Gorilla / pr00ne / Burpblade / ABIW
I'm not surprised that they're prosecuting this - after all, what else could the MOD do? Failure to prosecute would be to invite anyone who simply doesn't fancy a trip to Iraq to decide that they'd rather stay home, and the breakdown in military discipline could be distinctly problematic.
But as has been pointed out, prosecution is not risk-free either. UNSCR 1546 (
http://daccessdds.un.org/doc/UNDOC/G...df?OpenElement) authorises the position of the forces on the ground, and if I were the MOD, I would use this in an attempt to avoid any discussion of the legality of the war, on the grounds that in light of UNSCR 1546, it's just not relevant.
I'm not sure whether I agree with this, but since UNSCRs are international law, it makes it very difficult to argue against, so it will be very interesting. The key will be if the good Dr loses his GCM, is discharged and appeals to the conventional judicial system, how the civilian judiciary deal with it. And once in civilian courts, a recourse to the European Courts (presumably by then on points of employment law).
We shall see: but as Burpblade points out, "People need to be damned sure where they stand and ready to ask/challenge if they're not comfortable." Amen to that, Burpblade: this is why all commanders need to ensure that their people get their law of war update and take it seriously.
S41