LONDON, March 4 (UPI) -- British prosecutors have opened an inquiry with evidence soldiers allegedly tortured and killed as many as 20 Iraqi detainees after a firefight in 2004.
Family members of the men, who laid siege to a checkpoint in southeastern Iraq, said their relatives' bodies were returned mutilated. One man's penis had been removed and the eyes of two others were gouged out, the families said. They presented death certificates documenting the alleged abuse as evidence, The Guardian of London said Monday.
British defense officials have disputed the claim, saying the men were killed in battle and were taken to a nearby prison already dead.
The inquiry does not name any suspects.
Prosecutors noted their initial inquiry, brought about when families of the victims filed suit under British law, was met with resistance by the defense ministry. Several files were withheld, leading to a court-ordered investigation that found some 600 relevant documents that had not been turned over, court officials said.
The investigation into the battle of Danny Boy -- named after the checkpoint that was attacked -- could last until late 2014, prosecutors said.
