The Baha Mousa Public Inquiry

Day 10: Tuesday 22 September 2009

The evidence of Baha Mousa’s father and Detainee D003

Mr Daoud Mousa (father of the late Baha Mousa) was called as a witness.  Mr Elias (Counsel to the Inquiry) began to question the witness.  Mr Mousa confirmed that his witness statement (in English) had been translated to him in Arabic.  Mr Mousa explained that up until 1991 he had worked with the Basra police force for 24 years.  In 1991 he was forcibly removed by the Saddam regime because he was not a member of the Baath party, he was not a member of the Saddam Hussain’s clique and was a Shi'ite from the South of Iraq.   Mr Mousa said he welcomed the British forces when they arrived in Iraq and that he rejoined the police force when the Saddam regime fell.

Mr Mousa said that the Ibn Al Haitham Hotel, where his son worked until his death, was not used by former regime loyalists.  Mr Mousa knew this as he visited the hotel frequently and he lived near the hotel and his son would also have known.  Mr Mousa could not be precise but believed his son had worked for the hotel for almost a fortnight.  Mr Mousa said his son had hated the Saddam regime.  Mr Mousa said his son was happy when the British troops arrived.

On the day his son was arrested Mr Mousa had gone to the hotel at around 8am to pick him up and noticed army vehicles.  There was one British soldier guarding the door to the hotel.  Through the glass doors of the hotel he saw 3 or 4 soldiers breaking into a safe and taking money, in the form of notes, from the safe and putting the money in their pockets.  Mr Mousa told the soldier on the door that a crime had been committed and he was permitted to enter the hotel.  Once inside the hotel he asked to speak to the officer in charge and was introduced to an officer named Mike.  He told Mike what he had seen and gave him a statement in Arabic confirming as much; Mr Mousa did not receive a copy of this statement.  Mike either searched or ordered a search on one of the soldiers, found the money and told the offending soldier to get out of the hotel and into the vehicle outside.  Although MR Mousa’s statement said that Mike slapped the offending soldier Mr Mousa could not remember whether this had actually happened.

Mr Mousa said that all detainees were on floor of the hotel with their hands over their heads.  Mr Mousa said Mike gave him a scrap of paper with his contact details (along with name, rank and number) so that he could contact Mike in respect of his son; although he tried to contact Mike several times he never got through.  The detainees were led outside and placed in a military lorry.  Although Mr Mousa could not at first remember whether the detainees were hooded, after further questioning he did not believe they were hooded, contrary to his witness statement stating that the detainees were hooded.  Mr Mousa said he could not remember if the detainees were handcuffed.

Two days later Mr Mousa was notified that his son was dead and driven to see his son's body.  Mr Mousa said that his son's body showed a broken nose and traces and marks all over the body as a result of violence inflicted upon it.  A few days later Mr Mousa saw Dr Hill the pathologist (in the presence of a female officer and an Iraqi doctor).  Dr Hill said that his son had a broken nose, various injuries and bruises about the body and that it was clear that his son had died of strangulation.  When he came to get his son's body the next day the translator told him that the death certificate stated that his son had died because his heart had stopped.  Mr Mousa told the female office, who had been present when he had spoken to Dr Hill, that he would not take the body until the death certificate had been amended to show strangulation.  The female officer obliged and inserted this in the death certificate and signed it.  The court was shown two death certificates for Baha Mousa, one showing the cause of death as cardio respiratory arrest and another death certificate showing the same cause of death but with 'asphyxia' and a signature, appearing to be for an 'S Cooper' added in the cause of death section.

Mr Mousa remembered talking to the detainees about what had happened to them and Baha Mousa.  Mr Mousa also said that the family of C001 had paid the Mousa family compensation, in accordance with tribal custom, as had C001 not run away (when arrests were made) the detainees would not have been detained.  When asked, Mr Mousa said that he had consulted psychiatrists and broke down in tears when asked what effect the death of his son had had on the Mousa family.  Once Mr Mousa regained his composure he responded that his whole family had suffered including Baha Mousa's children.  He believed that the British army treated his son worse than the other detainees due to the complaint he had raised with respect to the stolen money.

Mr Mousa was then questioned by Mr Garnham (on behalf of the Treasury).  Mr Garnham told Mr Mousa that one of his witness statements stated that Mike had pushed the officer that had taken the money but in another witness statement that he had slapped said soldier.  Daoud Mousa said that the translator had made a mistake and that he had said push, not slap.  When questioned he confirmed that there was no translator present when he gave his statement to Mike.  He remembered the detainees, including his son, being led into the back of a lorry and that he was able to recognise his son leading him to the conclusion that the detainees were not hooded.  He remembered the detainees being handcuffed but saw no iron, plastic is hard to see so must have been plastic cuffs.

