British army 'knew of abuse'
2005-01-19 16:38
Osnabrück, Germany - British military lawyers had to remind commanders in Iraq to prevent assaults on detained civilians after getting several reports of abuse, a witness testified at the court-martial of three soldiers on Wednesday.
The alleged mistreatment happened as British soldiers sought to re-establish order amid rampant looting in southern Iraq in the spring of 2003 after the US-led invasion.
"A number of allegations were made that these people were not being treated as they should be," the witness, British military lawyer lieutenant-colonel Nicholas Mercer told the court at a British base in Germany.
"We had heard of problems."
Defence lawyers sought to argue that the three soldiers - all charged with allegedly mistreating Iraqi prisoners at a food warehouse guarded by British forces - didn't have enough guidance about dealing with common criminals as the army shifted from war to policing duties.
They argued the defendants acted under orders, after the camp's commander allegedly issued a directive - known as Operation Ali Baba - to make captured looters "work hard".
Prosecutors have called the order unlawful, a point also raised by the lawyer for corporal Daniel Kenyon, the highest-ranking defendant.
"The whole reason he is in the dock stems from those who gave the order to implement Ali Baba," lawyer Joseph Giret told the seven-member military jury.
Mercer argued that trained soldiers had to know that mistreating captives was wrong. But he acknowledged that the shift in the army's role posed a challenge.
"There was a problem with looting. It was psychotic and epidemic," Mercer said.
He said that after receiving reports that British forces allegedly mistreated looters, military lawyers issued a memo for commanders that prisoners should be treated humanely "and not be assaulted."
"What I was doing was reiterating basic training," he told the court-martial jury.
Prime Minister Tony Blair on Wednesday said the military wouldn't tolerate abuse of prisoners, and said the majority of troops were behaving honourably.
- AP