British army major to testify at abuse court martial

A British army major who unlawfully ordered his soldiers to punish Iraqi civilians by “working them hard” is expected to give evidence today at the “Operation Ali Baba” court martial in Germany.

Major Dan Taylor, of the 1st Battalion The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers, will be called as a witness at the court martial of three of his soldiers who are accused of abusing the Iraqis.

The trial comes after US Army Specialist Charles Graner was jailed last week for 10 years for sexually humiliating and attacking prisoners at the Abu Ghraib prison near Baghdad.

Lance Corporal Mark Cooley, 25, from Newcastle upon Tyne, and Corporal Daniel Kenyon, 33, pleaded not guilty to the charges at their trial, taking place at a British army Court Martial Centre in Osnabruck.

Lance Corporal Darren Larkin, 30, from Oldham, Greater Manchester, admitted one charge of assaulting an unknown male at the camp, but denied another charge of forcing two Iraqi males to undress in front of others.

Photographs of the “shocking and appalling” abuse of the civilians at the hands of the British soldiers were revealed yesterday.

The images include naked Iraqi prisoners simulating sex acts, British soldiers pretending to punch and kick bound men and a prisoner – grimacing with fear - tied to the raised forks of a forklift truck.

The photographs were taken in May 2003 at a humanitarian aid camp known as Camp Bread Basket, near Basra, just weeks after Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein’s regime was ousted by coalition troops.