International Criminal Court closes probe into abuse of Iraqis by British troops

British troops were accused of killing and torturing Iraqi prisoners (Peter Byrne/PA)

The International Criminal Court is closing a preliminary probe into claims of killings and torture of Iraqi prisoners by British troops from 2003-2008 and will not open a full-scale investigation because UK authorities have investigated the allegations.

The global court only takes on cases of crimes against humanity, war crimes and other serious international offences if a member state is unwilling or unable to investigate them or has carried out investigations that were not genuine with a view to shielding suspects from justice.