Blair claims British soldiers were executed

TWO British soldiers whose bodies were shown on Iraq television “may well have been” executed, Downing Street insisted yesterday.

Tony Blair’s spokesman stuck by the claim even though the family of Sapper Luke Allsopp reacted angrily to the Prime Minister’s suggestion on Thursday that he and Staff Sergeant Simon Cullingworth were executed by Saddam Hussein’s henchmen after an ambush on their vehicle in southern Iraq.

Sapper Allsopp’s sister insisted the Army had told his family the two Royal Engineer bomb disposal experts had died in combat. Mr Blair’s spokesman said the government had drawn the conclusion they had been executed, but that further inquiries would be made.

Earlier the British government expressed “regret” for any distress caused by stating that the two British soldiers had been “executed” by Saddam Hussein’s henchmen.

The Prime Minister said on Thursday that the men had been “executed” and condemned pictures of the bodies that were broadcast on the controversial Qatar-based al-Jazeera television station.

Speaking at a news conference in London, Armed Forces Minister Adam Ingram expressed “regret” for any distress that had been caused.

He said Mr Blair’s remarks were placed in the “context of what we know about the depravity of Saddam Hussein’s regime”.

“Given the information available to us, it did indicate that those two soldiers may have been executed.

“So if there’s hurt from the language used then we regret that, clearly, that was never the intention.

“But it was to point up ... our knowledge about the depravity, the brutality of that regime.”