British general faces Iraq war charge (murder coverup)

LONDON: A British general is facing possible criminal charges over one of the most controversial incidents of the Iraq war, The Sunday Times has learnt.

The allegations levelled against Major-General Peter Wall relate to alleged attempts by senior officers to prevent an investigation into the deaths of a British tank commander and an unarmed Iraqi civilian.

The death of Sergeant Steven Roberts at Al Zubair in the early hours of March 24, 2003, led to widespread public outrage after the Ministry of Defence confirmed he had no body armour. In a taped message, recorded the evening before he died and released by his widow Samantha, Roberts described the lack of equipment as a “joke”.

It only emerged later that a civilian had died in the same incident. Wall, who is deputy chief of joint operations, is by far the most senior officer to have been implicated in a case involving alleged wrongdoing by British troops. He was commander of 1 (UK) Armoured Division at the time of the alleged offence.

His actions were investigated after Lord Goldsmith, the attorney-general, told Geoff Hoon, the former defence secretary, that the evidence suggested “a concerted attempt by the chain of command to influence and prevent an investigation”. Goldsmith then removed the case from the army’s control and ordered that any charges be heard by a civilian court. As a result of a Metropolitan police investigation, two soldiers from 2nd Royal Tank Regiment face possible murder charges over the death of Zahir Zabti Zaher, the unarmed Iraqi civilian.

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