This is so messed up…
The soldiers were already cleared in the case.
But the Iraqi family was still given the go ahead to take the case to the EU Court of Human Rights.
Baha Musa and his family (Sky News)
Leftist human right’s groups are ecstatic.
ADN Kronos reported:
Relatives of Iraqi hotel worker Baha Musa, who died of injuries inflicted by British troops while in army custody have won their claim that European human rights legislation does apply to British soldiers serving in Iraq. Lawyers for Musa’s family said Wednesday’s ruling by the House of Lords sitting as Britain’s highest court entitles them to an independent investigation. Lawyers for five other Iraqi civilians shot dead on the streets of the southern port of Basra while Britain was an occupying power there under international law, but who lost appeals, have said they will take their cases to the European Court of Human Rights.
Campaign groups hailed the House of Lords’ decision on Musa’s case and said it held the government to account. Shami Chakrabarti of Liberty, one of the human rights groups which helped to bring the cases to court, said: “There could now never be a British Guantanamo. The British will never be able to build a prison anywhere in the world and say it is a legal black hole.”
She said: “The significance of this decision is that individual soldiers cannot be left as scapegoats and left to carry the can for the failures of our government and our military high command…the Human Rights Act protects anyone detained by British authorities anywhere in the world.”
Musa was 26 when he died in September 2003 after being detained, hooded and beaten by British troops in 36 hours of detention while Britain was an occupying power in Iraq under international law. He suffered 93 injuries including broken ribs and a broken nose.
Seven military defendants were earlier this year cleared of all allegations in connection with Musa’s death at court martial in Britain.