10 March 2010 One of the country's former top policemen is to head a team of investigators who will travel to Iraq to interview witnesses of the alleged murder and torture of civilians by the British Army.
The taskforce will report to a retired High Court judge who is chairing the inquiry into the events which took place in Iraq in 2004.
Inquiry chairman Sir Thayne Forbes, who presided in the murder trial of Harold Shipman, said defence officials will be forced to disclose documents and provide witnesses if they do not co-operate with the new public inquiry into Iraqi abuse claims.
The Al-Sweady Inquiry is looking into allegations that British soldiers murdered and tortured Iraqi civilians in the aftermath of the "Battle of Danny Boy" in southern Iraq in 2004.
It will report on claims that 20 or more Iraqis were unlawfully killed and others ill-treated at a UK base in Maysan Province called Camp Abu Naji. >>>>>
Ex-MI5 head: US hid torture tactics from UK
Former murder squad chief to head inquiry into Iraqi killings allegation
9 March 2010 Claims that British troops killed and abused prisoners are rejected by the MoD, that insists there is no credible evidence
An investigation into claims that British troops killed and abused prisoners will be led by a former head of a Scotland Yard murder squad. The case will involve seeking evidence from witnesses to a fierce battle in southern Iraq six years ago.
The huge task was announced today at the launch of a public inquiry into allegations that British soldiers murdered 20 or more Iraqis after the "battle of Danny Boy", named after a checkpoint in Maysan province, north of Basra, on 14 May 2004.
The chairman of the inquiry, the former high court judge Sir Thayne Forbes, emphasised that he was embarking on his task "without any preconception as to where the truth may lie". He said the inquiry was not a trial and he had no power to make any finding of criminal or civil liability. Any decision about whether witnesses would be granted immunity from prosecution based on their own evidence was up to the attorney general, he said. >>>>>
Inquiry opens into 'torture and murder’ by British troops in Iraq
March 09. 2010
Daoud Mousa holds pictures of his grandchildren outside the High Court in London, where he is alleging that his son Baha died in the custody of British soldiers in southern Iraq last year. PA Archive
A public inquiry opened in London yesterday into claims that up to 20 Iraqis were unlawfully killed and others tortured by British troops after a firefight in 2004.
The inquiry, chaired by a retired High Court judge, got under way less than 24 hours after the armed forces minister, Bill Rammell, announced a wide-ranging investigation into all allegations of abuse by UK forces after the 2003 invasion.
It means that there will now be three separate inquiries going on simultaneously into claims that British troops ill-treated and even murdered Iraqi prisoners, prompting fears that the glut of investigations could undermine the reputation of the country’s armed forces. >>>>>
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