A senior US army officer who led a battalion in northern Iraq has been found guilty of aggravated
assault on a prisoner and has tendered his resignation.
Lieutenant Colonel Allen West was suspended from his post in August when he was charged with beating up and threatening to kill an Iraqi policeman he was interrogating about attacks on US forces.
West was fined $5,000 but escaped a full military trial. The division commander recommended acceptance of his retirement request, which now goes to the army's human resources department for confirmation.
"While his crimes could merit a court martial, mitigating factors involved were considered including the stressful environment our leaders and soldiers face daily and Lt Col West's record as an officer and commander," the division said in a statement.
At a hearing last month, West admitted he watched his men beat the detainee, Yahya Jhodri Hamoody, without intervening and said he fired a warning shot in the air from his pistol.
Before his suspension, Allen commanded some 700 troops as part of the US occupying force in Iraq . He is the most senior soldier to be found guilty of assaulting Iraqis since the invasion last March.