(UK) Families of dead Iraq troops press for probe into war

[leftchick]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20061106/wl_uk_afp/britainjusticemilitary_061106121500

LONDON (AFP) - Families of British troops killed in Iraq went to court to protest the government's refusal to hold an independent probe into its decision to invade.

"The soldiers' families are entitled to know that lessons have been learned and this won't happen in the future," said Phil Shiner, a lawyer representing the families of two soldiers killed there.

He was speaking as the Court of Appeals began the first of three days of hearings into arguments for an inquiry from lawyers representing relatives of four soldiers who died in military action between 2003 and 2005.

The case opened a week after the government, contending that an inquiry at this time would embolden the insurgents in Iraq, survived a bid in parliament by opposition parties to force a wide-ranging inquiry into its conduct in Iraq.

The families contend that Britain is implicitly required to hold an inquiry under Article 2 of the European Convention of Human Rights, which protects the "right to life."

[crim son]

1. The lesson is, join the military and you will be used in whatever

way your government sees fit. You may die.