Iraqi families accuse British troops of unlawful killing

LONDON - Lawyers for 14 Iraqi families who allege their relatives were unlawfully killed by British troops in post-war Iraq have taken their case to the High Court.

The Ministry of Defence refuses to accept responsibility for the deaths but the families' lawyers are demanding a judicial review to examine whether the killings were a violation of the victims' right to life under the European law.

"The court will be asked to make a declaration that these cases involve unlawful killings and to award damages to the families," the solicitors, Public Interest Lawyers, said in a statement.

The Ministry of Defence -- already under intense pressure after photographs showing alleged abuse of Iraqi prisoners by British soldiers appeared in newspapers last week -- says it has responded to lawyers' inquiries.

"We do not accept liability for the deaths they have brought to our attention, and have written to them informing them of our reasons," a spokesman said.

Phil Shiner of Public Interest Lawyers said that until now, there had been no independent investigation of the deaths.

"The relatives of dead Iraqis are entitled to know whether there is going to be an inquiry," he told reporters outside the court as he delivered the papers.

He said he hoped the case would be heard by the end of July.

Speaking earlier on BBC radio, Shiner said many of the victims were at home, or going about their normal daily lives when soldiers burst in and shot them.

"One man was working on a farm, another was fishing on a river, another was returning home in his car when he was killed," he said. "The soldiers and Ministry of Defence can't get away with killings...with impunity."

He argued that because the Iraq war had officially ended when the victims died, and because Britain was an occupying power, the European Convention on Human Rights should apply.

Britain joined the US war on Iraq in March last year. President George W. Bush declared the war over on May 1 2003.

The high court case comes as the both British and American soldiers stand accused of abusing Iraqi prisoners after media organisations published photographs of alleged torture.

The British government has launched an investigation into photographs published by the Daily Mirror which appear to show British troops kicking and urinating on a hooded Iraqi in Basra, southern Iraq.

In the United States, growing outrage over the alleged mistreatment of Iraqi prisoners has prompted Washington to admit that its forces murdered two Iraqi prisoners and that another 23 deaths in Iraq and Afghanistan are being investigated.

Britain, which has around 7,500 troops serving in Iraq, says it wants to question its soldiers to check whether the Daily Mirror pictures are authentic and if so, bring those involved to justice.

Britain has said it is also investigating another eight soldiers accused of abusing Iraqi prisoners.

- REUTERS

Herald Feature: Iraq