William Hague has dismissed a bid to prosecute British politicians and senior military figures over alleged war crimes in Iraq.
The Foreign Secretary said there was no need for the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate allegations of UK forces abusing and killing detainees in their custody.
There had been no “systematic” torture by troops and individual cases had either already been dealt with by the British authorities or were the subject of probes, he insisted.
The head of the army, General Sir Peter Wall, ex-defence secretary Geoff Hoon, and former defence minister Adam Ingram are among those named in the 250-page dossier, according to the Independent on Sunday.
Human rights lawyers have drawn on the cases of more than 400 Iraqis, arguing they represent “thousands of allegations of mistreatment amounting to war crimes of torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment”.
They describe alleged abuse between 2003 and 2008 ranging from sexual assault to threats to kill and “religious humiliation”.
The formal complaint to the ICC was lodged yesterday by Public Interest Lawyers (PIL) and the European Centre for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR). It calls for an investigation into the alleged war crimes under Article 15 of the Rome Statute.
The dossier says “those who bear the greatest responsibility” for alleged war crimes “include individuals at the highest levels” of the British Army and political system.
Meanwhile, it argues that “civilian superiors knew or consciously disregarded information at their disposal, which clearly indicated that UK services personnel were committing war crimes in Iraq”.
However, Mr Hague told Sky News: “These allegations are either under investigation already or have been dealt with already in a variety of ways, through the historic abuses system that has been established, through public inquiries, through the UK courts or the European courts.
“There have been some cases of abuse that have been acknowledged and apologies and compensation have been paid appropriately.
“But the government has always been clear and the armed forces have been clear that they absolutely reject allegations of systematic abuses by the British armed forces.”
Former foreign secretary Jack Straw said he was surprised about the allegations as they were not included in the inquiry led by Sir Peter Gibson into treatment of detainees, which reported last month.
Last year, High Court judges said a “new approach” was required relating to the Government’s inquiry into the allegations.
In May, the judges called for “mini-inquiries” to take place in possibly scores of cases to meet the requirements of Article 2, which relates to the obligation to investigate suspicious deaths involving the state.
PIL acts for more than 1,069 former detainees and surviving relatives who allege that they or their family were unlawfully detained, tortured, or killed by UK service personnel in Iraq.