Mr Topolski (on behalf of Mr Payne) then questioned the witness.  Mr Topolski apolgised, on behalf his client, but Mr Mousa responded that he would not accept an apology from a criminal.

Mr Singh (on behalf of the detainees) then questioned the witness.  Mr Mousa explained that he had tried to contact Mike or his son to no avail.  Mr Mousa again broke down in tears when Mr Singh asked whether Baha Mousa's children were present when Mr Mousa was told about his son's death.  Mr Mousa also said that he had not been invited to attend the Court Martial.

Detainee D003 was called as a witness and first questioned by Mr Elias.  D003 confirmed that his statement (in English) was translated to him in Arabic.  D003 said that he welcomed the British army when they arrived in Basra due to the bondage incurred under Saddam.  When asked whether former regime loyalists came to the hotel he said he had no idea and was not aware of that.  D003 said that Kalashnikovs rifles were kept at reception in order to secure the hotel as at that time Iraq was unsafe and that C001 loved having guns which were relatively cheap and available after the collapse of the Saddam regime; under further questioning D003 confirmed that the guns were simply part of C001's collection and not for security purposes.  D003 said that a gun was also kept in the safe of the mobile telephone shop.  C001 had opened the safe and shown him the gun but D003 was unsure of its make.  D003 was shown photographs of grenades but said he was not aware that grenades were kept in the hotel but confirmed all the guns were owned by C001.

D003 said he was aware that ID cards were kept at the hotel but he did not know they were false.  D003 was told the IDs were for licenses and that C001 procured these ID cards from C003.  D003 said that C001 did not intend to harm British soldiers.  D003 confirmed that he was in photos showing him carrying gun along with other detainees/C001 and that the photographs were a “bit of fun” and nothing sinister.

D003 said that when soldiers came to the hotel C001 ran away and that the detainees were made to lie on floor and taken to the toilet where they were treated very badly; toilet water was splashed over detainees.  After further questioning and being shown his witness statement saying he had not been badly treated in toilet, D003 said he could not remember exactly whether water had been splashed over him; D003 had told a Panorama interviewer that toilet water had been splashed over him so the suggestion was made that he was exaggerating for television.

In the hotel D003 was asked by an army interpreter, whether he would take him to C001's house (as C001 had fled the scene) which D003 did.  D003 claimed he suffered some intimidation in a 'military van' after visiting C001's house when D003 said he wished to be released.  D003 claimed to have been hit in face in the military van after visiting C001's house when he tried to open his mouth again but suffered no injury.

At the Temporary Detention Facility, D003 said that treatment was consistently bad over period there and that abuse started as soon as he got there.  When he got there he was hooded, plasticuffed with hands in front of the body, and subjected to pretend punches to see whether he could actually see.  He was then double-hooded and pretend punched again then eventually triple-hooded with water poured over third hood making it more difficult to breathe and as it was very hot he was sweating, his face wet.  Within about ten minutes of being hooded D003 said he was kicked and punched in the body, namely the sides and abdomen but not the face.  D003 said he fell to the ground but was kicked further.  Kicks tended to be at the sides and in the kidneys.  D003 said that hood was rubbed into his face causing injury.  The detainees were also made to sit facing against the wall and were struck on the sides of the body with a piece of aluminum.  Detainees were also forced to adopt stress positions, at first the detainees had to stand; adopting stress positions with arms outstretched and were not allowed to lean against the wall.  D003's hands were plasticuffed and swollen from adopting stress positions but the plasticuffs were tightened when he complained.  Detainees were not allowed to drop out of stress positions, beaten and shouted at continuously and not allowed to sleep for three days; detainees were kept in TDF from Sunday until Tuesday morning.  D003 said that he was prevented from sleeping by beatings, individuals who committed beatings rotated; when one tired another came in.  The detainees were given warm water to drink and at one point, a hot meal.

D003 said that he could still see through holes when two hoods were on but could see nothing with three hoods on.  D003 said that third hood was not on for long but was vague as to how long.  The hoods were only removed for eating, drinking and when taken to see interrogator.  D003 said with heat and everything else that having hoods on was unbearable and that one could hardly breathe.  D003 said that it was not easy seeing through hoods so identifying some of the assaulters was difficult as only had suspicions to go on.  D003 confirmed that other detainees were in the same room as him including Baha Mousa.  D003 said he thought up to 5 or 6 people were involved in beatings but in his witness statement he stated that up to 15 people were involved; when questioned about this D003 said that a lot was going on and there were many voices so it was difficult to say.

D003 said he was taken to the interrogator and asked about C001's whereabouts and confirmed he did not tell interrogator about the beatings.  D003 said he was out of shape, unable to walk properly only wearing trousers (his shirt having being torn of) and had marks and bruises about the body when he saw the interrogator.  D003 said that these marks and bruises would have been evident.