UK troops ‘victims of criminal witchhunt’

British soldiers are the victims of a witchhunt, the Defence Secretary admitted as he promises that the criminal inquiries into troops who served in Iraq and Afghanistan will never be repeated in the future.

In an interview with The Daily Telegraph, Sir Michael Fallon announced the government will set a time limit after which no new cases can be brought, in an attempt to bring an end to the controversial investigations. He also said a new Bill of Rights will ensure that servicemen will no longer be subject to European human rights laws on the battlefield — and will never again be subjected to similar investigations. He also said that the government will foot the legal bills of any soldier who is charged, after The Daily Telegraph disclosed that troops face having their wages docked to pay for their defence.

Mounting anger

Addressing mounting anger over the scandal, Sir Michael described some of the claims being investigated by the Iraq Historic Allegations Team (Ihat) as “disturbing” and “deeply unfair”. He added that the government will introduce a “proper cut-off” to ensure troops no longer face the threat of being pursued by lawyers for years to come. He says: “It has been a witchhunt. And it has been intimidating — not just to our veterans but it has been intimidating to our soldiers today who worry that they too might find themselves being investigated 10 years from now.”

The Daily Telegraph reported that three servicemen could become the first troops to face criminal charges as a result of Ihat’s inquiries.