Iraq inquiries drove veteran to attempt suicide

Pressure mounts on ministers to end relentless investigations by the Mod-funded war unit

AN IRAQ war veteran has told how he was driven to near suicide by a relentless series of Ministry of Defence funded inquiries over 15 years.

The final straw for Joseph Mccleary was an investigation by the Iraq Fatality Investigations (IFI) unit. Ministers are under growing pressure to shut down IFI, a form of inquest chaired by Sir George Newman, a retired High Court judge, and funded by the MOD.

Guardsman Joseph Mccleary, now aged 36, had been dragged through a series of investigations over the death of Ahmed Jabbar Kareem Ali, a 17-yearold Iraqi who drowned in May 2003, culminating in the IFI inquiry, which concluded in September 2016.

Mr Mccleary, from Liverpool, who signed up for the Army aged 16 and served eight years, said: “I was investigated eight or nine times over the death of that lad. They wouldn’t leave me alone. I ended up trying to take my own life even though I’ve got a wonderful wife and kids. With the last investigation I only found out about it from a news reporter who asked me how I felt about it happening again.

“They turned my life upside down. It was bordering on harassment. Each time they investigated me they had no evidence that I had done anything wrong, yet they came back after me again and again. I was dragged down to London and forced to go through it all again for George Newman, for what I think was the ninth inquiry.

“Attending was supposed to be voluntary, but when I asked him what would happen if I didn’t attend he said he would go to the High Court to get a warrant to force me to attend.”

Mr Mccleary added: “I’m sorry for that lad who died. I wish he hadn’t died. But I had nothing to do with his death. I fought a war for this country and yet we are being treated like this.”

The IFI was set up in 2013 in the wake of a High Court case brought by Phil Shiner, the disgraced human rights lawyer later struck off for dishonesty. The IFI – a quasi inquest – investigates suspicious deaths previously looked at by the Iraq Historic Allegations Team (Ihat) – which was shut down last year – and passed to the MOD.

IFI has completed reports into the deaths of six Iraqis and has one case ongoing in four years of operation. The current inquiry involves the death of Tariq Sabri Mahmud, an Iraqi detained by Coalition forces in April 2003 who died while in custody. A US investigation found “no evidence of any unlawful act”. Major Robert Campbell and two comrades have been told they will also be subjected to an IFI inquiry over the death of another Iraqi from drowning, also in May 2003.

IFI does not rule on any criminal or civil liability over a death but veterans are appalled at the prospect of being dragged through a public inquiry after being cleared of criminal wrongdoing.

An MOD spokesman said that if it tried to close down IFI then the Government would be “defaulting on its obligations” under the European Convention on Human Rights.