Iraq wants US to hand over Haditha file

By Michael Georgy

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - The Iraqi government will ask the United States for the files of an investigation into allegations that U.S. Marines killed Iraqi civilians in Haditha last year, Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki said on Friday.

Standing beside U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad during a visit to a new Baghdad power plant, Maliki said he first heard of the alleged November 19 massacre in the town through the media.

"I hope it (the U.S. investigation) will be fair for the sake of all the victims," said the Shi'ite Islamist whose government of national unity was sworn in 13 days ago.

Asked if he would demand the files, Maliki told reporters without elaborating: "Yes".

U.S. defense officials have said murder charges may be brought against Marines following an investigation into the deaths of 24 civilians in Haditha, which some commentators are comparing to the 1968 My Lai massacre in Vietnam.

Maliki, who has said he is losing patience with reports of killings of Iraqi civilians, condemned the suspected massacre in Haditha as a "terrible crime" on Thursday.

The U.S. military says it is investigating four other cases in which U.S. troops are alleged to have killed Iraqi civilians.

In one of those probes, U.S. military prosecutors were expected to charge seven Marines and a Navy corpsman in the death of an Iraqi civilian, said defense lawyer David Brahms, who represents two of the Americans said late on Thursday. Continued...

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