US refusing Iraq evidence at UK inquest
Iraq-UK, Politics, 4/16/2007

A British coroner today criticized the US for the third time over its refusal to release evidence about the deaths of eight British servicemen at the beginning of the Iraq war.

The US failure was "inexcusable", Oxfordshire's Assistant Deputy Coroner Andrew Walker said at the reopening of an inquest into a fatal US CH-46 Sea Knight helicopter crash in Kuwait in March 2003, in which four American marines were also killed.

"We are again at the beginning of an inquest without the necessary answers to the questions from the US service personnel," Walker was quoted saying by the BBC.

Last month, Walker ruled that a British solider was killed "unlawfully" by the US in a so-called friendly fire incident near Basra four years ago.

"I don't think this was a case of honest mistake," he said after criticizing US authorities for failing to provide "vital" information about the death of Lance Corporal Matty Hull after an American A-10 "tankbuster" plane opened fire on his convoy.

At the reopening of the latest inquest, Walker said that despite 'strenuous attempts by his office and the Ministry of Defense', the US had again refused permission to provide any evidence or witnesses about the helicopter crash.

He said the evidence included infrared tape taken by the air mission command aircraft which he believed held radio transmissions before and after the crash. In addition, footage filmed by an embedded Fox News crew was also being withheld, he added.

Last November, the same coroner also ruled that the UK 'friendly fire' killing of British marine Christopher Maddison in Iraq, also in March 2003, was caused by serious military failing.

In the previous month, he also ruled that the US killing of award-winning British journalist Terry Lloyd at the beginning of the Iraq war in 2003 was "unlawful".

Please add a link on your webiste pointing to ArabicNews.com and bookmark ArabicNews.com & subscribe to our daily email news bulletin.

Search