The MoD said any mistreatment would be
punished |
Two
British soldiers have been ordered out of Iraq after the alleged
beating of Iraqi prisoners of war, the Ministry of Defence has
confirmed.
One of the allegations is that a soldier punched a prisoner in
the face and gave him a black eye.
In a separate development two Iraqi deaths which happened in the
custody of British soldiers are also being investigated by military
police.
It is understood the men were in the custody of soldiers from the
Black Watch Regiment in Basra and died in separate incidents on 13
and 18 May.
An investigation is a matter of course for any death in custody
and there is no evidence at this stage to suggest the men were
mistreated.
'Dim view'
The British soldiers accused of beating Iraqis are thought to
have been flown to their barracks in Germany.
Their regiment has not been revealed.
An MoD spokeswoman said: "We can confirm that an alleged incident
has been reported involving the beating of Iraqi PoWs.
|
Investigations into British conduct
Colonel Tim Collins accused of mistreating
civilians and PoWs
Two soldiers accused of beatings
Deaths in custody
Photographs of 'torture'
|
"Two soldiers
have been returned to barracks pending an investigation.
"We would take a very dim view of poor treatment of PoWs and if
the case is found to be answered, we will act accordingly."
The fresh allegations emerged just days after military police
questioned a British soldier in custody over photographs which
allegedly showed troops "torturing" Iraqi PoWs.
Photographic developers in Staffordshire called police after they
became concerned about a number of pictures on a roll of film that
had been handed in to their shop for processing.
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