UK troops 'shot harmless Iraqis'
May. 11th, 2004 12:37 pmUK troops have killed Iraqi civilians including an eight-year-old girl when they were under no apparent threat, Amnesty International has claimed.
The human rights group claims in "many" cases the deaths of civilians caused by UK troops had not been investigated.
Inquiries were "secretive" and handled by Military Police, its report says.
The claims are the latest in a string of allegations about the behaviour of coalition forces but ministers say many of them are already being investigated.
Separately on Tuesday the High Court ruled that relatives of 12 Iraqis allegedly killed by UK troops will get a full court hearing into the decision not to hold independent inquiries.
The families want to have the deaths declared a breach of the European Convention on Human Rights, but the UK government says the convention does not apply in Iraq.
The human rights group claims in "many" cases the deaths of civilians caused by UK troops had not been investigated.
Inquiries were "secretive" and handled by Military Police, its report says.
The claims are the latest in a string of allegations about the behaviour of coalition forces but ministers say many of them are already being investigated.
Separately on Tuesday the High Court ruled that relatives of 12 Iraqis allegedly killed by UK troops will get a full court hearing into the decision not to hold independent inquiries.
The families want to have the deaths declared a breach of the European Convention on Human Rights, but the UK government says the convention does not apply in Iraq.