Soldiers face charges over Iraqi's death in British custody

A sergeant and three other soldiers are facing charges over the death of the Iraqi hotel worker Baha Mousa, who died after allegedly being severely beaten in British army cells.

The four, all members of the Queen's Lancashire Regiment (QLR), are likely to be charged within weeks for offences including Mr Mousa's manslaughter on 14 September 2003, perverting the course of justice and assault.

But UK army prosecutors have so far failed to bring any charges over the alleged torture and assault of eight other men arrested with Mr Mousa - including the case of Kifah Taha, who suffered kidney failure and nearly died after allegedly being beaten by troops.

Prosecution lawyers, who are under intense pressure to build a cast-iron case, believe there could be insufficient evidence against the QLR soldiers suspected of the assaults to justify charges.

It is understood the QLR has closed ranks over the case, with potential witnesses refusing to give evidence - provoking angry criticisms from the men's lawyer yesterday.

Phil Shiner, of Public Interest Lawyers in Birmingham, said it would be a "disgrace" if no one was prosecuted for the attacks on Mr Taha and his colleagues.

"It confirms the military are incapable of investigating themselves. The evidence given to prosecutors is inadequate. There must be a proper independent inquiry into these cases," he said.

The imminent prosecution of the QLR members - a sergeant, a lance-corporal and two privates - has been revealed in the most detailed disclosure so far by the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) of the abuse and negligence cases from Iraq now facing British forces.

The document released last week by Adam Ingram, the British armed forces minister, reveals that 35 officers and soldiers have been reported or charged over alleged ill-treatment or misconduct involving Iraqi civilians.

That figure excludes two cases that have already gone to trial - the convictions last month of four Royal Regiment of Fusiliers soldiers over the prisoner abuse photographs from Camp Breadbasket, and the prosecution of Trooper Kevin Williams for allegedly murdering a lawyer, Hassad Sayyad.

The MoD document lists 162 cases - including 14 further cases close to trial; 112 cases, mainly involving gun battles against insurgents last year, have been closed.

The failure to prosecute any other QLR members over the Baha Mousa case will intensify demands for sweeping reforms of the military police and military prosecution system.

Last December, the High Court lambasted the MoD's handling of the Mousa case, saying that the UK Government had broken the Human Rights Act by failing to investigate it adequately, and called the military police's inquiry ineffective and "dilatory".

The Attorney General, Lord Goldsmith, is pressing Geoff Hoon, the Defence Secretary, to give army prosecutors a greater role in investigations and wants commanders to be stripped of their right to control police inquiries.

- INDEPENDENT