Britain is home to 'hundreds' of foreign war criminals and torturers

The doctor, identified as MAB in court documents, has been accused of crimes against humanity for his role in treating prisoners who had been tortured by the al-Istikhbarat.   

The medic’s role in al-Istikhbarat hospitals was to treat victims of torture, not for the purpose of healing, but to prepare them for further torture sessions.

“MAB” reportedly left Iraq in December 1995, first settling in Libya, before coming to the UK in 2000.

He reportedly did not file an asylum application until 2007, raising questions about how he managed to live in the country apparently undetected for seven years and whether any UK agencies were protecting him during that period.

Despite being investigated by the war crimes unit of the Home Office, and being subsequently denied refugee protection on the grounds that he had “committed crimes against humanity”, MAB avoided deportation.

The verdict by the court of appeal judges, granting MAB asylum in the UK, will come as a shock to human rights campaigners and the countless victims of Saddam Hussein’s regime.

This is particularly the case as MAB has never expressed remorse for his actions. Even court documents admit that he had “never sought to leave the Al-Istikhbarat throughout his military service”.

In other words, MAB was not a defector and he had carried out his duties freely and willingly.

The court’s decision will raise fresh concerns about the high concentration of foreign torturers and war criminals in Britain.

The Telegraph reported in July 2013 that there are up to 800 foreign war criminals living in Britain, at least 100 of which had applied for British citizenship in 2012 alone. 

The UK’s accommodation of war criminals stands in stark contrast to the tough attitude of the British immigration system towards normal asylum seekers, including victims of torture.