Bishops call for US Inquiry into Iraqi Prisoner Abuse

Church of England Bishops are expected to apply pressure for a US inquiry into the treatment of Iraqi prisoners by American troops, and for those responsible to be brought to justice.

The Bishops have previously written a letter rebuking the Prime Minister, Tony Blair, over the conduct of Western security forces during the Iraq war. The letter called for those who were found to have abused prisoners in the Abu Ghraib prison to be thoroughly investigated and disciplined appropriately.

During the normal course of business, it would be left to the Archbishop of Canterbury, Revd Dr Rowan Williams to raise the Church of England's concerns about such matters with Tony Blair in their regular meetings. However, due to the extreme nature of the findings, and the "horror" felt by the 114 Bishops, and representatives from other Anglicans at the recent Bishops' meeting in Liverpool, it was decided to take the unprecedented step of requesting Dr Williams and the Archbishop of York, David Hope, to write a personal address to the UK Prime Minister. The letter was eventually sent to coincide with the transfer of sovereignty and power in Iraq.

The letter, which was leaked to the Times newspaper, accussed Blair of "double standards", and warned that the revelations were putting the credibility of the Government at risk. The Archbishops were keen to emphasise that the British role in Iraq and Israel must be handled carefully so as not to jeopardise the Government's reputation. In particular the letter called on the Government to conduct itself so as to be seen as "honest brokers".

Revd Tom Butler, the Bishop of Southwark and co-chairman of the Interfaith Network of Britain and Ireland, put forward the point that although at the beginning of the war on Iraq there were seen to be many options that could be taken, but circumstances have now led to Bishops being able to unite completely in their aims and demands.

Bishop Butler said: “The bishops were not looking for a confrontation. It is that our hearts had a great burden on them. There was moral revulsion at what was done to those Iraqi prisoners and we were ashamed. We were right to be ashamed. There is unfinished business that has to be finished if Britain is to regain its moral authority."

Butler continued, “We want a transparent investigation by the Americans into how it could have happened and we want those responsible to be brought to book. Unless this is tackled, it will continue to undermine Britain’s moral authority, particularly in the Middle East.”

The Bishop of Southwark concluded that "was also a real revulsion when we saw those pictures of Iraqi prisoners, we felt we really must express our sense of moral revulsion and horror.”