## Facts

- In 2003, following the invasion of Iraq, British forces assumed responsibility for security and related public-order functions in Basrah as part of the coalition occupation.
- Six Iraqi applicants were relatives of Iraqi civilians killed in Basrah between August and November 2003 in incidents involving British soldiers.
- Five victims were shot and killed during British patrols or security operations on the streets of Basrah.
- The sixth victim, Baha Mousa, died in a British military detention facility in Basrah after arrest and detention by UK troops; he sustained multiple injuries in custody.
- The applicants alleged that the victims were within the United Kingdom’s jurisdiction for purposes of the European Convention on Human Rights and that the United Kingdom failed to conduct effective investigations into the deaths, violating the procedural limb of Article 2 (right to life).
- UK courts accepted Convention applicability to the detention death but rejected jurisdiction for the five street killings.
- The applicants petitioned the European Court of Human Rights, limiting their claims to Article 2’s procedural obligation to investigate.

## Issues

1. Whether Iraqi civilians killed in Basrah during UK security operations, including one death in UK military detention, were “within [the United Kingdom’s] jurisdiction” under Article 1 of the Convention despite occurring outside UK territory.
2. If Article 1 jurisdiction existed, whether the United Kingdom satisfied Article 2’s procedural duty to conduct effective investigations into the deaths.

## Decision

- The Grand Chamber held that all six victims were within the United Kingdom’s Article 1 jurisdiction.
- The Court found jurisdiction because UK soldiers exercised authority and control over the individuals affected by their security operations, including by the use of lethal force and by detention.
- The Court held that the United Kingdom violated Article 2’s procedural obligation to investigate in all six cases.
- For the five street killings, the Court found the investigative responses deficient and not compliant with Article 2 standards.
- For Baha Mousa’s death, the Court held that earlier investigative failures and delays breached Article 2, notwithstanding later inquiries.

## Legal Principles

- Article 1 jurisdiction is primarily territorial, but extraterritorial jurisdiction arises in defined situations, including when state agents exercise authority and control over individuals abroad.
- When state agents exercise physical power and control over an individual outside national territory, the Convention may apply to that individual for the relevant acts.
- A person detained in a state’s military facility abroad falls within the detaining state’s authority and control for Article 1 purposes.
- Article 2 requires an effective official investigation into deaths involving state agents; the investigation must be independent, prompt, and thorough, and capable of identifying and punishing those responsible.
- Article 2 investigations must provide adequate public scrutiny and allow appropriate involvement of the victims’ next of kin.
- Reliance on internal mechanisms that lack independence, thoroughness, and family participation may fail Article 2 where they cannot determine whether force was justified or lead to accountability.

## Conclusion

The Court held that the United Kingdom had Convention jurisdiction over Iraqi civilians killed by UK forces during security operations in Basrah, including a death in UK military detention, and that the United Kingdom breached Article 2 by failing to conduct effective, independent, and prompt investigations in all six cases.


Al-Skeini & Others v. United Kingdom, App. No. 55721/07 (Eur. Ct. H.R. 2011)