August 16, 2005

BRITISH troops were today facing fresh allegations of abusing Iraqi prisoners.

Two brothers have claimed they were beaten with sticks and denied water and sleep. One says a soldier urinated on his head and another man claims he was held for 31 days without sleep.

Brothers Marhab and As'ad Zaaj-al-Saghir claim they were abused by British soldiers who raided their Basra home in 2003 - just weeks after the invasion. Marhab said his brother was tied up, and they claim troops stole their family car and cash.

They say they were taken to a British base where they were denied water and sleep and were then taken to an internment camp where they were abused.

Marhab said: "While I was tied up, [they] threw me on the floor and hit me with a stick. I lost consciousness. I thought they would throw water over us but he got his penis out and urinated on my head."

The brothers have not made any official complaint and their accounts are confused. The only corroboration of what they say are forms issued a month later by the US Army, showing they were eventually released from the Umm Qasr camp without charge.