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| Iraq | |
| Britainâs captured soldiers allegedly spying on Iraqi prison torturer | |
| 2005-10-16 | |
The Sunday Telegraph also gave a vivid account of how the elite pair were detained in the southern Iraqi city of Basra and their subsequent rescue by British forces, who raided a police station and then a nearby house. The drama triggered a rift between the local authorities and the British army, which has been deployed in the region since the March 2003 invasion. The newspaper said Britainâs Special Air Service (SAS) had been staking out several members of the Iraqi police, who were suspected of torturing prisoners at the notorious Jamiyat prison in Basra. The operation was ordered after the body of an Iraqi, who had been arrested by the police, was found on the outskirts of the city in April. An examination of the corpse showed that his skull, hands and legs had been penetrated with an electric drill, the Telegraph said. The army learnt, from Iraqi sources, that a senior police officer was behind the abuse. Citing military sources, the weekly said hundreds of people arrested by the local police might have been tortured at the prison. The allegations are an embarrassment for the British government, which helped to establish the new Iraqi police force and re-opened the jail. Describing the suspicions of torture, a senior army source told the newspaper: âWe believe victims were strapped into a chair and then the torture would begin. We think it was more to do with inter-tribal warfare than clamping down on terrorist activity. This is a very corrupt society.â On September 19, the two SAS soldiers were just about to end a surveillance mission as part of the investigation when they became involved in a shoot-out with four plain-clothed police officers, the Telegraph revealed. One soldier opened fire as the pair drove off in a car. The Iraqis gave chase. The British soldiers decided to ditch their vehicle, thinking they had a better chance on foot. They were en route to an emergency meeting point after having made contact with their base when a uniformed Iraqi police unit stopped them. The SAS soldiers decided to surrender to avoid a shoot-out and each pulled out small Union flags and began shouting, âBritish forces, British forcesâ. They were arrested and taken to the jail where the they were allegedly beaten and interrogated before being moved to another house. At this point their captorsâ mood lightened and the men were treated well before being freed by the British rescue mission, the paper said. The two men are back in Britain. | |
| Posted by:Steve White |