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| Baha Mousa doctor struck off medical register after 'repeated dishonesty' | Baha Mousa doctor struck off medical register after 'repeated dishonesty' |
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| A former army doctor, found guilty of misconduct by medical watchdogs over the death of an Iraqi man who was tortured to death by British soldiers, was struck off the medical register on Friday. | A former army doctor, found guilty of misconduct by medical watchdogs over the death of an Iraqi man who was tortured to death by British soldiers, was struck off the medical register on Friday. |
| Derek Keilloh, 38, now a Yorkshire-based GP, was found to be unfit to continue to practise after a panel concluded that he acted in a dishonest way after the death of Baha Mousa in September 2003, and had failed to protect other men who were being mistreated at the same time. | Derek Keilloh, 38, now a Yorkshire-based GP, was found to be unfit to continue to practise after a panel concluded that he acted in a dishonest way after the death of Baha Mousa in September 2003, and had failed to protect other men who were being mistreated at the same time. |
| The medical practitioners tribunal service, part of the General Medical Council, announced "with regret" that the only "appropriate sanction" was banning him from working as a doctor. | The medical practitioners tribunal service, part of the General Medical Council, announced "with regret" that the only "appropriate sanction" was banning him from working as a doctor. |
| Mousa died after being forced into stress positions and beaten for 36 hours. A postmortem examination showed that he had suffered 93 separate injuries, including fractured ribs and a broken nose. | Mousa died after being forced into stress positions and beaten for 36 hours. A postmortem examination showed that he had suffered 93 separate injuries, including fractured ribs and a broken nose. |
| Keilloh, then a 28-year-old medical officer with the Queen's Lancashire Regiment, claimed after failing to resuscitate Mousa that he had seen no injuries. He said that he had seen only dried blood around the dead man's nose. | Keilloh, then a 28-year-old medical officer with the Queen's Lancashire Regiment, claimed after failing to resuscitate Mousa that he had seen no injuries. He said that he had seen only dried blood around the dead man's nose. |
| The panel found that Keilloh had engaged in "repeated dishonesty" and "misleading and dishonest" conduct. It also found that he had failed to bring to attention of senior officers the injuries to Mousa and the possible mistreatment of two other detainees, breaking a "fundamental tenet" of the medical profession. The panel was satisfied that he should have suspected foul play. | The panel found that Keilloh had engaged in "repeated dishonesty" and "misleading and dishonest" conduct. It also found that he had failed to bring to attention of senior officers the injuries to Mousa and the possible mistreatment of two other detainees, breaking a "fundamental tenet" of the medical profession. The panel was satisfied that he should have suspected foul play. |
| Mousa, a hotel receptionist, was arrested by British troops who believed, wrongly, that he was an insurgent involved in the killing of four of their colleagues the month before. | Mousa, a hotel receptionist, was arrested by British troops who believed, wrongly, that he was an insurgent involved in the killing of four of their colleagues the month before. |
| The decision to strike Keilloh off the register comes 24 hours after the Ministry of Defence said it had paid out £14m in compensation and costs to hundreds of Iraqis who complained they were illegally detained and tortured by British forces during the occupation of the south-east of the country, which followed the 2003 invasion. | |
| The investigation into his conduct may also shed new light on the role that military physicians have played during the interrogation of suspected insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan. | The investigation into his conduct may also shed new light on the role that military physicians have played during the interrogation of suspected insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan. |
| Most of the Iraqis who complain that they suffered severe mistreatment after being detained by British forces say that they were examined by a doctor before interrogation. Many have alleged that they suffered injuries – including fractures – when first detained, but that the doctors paid no attention to their wounds, and instead checked their heart rate and breathing before questioning. | |
| Video evidence of some of the interrogations conducted by a shadowy military intelligence unit called the joint forward interrogation team (Jfit) supports allegations that detainees were starved, deprived of sleep, subjected to sensory deprivation and threatened with execution. | |
| Former Jfit detainees and their lawyers believe the doctors were examining prisoners before interrogation to establish that they would survive the ordeal that was to follow. | |
| In December 2010, two high court judges ruled that allegations that more than 100 detainees had suffered systemic abuse was supported by evidence that "each detainee was medically examined at various points by doctors and medical operatives under a duty to report ill-treatment". | |
| When the court's judgment was brought to the attention of the British Medical Association (BMA), the organisation insisted that it was unable to take any action. Although the BMA has a protocol for intervention to deal with human rights abuses by doctors, which calls for credible complaints to be forwarded to Amnesty International, it insisted that complaints about the activities of British military doctors in Iraq "does not fall within our remit". A spokesman added: "The BMA's position is not based on whether BMA members have been involved." | |
| Since that court judgment was handed down, the number of Iraqi civilians claiming to have suffered severe mistreatment while in British military custody is said to have risen to more than 1,110. | Since that court judgment was handed down, the number of Iraqi civilians claiming to have suffered severe mistreatment while in British military custody is said to have risen to more than 1,110. |