Times
By Michael Evans, Defence Editor and Michael Horsnell in Osnabrück
THE Army is bracing itself for four more courts martial involving eighteen British soldiers after yesterday’s conviction of three servicemen for the “brutal”, “cruel” and “revolting” abuse of prisoners in Iraq.
The Times has learnt that army lawyers are considering charges against eleven more soldiers in addition to the seven members of the Parachute Regiment accused of the fatal beating of an 18-year-old Iraqi at a roadside in May 2003.
One of them involves the alleged fatal beating of Baha Mousa, a 26-year-old Iraqi receptionist who was arrested by a patrol from The Queen’s Lancashire Regiment during an arms search at his hotel in Basra. The other two alleged abuse cases also involve deaths.
The news emerged as three soldiers from the 1st Battalion The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers were convicted of a series of military and civilian charges after a high-profile five-week court martial in Osnabrück, Germany, which effectively put the Army on trial.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,7374-1497801,00.html