Child murder, torture and sexual abuse by British troops covered up by government, report alleges

[Cpt. Rishwat]

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/...british-troops-afghanistan-iraq-a9206056.html

Child murder, torture and sexual abuse by British troops covered up by government, report alleges

The government and army have been accused of covering up torture, sexual abuse and child killings by troops in Afghanistan and Iraq.

A year-long investigation by BBC Panorama​ and The Sunday Times is claimed to have uncovered evidence of murder by an SAS soldier, as well as deaths in custody, beatings, torture and sexual abuse of detainees by members of Scottish regiment the Black Watch.

A senior SAS commander was also referred to prosecutors for attempting to pervert the course of justice, according to leaked documents that had been kept secret by the government.

The investigation exposed new evidence from inside the Iraq Historic Allegations Team (IHAT), which investigated alleged war crimes committed by British soldiers in Iraq, and Operation Northmoor, which looked into war crimes in Afghanistan.

The government closed both inquiries in 2017 after Phil Shiner, a solicitor who had taken more than 1,000 cases to IHAT, was struck off from practising law amid allegations he had paid people in Iraq to find clients.

However, some former investigators said Mr Shiner’s actions were used as an excuse to shut down the inquiries.

No case investigated by IHAT or Operation Northmoor has led to a prosecution.

An IHAT detective told Panorama: “The Ministry of Defence had no intention of prosecuting any soldier of whatever rank he was unless it was absolutely necessary, and they couldn’t wriggle their way out of it.”

Another former investigator described the alleged cover-up as “disgusting”, adding: “I feel for the families [of victims] because... they’re not getting justice. How can you hold your head up as a British person?”

An episode of the documentary series to be broadcast on BBC One on Monday night will allege dozens of innocent civilians died during kill or capture operations involving British special forces in Afghanistan.

On one night raid in Helmand that was looked at by Operation Northmoor, a special forces soldier killed four youngsters believed to be aged 20, 17, 14 and 12 in the guest room of a family home in Loy Bagh village.​

The soldier claimed he acted in self-defence but the victims’ families said all four had been sitting on the floor drinking tea when they were shot dead at close range.

Photographs showed bullet holes in the mud wall of the guest house had hit about two feet off the ground, supporting the family’s version of events.

Detectives believed the soldier should be charged with four counts of murder and referred the case to the Service Prosecuting Authority (SPA). They also wanted to prosecute the officer who commanded the raid for falsifying a report, along with his superior, for perverting the course of justice.

Investigators believed some of the most senior officers in the UK’s special forces had covered up the killings, but military prosecutors decided not to bring charges.

Panorama also uncovered new information about the killing of Iraqi detainees in 2003. IHAT detectives say they found evidence of widespread abuse at Camp Stephen, a British army base in Basra run by the Black Watch and used as an unofficial detention centre.

One of the detectives told the programme the abuse of prisoners was “endemic” at the base, where two innocent civilians died within a week in May 2003 after allegedly being tortured.

A Ministry of Defence (MoD) spokesperson told The Independent: “Allegations that the MoD interfered with investigations or prosecution decisions relating to the conduct of UK forces in Iraq and Afghanistan are untrue.

“Throughout the process the decisions of prosecutors and the investigators have been independent of the MoD and involved external oversight and legal advice.”

The MoD said cases were referred to the independent SPA as a result of investigations in both Iraq and Afghanistan.

“Cases from Iraq were referred as a result of historic investigations. It is untrue to claim cases investigated under Operation Northmoor in Afghanistan were not acted upon. After careful investigation, overseen by a former chief constable, no Northmoor cases were referred to prosecutors,” the spokesperson added.

The MoD also said Service Police undertook extensive investigations into allegations about the conduct of UK forces in Iraq and Afghanistan, and that the SPA decided not to prosecute any of the cases referred to it.

The spokesperson said: “Our military served with great courage and professionalism in Iraq and Afghanistan and we hold them to the highest standards. It is government policy that military operations are conducted in accordance with the Law of Armed Conflict and where allegations are raised, they are investigated.

“The Sunday Times’ claims have been passed to the Service Police and the Service Prosecuting Authority who remain open to considering allegations.”


British troops in more hot water. I can't imagine what it must be like to have foreign troops parading the streets who consider the locals as enemies.

Usually the govt manages to execute some sort of cover up or damage limitiation, but this one looks like it could be hard to put a lid on.

 

[Cpt. Rishwat]

Actually, I have reconsidered, perhaps it won't be that hard to put a lid on this story after all. Despite the Times claiming to have been building evidence for a year, along with Panorama, the timing of the story will probably suit the Ministry of Defence.

It's been released at a time when the news is being dominated by Prince Andrew's tv interview, and even the Times has gone quiet following the headlines on Sunday. It will be interesting to see if the story gets much traction from hereon in.

 

[JaDed]

Control the media you control everything, western media always makes one feel they are unbiased and most credible but they choose what to and what not to report.

This is why grasp of language and controlling the narrative in a creative way is so important, CHINA realized this early on and have to say they plan 100 years ahead almost all the time.

Unfortunate for victims but it has always been strong vs weak.

 

[PakLFC]

There is really no cover up. We all know what the American, Indian and British troops do to innocents. Yes even the Pak military do it as well when it suits them. Ultimately the military are just legal killing machines.

 

[msaaim89]

[MENTION=7774]Robert[/MENTION]

 

[Cpt. Rishwat]

There is really no cover up. We all know what the American, Indian and British troops do to innocents. Yes even the Pak military do it as well when it suits them. Ultimately the military are just legal killing machines.

The key difference here is that the British troops abuses are inflicted on foreign shores so there will be a racial aspect to the abuse. Pakistan army will be inflicting on their own which carries less significance on a global aspect.

Other than that of course, the other key difference is that we British consider ourselves far more civilised and developed than countries like Pakistan, and thus we hold ourselves to higher standards. While Pakistanis might think the sun shines out the army barracks so anything goes, in Britain we like to think we are exemplars for the rest of the world when it comes to maintaining standards of human rights.

 

[PakLFC]

The key difference here is that the British troops abuses are inflicted on foreign shores so there will be a racial aspect to the abuse. Pakistan army will be inflicting on their own which carries less significance on a global aspect.

Other than that of course, the other key difference is that we British consider ourselves far more civilised and developed than countries like Pakistan, and thus we hold ourselves to higher standards. While Pakistanis might think the sun shines out the army barracks so anything goes, in Britain we like to think we are exemplars for the rest of the world when it comes to maintaining standards of human rights.

Of course the Brits are civilised even though we are responsible for the Kashmir and Palestine face. This is how civilised we are and why asylum seekers feel the UK owes them. Although Pak army may inflict harm on it's own it the numbers will be no way near what the peaceful British army does abroad in countries like Africa. This higher or lower standard rubbish is what the media teaches us and brainwashed people lap it up in loads. Now the UK would go bankrupt if it had to pay compensation to all the countries and communities it has wronged over the centuries. Seeing the UK prosper as a community does not reflect the crimes of it's military. Need I remind you that the Pak military wins the UK army exercises almost every year.

 

[KingKhanWC]

This is why any person has the right to defend themselves, their families and their people against aggressive invaders. Yet we have people who support this barbaric invasion and occupation.

A new investigation should be conducted and those who hid these crimes should be punished.