Britain has been dragged into the
growing scandal of officially condoned killings in Iraq
British-trained police operating in Basra have tortured at least
two civilians to death with electric drills, The Independent on
Sunday can reveal.
John Reid, the Secretary of State for Defence, admits that he knows
of
"alleged deaths in custody" and other "serious prisoner abuse" at
al-Jamiyat police station, which was reopened by Britain after the war.
Militia-dominated police, who were recruited by Britain, are
believed to have tortured at least two men to death in the station.
Their bodies were later found with drill holes to their arms, legs and
skulls.
The victims were suspected of collaborating with coalition forces,
according to intelligence reports. Despite being pressed "very hard" by
Britain, however, the Iraqi authorities in Basra are failing to even
investigate incidents of torture and murder by police, ministers admit.
The disclosure drags Britain firmly into the growing scandal of
officially condoned killings, torture and disappearances in Iraq. More
than 170 starving and tortured prisoners were discovered last week in
an Interior Ministry bunker in Baghdad.
American troops who uncovered the secret torture chamber are also
said to have discovered mutilated corpses, several bearing drill marks.
Adam Price, the Plaid Cymru MP for Carmarthen East and Dinefwr, who
uncovered the death at al-Jamiyat police station, called for an
immediate UN investigation into police torture. "The Government keeps
on saying that respect for human rights is a pre-condition of
withdrawal. Well, it should be a pre-condition for UK soldiers to
continue risking their lives in Iraq," he said.
Mr Reid said: "I am aware of serious allegations of prisoner abuse
at the Jamiyat, including two deaths in custody. We take this very
seriously. We have been pressing the Iraqi authorities very hard to
investigate these allegations thoroughly and then to take the
appropriate action."
Ministry of Defence sources privately confirm that the two SAS
soldiers seized and held in Jamiyat in September were investigating
allegations of police torture prompted by the discovery of the bodies.
British forces in armoured vehicles smashed their way into the
station to rescue them, but officers have admitted they are powerless
to protect civilians in southern Iraq from militias, and military
patrols have been withdrawn from central Basra in the wake of the
September clashes.
In the US-controlled districts of Iraq, some senior military and
intelligence officials have been accused of giving tacit approval to
the extra-judicial actions of counter-insurgency forces.
Critics claim the situation echoes American collaboration with
military regimes in Latin America and south-east Asia during the Cold
War, particularly in Vietnam, where US-trained paramilitaries were used
to kill opponents of the South Vietnamese government.
Britain has been dragged into the growing scandal
of officially condoned killings in Iraq
British-trained police operating in Basra have tortured at least
two civilians to death with electric drills, The Independent on
Sunday can reveal.
John Reid, the Secretary of State for Defence, admits that he knows
of
"alleged deaths in custody" and other "serious prisoner abuse" at
al-Jamiyat police station, which was reopened by Britain after the war.
Militia-dominated police, who were recruited by Britain, are
believed to have tortured at least two men to death in the station.
Their bodies were later found with drill holes to their arms, legs and
skulls.
The victims were suspected of collaborating with coalition forces,
according to intelligence reports. Despite being pressed "very hard" by
Britain, however, the Iraqi authorities in Basra are failing to even
investigate incidents of torture and murder by police, ministers admit.
The disclosure drags Britain firmly into the growing scandal of
officially condoned killings, torture and disappearances in Iraq. More
than 170 starving and tortured prisoners were discovered last week in
an Interior Ministry bunker in Baghdad.
American troops who uncovered the secret torture chamber are also
said to have discovered mutilated corpses, several bearing drill marks.
Adam Price, the Plaid Cymru MP for Carmarthen East and Dinefwr, who
uncovered the death at al-Jamiyat police station, called for an
immediate UN investigation into police torture. "The Government keeps
on saying that respect for human rights is a pre-condition of
withdrawal. Well, it should be a pre-condition for UK soldiers to
continue risking their lives in Iraq," he said.
Mr Reid said: "I am aware of serious allegations of prisoner abuse
at the Jamiyat, including two deaths in custody. We take this very
seriously. We have been pressing the Iraqi authorities very hard to
investigate these allegations thoroughly and then to take the
appropriate action."
Ministry of Defence sources privately confirm that the two SAS
soldiers seized and held in Jamiyat in September were investigating
allegations of police torture prompted by the discovery of the bodies.
British forces in armoured vehicles smashed their way into the
station to rescue them, but officers have admitted they are powerless
to protect civilians in southern Iraq from militias, and military
patrols have been withdrawn from central Basra in the wake of the
September clashes.
In the US-controlled districts of Iraq, some senior military and
intelligence officials have been accused of giving tacit approval to
the extra-judicial actions of counter-insurgency forces.
Critics claim the situation echoes American collaboration with
military regimes in Latin America and south-east Asia during the Cold
War, particularly in Vietnam, where US-trained paramilitaries were used
to kill opponents of the South Vietnamese government.