A lawyer representing Iraqis who claim they were tortured and sexually abused by British soldiers said today that there could be hundreds of uninvestigated claims of abuse.

Some 32 cases of alleged abuse have been reported to the British Ministry of Defence, including claims of rape, the use of torture techniques and physical assault.

One Iraqi claims that soldiers based the abuse they allegedly subjected him to on photographs taken from the notorious US detention centre Abu Ghraib.

Phil Shiner, the lawyer representing the Iraqis, served a pre-action protocol letter on the MoD last week and is asking for a judicial review of the cases.

He said: “I have it on good authority that there are hundreds of cases that are going uninvestigated. But if you are an Iraqi and terrible things have happened to you then how would you know that we have a judicial system in this country to deal with it?

“My guess is that many of them will remain buried.”

Armed Forces Minister Bill Rammell said “formal investigations” must be carried out “without judgments being made prematurely”.

He added: “Over 120,000 British troops have served in Iraq and the vast, vast majority have conducted themselves to the highest standards of behaviour, displaying integrity and selfless commitment.

“While there have been instances when individuals have behaved badly, only a tiny number of individuals have been shown to have fallen short of our high standards.

“Allegations of this nature are taken very seriously; however, allegations must not be taken as fact and formal investigations must be allowed to take their course without judgments being made prematurely.”

One claimant alleges he was raped by two British soldiers, while others say they were stripped naked, abused and photographed.

Female British soldiers are alleged to have taken part in the alleged abuse, according to the report.

In September 2003, Iraqi prisoner Baha Mousa suffered 93 separate injuries, including fractured ribs and a broken nose, while being in UK military custody in Basra, southern Iraq.

Mr Rammell rejected suggestions that a full public inquiry should be held into British troops’ behaviour in Iraq, arguing that “there is not any evidence of endemic abuse within the Armed Forces”.

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