The death of a British soldier mistakenly killed by a US airstrike in Iraq four years ago was "unlawful and criminal" and "entirely avoidable", an inquest found today.
Coroner Andrew Walker, who suspended the inquest when Washington initially refused to allow him to see a cockpit video of the incident, added he believed the full facts surrounding Lance Corporal Matty Hull's death had not yet come to light.
"The attack on the convoy amounted to an assault," he said. "It was unlawful because there was no lawful reason for it and in that respect it was criminal."
Lance Corporal Hull's widow Susan, who has fought a long battle to establish the truth about her husband's death, burst into tears as Mr Walker delivered his verdict.
The inquest, at Oxford's Old Assizes, had heard how the pilot of a US A-10 tank-buster plane swooped and opened fire on the Lt Cpl Hull's armed vehicle convoy in southern Iraq on March 28th, 2003.
Lt Cpl Hull died in the attack, which happened just three days before his 26th birthday. Four other British soldiers were injured. The British vehicles were clearly marked.
Agencies