Iraqi PM condemns Haditha killings

Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki yesterday condemned as a terrible crime an alleged massacre of civilians by US Marines last year.

US military commanders had ordered training over the next 30 days for their combat troops in Iraq that would highlight the "importance of adhering to legal, moral and ethical standards on the battlefield", a US statement said.

Mr Maliki's coalition government said a national security committee would work with US-led forces to make sure there was no repeat of what occurred in the western town of Haditha in November.

US defence officials have said murder charges may be brought against Marines following an investigation into the deaths of 24 civilians in Haditha, which some US newspapers have compared to the 1968 My Lai massacre in Vietnam.

Many Iraqis believe unjustified killings by US troops are common, but few have been confirmed by investigations.

"The crime and misery of Haditha... is a terrible crime where women and children were eliminated," Mr Maliki told a news conference after a Cabinet meeting.

He told Reuters this week he wanted investigations into Haditha and other cases. In an interview on Tuesday he said his patience was wearing thin with excuses that US troops kill civilians "by mistake".

His deputy said those responsible should be brought to justice and punished.

"We will engage with multinational forces command seriously about means and modalities to prevent the re-occurrences of such incidents," Deputy Prime Minister Barham Salih said yesterday.

Echoing comments by US President George W. Bush this week, a senior US military spokesman said anyone guilty of violations against civilians would be punished.

"This tragic incident is in no way representative of how coalition forces treat Iraqi civilians," Major General William Caldwell told a news briefing in the capital Baghdad.