UK troops held torture contests, Iraqi claims

A HOTEL worker who says he witnessed British troops beating his friend to death in Iraq spoke yesterday of being subjected to "torture competitions" at the hands of the army.

Kifah Taha al-Mutari, from Basra, was speaking on the eve of a High Court challenge to the government over allegations surrounding the role of British troops in the deaths of six Iraqis.

Mr Mutari, who flew to Britain for the hearing, said British soldiers arrested him and a fellow hotel worker, Baha Mousa, 26, on suspicion of terrorism. Mr Mousa later died, allegedly after being beaten by soldiers from the Queen’s Lancashire Regiment in September.