Britain to pay Iraqis for death, torture

LONDON, July 11 (UPI) -- The British Ministry of Defense has agreed to pay compensation and apologize to Iraqis tortured by British troops and the family of a man who died.

Leigh Day & Co., a British law firm representing the Iraqis, announced the settlement Thursday, The Scotsman reported Friday. The company said the damages come to 2.83 million pounds, about $5.7 million.

The 10 men involved in the litigation were picked up by soldiers in the Queen's Lancashire Regiment in Basra, Iraq, in 2003. At the time, a few months after the invasion of Iraq, the situation was beginning to deteriorate with sectarian violence aimed at Iraqis and at Coalition troops becoming more common.

The man who died, Baha Mousa, was a young clerk at a hotel where soldiers found weapons, which the staff said were for security. He died in British custody.

General Freddie Viggers, who was present at a mediation session with family members, apologized, the law firm said.

"The British Army apologized for the appalling treatment that you suffered at the hands of the British Army," Viggers was quoted as saying. "The appalling behavior of British soldiers made us feel disgusted."