ECR to hear case on DK soldiers in Iraq

Denmark’s responsibility and the role of Danish soldiers during a military operation in Iraq in 2004 will be brought before the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg (ECR), according to Politiken. During the military operation “Operation Green Desert”, 23 Iraqi civilians were taken prisoner. The Court will assess whether there may have been violations of the European Convention on Human Rights. In May last year, the Danish Supreme Court acquitted the Ministry of Defence in the case. This is the decision against which the Iraqis have complained to the ECR.
     The spokesman for the Iraqi prisoners, Christian Harlang, told Politiken that it was not a fair trial because most of the Iraqis were not given the opportunity to physically testify in court or follow the progress of the case. About 350 Danes moved out of Camp Danevang early in the morning of 25 November 2004. They placed an outer ring around attempts by Iraqi forces to apprehend suspected insurgents in the village of Az Zubayr. British forces also participated. /ritzau/