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LONDON - The only British soldier convicted over the death in British military custody of Iraqi hotel worker Baha Mousa said on Monday that he witnessed an officer abuse other prisoners.
Former corporal Donald Payne told the public inquiry into Mousa's death that he saw Lieutenant Craig Rodgers punching or kicking a group of detainees and even pretending to set fire to them.
Rodgers has denied assaulting "any of the detainees at any time".
Payne also claimed Lieutenant Colonel Jorge Mendonca, commanding officer of the former 1st Battalion Queen's Lancashire Regiment in Iraq in 2003, was "gung ho" and "trigger happy".
Mendonca once cocked his pistol, held it above a prisoner's mouth and threatened to "blow his face off", Payne said.
Mousa, 26, died in Basra, southern Iraq, in September 2003 while in the custody of the regiment. He had suffered 93 separate injuries.
Payne became the first member of the British armed forces to be convicted of a war crime when he pleaded guilty at a court martial to inhumanely treating civilians.
In evidence to the inquiry in London on Monday, he changed his account, admitting for the first time that he used "gratuitous violence" against the detainees and that other British soldiers copied him.
Payne said he had until now covered up the extent of the abuse of Mousa and other Iraqis arrested with him out of "misguided loyalty" to his unit.
The disgraced non-commissioned officer said he now recalled seeing every member of the unit commanded by Rodgers, which was known by the call sign G10A, beating the prisoners.
In a statement, he admitted that in dealing with the Iraqi detainees, "the degree of force I applied was greater than I have so far admitted.
"Moreover at one time or another I saw all the members of the multiple in call sign G10A emulate me.
"I have seen each one, including Lt Rodgers, forcefully kick and/or punch the detainees in the period between September 14 and 16, 2003.
"Further, during the morning of Monday September 15, I observed Lieutenant Rodgers place a jerry can of petrol in front of the young boy. He poured water over him and then lit a match."
Rodgers later issued a statement in which he rejected Payne's "utterly outrageous" allegations.
He said: "I have said before and say again that I did not mistreat any detainee in any way, and I categorically deny that I was anything to do with what Payne has alleged today."
The Ministry of Defence said Friday it was investigating more than 30 alleged cases of torture of Iraqi civilians by British soldiers.
Armed forces minister Bill Rammell said the claims would be thoroughly investigated but rejected suggestions that a full public inquiry should be held into British troops' behaviour in Iraq.
- AFP /ls
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