danny boy". Armed Forces Minister Bill Rammell has suggested it would have needed a "massive conspiracy" for the murder and mistreatment to have taken place.

But the inquiry has only been conceded after the government faced severe criticism from High Court judges, including the withholding of relevant documents on public interest immunity grounds.

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End News / IRNA / News Code 810386