War crimes have been probed, Hague tells lawyers

The Richmond MP said there was no need for the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate allegations of UK forces abusing and killing detainees in their custody.

There had been no “systematic” torture by troops and individual cases had either already been dealt with by the British authorities or were the subject of probes, he insisted.

The head of the army, General Sir Peter Wall, ex-Defence Secretary Geoff Hoon, and former defence Minister Adam Ingram are among those named in a 250-page dossier sent to the ICC, according to one Sunday newspaper.

Human rights lawyers have drawn on the cases of more than 400 Iraqis, arguing they represent “thousands of allegations of mistreatment amounting to war crimes of torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment”.

The formal complaint to the ICC was lodged by Public Interest Lawyers (PIL) and the European Centre for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR).

It calls for an investigation into the alleged war crimes under Article 15 of the Rome Statute.

The dossier says “those who bear the greatest responsibility” for alleged war crimes “include individuals at the highest levels” of the British Army and political system.

UK military commanders “knew or should have known” that forces under their control “were committing or about to commit war crimes”.

It also argues that “civilian superiors knew or consciously disregarded information at their disposal, which clearly indicated that UK services personnel were committing war crimes in Iraq”.

Speaking on television yesterday morning, Mr Hague added: “These allegations are either under investigation already or have been dealt with already in a variety of ways, through the historic abuses system that has been established, through public inquiries, through the UK courts or the European courts.

“There have been some cases of abuse that have been acknowledged and apologies and compensation have been paid appropriately.

“But the Government has always been clear and the armed forces have been clear that they absolutely reject allegations of systematic abuses by the British armed forces.”