The UK government and armed forces have been accused of covering up the killing of civilians by British troops in Afghanistan and Iraq.
An investigation has spoken to 11 British detectives who said that they have found evidence of war crimes as insiders say soldiers should have been prosecuted for the killings.
The allegations – which the The Ministry of Defence deny – came to light after an investigation by BBC Panorama and the Sunday Times.
An investigation has spoken to 11 British detectives who said that they have found evidence of war crimes as insiders say soldiers should have been prosecuted for the killings (file image)
The government announced the closure of investigations into alleged war crimes in Iraq and Afghanistan before a single soldier was prosecuted.
In the programme the reporter Richard Bilton met UK detectives who talk for the first time about how they were prevented from prosecuting soldiers suspected of serious crimes.
He reveals evidence that suggests the Ministry of Defence and senior officers were involved in the cover-up of torture and illegal killings.
The government announced the closure of investigations into alleged war crimes in Iraq and Afghanistan before a single soldier was prosecuted (file image)
The new evidence has come from inside the Iraq Historic Allegations Team (IHAT), which investigated alleged war crimes during the occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan.
One IHAT detective told Panorama: ‘The Ministry of Defence 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.’
One case investigated by IHAT was the shooting of an Iraqi policeman by a British soldier on patrol in Basra in 2003.
Raid al-Mosawi was shot in an alleyway as he left his family home and later died but military prosecutors have not taken anyone to court over the incident.
The Ministry of Defence said military operations are conducted in accordance with the law and there had been an extensive investigation of allegations.
Panorama, War Crimes Scandal Exposed is on BBC One at 9pm on Monday 18 November.
