US continues to stonewall Brits in troop death investigations
The U.S. is continuing its refusal to participate in a coroner's inquest into the deaths of eight British soldiers who were killed in a U.S. Marine Corps helicopter crash in Iraq, according to a Channel 4 News report.
According to the report, the U.S. has not allowed witnesses to provide evidence in the inquiry and has refused to release a U.S. engineer's report. This comes after a similar incident in which a British solider, Lance Cpl. Matty Hull, was killed when a U.S. pilot fired at his vehicle. The U.S. military refused to allow the coroner to see the cockpit video until it was publsihed by The Sun newspaper.
"Here we are again," coroner Andrew Walker is quoted as saying. "It seems to me inexcusable that where witnesses could assist this inquest, that they're not allowed to do so."
David Johnson, Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in London, appeared in a Channel 4 News interview to defend the U.S. military's decision.
"This is a question of asking people to go into battle under one set of law to come and participate in a civilian inquest in another country," said Johnson. "This did not take place in the United Kingdom, it took place in Iraq." Johnson went on to assert that the coroner's civilian inquest was not suited to matters of war.
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