The Mirror
May 3, 2004
By Paul Byrne And Stephen White

The two soldiers who disclosed shocking photos of British troops abusing an Iraqi last night rejected claims the shots were fakes.

They insisted pictures they gave the Mirror showing a hooded prisoner being urinated on and battered with rifle butts were real.

Referred to as Soldier A and Soldier B, one of the pair said: "This happened, it is not a hoax and the Army knows a lot more has happened." Soldier A added: "I was there, I saw what happened."

The men from the Queen's Lancashire Regiment spoke out after BBC defence correspondent Paul Adams and Tory defence spokesman Nicholas Soames suggested the pictures were fake.

Adams claimed he had been told of inconsistencies in the shots by "sources close to the regiment".

And Soames criticised the Mirror for publishing them when, he said, "there was clearly a question mark over their veracity".

But yesterday an unnamed officer told GMTV that senior ranks had turned a "blind eye" to mistreatment of Iraqi prisoners.

"People were literally getting serious beating or kickings... you're talking broken ribs, punctured lungs sort of thing."

Asked whether incidents such as those depicted in the photographs had occurred, he replied: "Yes, I'm sure it has. I know. Yes. Yes."

And Sky TV defence analyst Francis Tusa insisted there was no evidence to suggest the pictures were fake.

Daily Mirror editor Piers Morgan yesterday defended publication of the photos, which sparked a worldwide outcry, in Saturday's paper.

He said: "There was clearly a small rogue element of soldiers who committed totally unacceptable acts against Iraqi civilians. Acts which have made our battle to win the hearts and minds of this country's people so much more difficult."

"The Mirror makes no apology for exposing this outrageous and unlawful behaviour, which has been common knowledge among disgusted British servicemen in Basra for many months. The vast majority of our troops in Iraq have done an outstandingly brave job in incredibly difficult circumstances and the Mirror will always support our soldiers unequivocally, even though we opposed the political decision to wage this war."

The two squaddies admit they cannot answer questions regarding minor details in the photos, which were taken months ago.

But here they respond to the allegations they are fake.

Claim: The man's T-shirt was too clean and not of a type worn in that part of Iraq.
Reality: Soldier B: "We saw dozens of Iraqis wearing exactly those T-shirts." Soldier A: "The man was wearing some sort of Arab dress over his T-shirt and it was ripped off during his arrest."

Claim: The man's legs are not in a foetal position as they would have been if he had been attacked in a sensitive region.
Reality: Soldier A: "That's how he was. I can't say why they aren't. His arms were tied behind him."
It appears the victim, who had a sack over his head, would not have been prepared for the blow.

Claim: The webbing and pouches worn by the soldier pictured urinating on the victim aren't very full or even well used.
Reality: Soldier A: "On raids, kit wasn't the issue. We had also returned to our compound, the soldier might have removed stuff."

Claim: Rarely did QLR troops wear floppy jungle hats in Iraq. Though all had them, they were encouraged to wear either berets or helmets.
Reality: Soldier B: "We wore floppy hats all the time. A beret was too hot, helmets cumbersome."
The Mirror has seen pictures of QLR troops, including themselves, in Basra in floppy hats.

Claim: No divisional mark is visible below the Union flag on the rifle-butting soldier's left arm. If he was in Iraq, he should have also had a divisional marking, a triangle.
Reality: Soldier A: "We weren't going around sewing badges on. I might have had one shirt with the correct badges which I'd get out if I was on parade. The others had no badges. Perhaps just a Union flag."

Claim: The truck, the soldiers' uniforms and boots, and the Iraqi are too clean.
Reality: Soldier A: "That's the way it was."

Claim: The SA80 in the picture is allegedly a Mark One. All troops in Iraq had Mark IIs. The rifle in the pics has no shoulder strap - unusual for troops in Iraq.
Reality: Soldier A: "I was carrying an SA80-A2. I think the one in the picture is that model as well. I can't explain why it may not be. Some soldiers wore rifle slings, many others didn't. Some found that in a situation where you might have to open fire a sling made moving the weapon to the firing position very awkward."

Claim: A rifle in the picture was too clean, with no scratches or marks.
Reality: Soldier A: "We cleaned our rifles all the time. It could have been cleaned that afternoon."

Claim: The truck appears to be a Bedford model, rather than a Leyland, which was the type the QLR had in Iraq.
Reality: Soldier A: "It was a four-ton truck, I'm not sure what make. We always used that sort of truck when we were on raids as did other units. It was standard practice."

Claim: The sandbag on the Iraqi's head is too clean and looks almost ironed. Sandbags used as hoods by troops were kept crumpled up in their pockets or pouches for quick use as necessary.
Reply: Soldier A: "I can't answer that. That was the hood the man had on."
The Mirror has seen another picture of one of the soldiers with another arrested Iraqi - the sandbag appears identical.

Claim: The troops' uniforms and equipment are too neat and not dirty.
The Mirror has been shown another picture of an arrest in which the soldiers' uniforms appear exactly the same.

Claim: There are no visible bruises or marks on the Iraqi.
Reply: Soldier A: "I can't explain that."

Claim: Boots were not laced in the correct fashion.
Reality: Soldier A: "I never even noticed that. I think people lace the boots the way they are most comfortable with."
The Mirror has seen archived pictures of Basra soldiers with laces done up in many different ways.

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