Red Cap murders could not have been prevented, says inquiry

The inquiry into an incident which saw six Royal Military Police (RMP) soldiers killed by a mob in Iraq has found "no conclusive evidence" that the deaths could reasonably have been prevented.

However, the Army Board of Inquiry did find that the patrol was allowed to go into a "sensitive area" with less ammunition than they should have done.

An order telling soldiers to carry up to 150 rounds of ammunition "had apparently not reached the RMP", who were carrying approximately 50 rounds at the time of the incident.

Despite this, the board found no evidence to suggest that "any shortfall of equipment had any bearing on the outcome of this incident".

Sergeant Simon Hamilton-Jewell, Corporal Russell Aston, Corporal Paul Long, Corporal Simon Miller, Lance-Corporal Benjamin Hyde and Lance-Corporal Thomas Keys all died at Al Majarr al Kabir police station in Iraq on June 24 last year.

The six-strong RMP patrol, led by Sgt Hamilton-Jewell, had visited the town's police station to find out why local police had not helped a patrol from the Parachute Regiment that had been stoned two days earlier. However, an angry crowd surrounded the RMP's inside the station building and killed them. It was the largest single loss of life suffered by the regiment for 50 years.

A "confused" command relationship between the Para-led battlegroup and the RMP platoon, generally "poor" communications and the decision that saw the RMP go on patrol without an iridium satellite phone were all highlighted as contributory factors.

The inquiry concluded: "In the round, the board found that although there were a number of events that may have had a bearing on the deaths of the six soldiers, it is impossible to state categorically that their fate would have been different if they had carried more ammunition or if communications had been better."

Defence Secretary Geoff Hoon said that the killings represented a "terrible loss for the British Army" and "grievous blow to the families".

He added: "I recognise that nothing can relieve the pain of loss, but I hope that the findings of the Board of Inquiry will give the families a much better understanding of the events leading up to the deaths of their loved ones."

President of the Board of Inquiry, Colonel Mike Hickson said that no stone had been left unturned during their deliberations.

"This board of inquiry has been rigorous, objective and exhaustive. Its purpose was not to apportion blame or to replace ongoing police and coroner's investigations - but rather to discover the facts and make recommendations to prevent it happening again," he said.

The board considered evidence from 113 witnesses, examining issues such as the security situation in the run-up to the incident, command and control procedures, communications and the issue of equipment - including ammunition, and satellite telephones.

(gmcg/sp)