ICC could investigate UK for 'covering up war crimes' in Iraq, Afghanistan

The International Criminal Court (ICC) has reportedly said it could open an investigation into the British army for the first ever time over allegations of war crimes.

The statement came following an investigation by the BBC and the Sunday Times alleging that the killing of civilians in Iraq and Afghanistan had been covered up by the British state.

The BBC’s Panorama spoke to 11 British detectives who said they had found credible evidence of war crimes.

Leaks from two government-ordered inquiries into the conduct of troops in the conflicts implicated troops in the killing of children and torture of civilians, the investigation found.

The allegations include murders by a soldier from an elite SAS unit, as well as deaths in custody, beatings, torture and sexual abuse of detainees by members of the Black Watch infantry unit.

The ICC's Office of Prosecutor said the findings of Panorama could be "highly relevant" to the decision whether to open a landmark investigation, and would be "independently assessed", the BBC reported on Monday.

The ICC is taking the allegations "very seriously", the report added.

Read more: British army accused of covering up 'reprehensible' war crimes in Iraq, Afghanistan

Military detectives who unearthed evidence of the alleged war crimes told the year-long investigation by the newspaper and the BBC's Panorama programme that seniors commanders hid it "for political reasons".

"The Ministry of Defence (MoD) 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," an investigator told the BBC.

The MoD said the allegations were "untrue" and that the decisions of prosecutors and investigators were "independent" and involved "external oversight and legal advice".

The accusations emerged from two war crimes inquiries - the Iraq Historic Allegations Team (IHAT) and Operation Northmoor, which dealt with Afghanistan - which ended in 2017 without any prosecutions.

The government closed the probes after a solicitor, Phil Shiner, who had recorded hundreds of allegations, was struck off from practising law amid claims he had paid people in Iraq to find clients.

Amnesty International criticised the decision at the time and some former IHAT and Operation Northmoor investigators now allege Shiner's actions were used as an excuse to close down the inquiries as they found wrongdoing at high levels".

The Sunday Times reported military detectives discovered allegations of falsified documents that were "serious enough to merit prosecutions of senior officers".

It reported one of the SAS's most senior commanders was referred to prosecutors for attempting to pervert the course of justice before the inquiries were ended.

The newspaper said the revelations could result in a war crimes investigation at the ICCif Britain was deemed to have failed to hold its military to account.

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab told the BBC on Sunday that despite the lack of any prosecutions, it had "got the right balance" in ensuring "spurious claims" were not pursued.

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