A Danish intelligence officer and four military police sergeants were found guilty on two of four charges of abusing Iraqi prisoners but will not be punished, a Copenhagen court has ruled.
"The defendants are to a certain degree found guilty but due to extenuating circumstances there is no basis for a sentence," Judge Jorgen Lougart said.
Reserve Captain Annemette Hommel (38) and the sergeants were charged last year with subjecting Iraqi prisoners at a Danish camp in southern Iraq to ill-treatment.
All five were found guilty of verbal humiliation and forcing prisoners to kneel uncomfortably during interrogation, but they were cleared of restricting access to food, water and toilets.
Hommel appealed the ruling to the high court. The sergeants' superior, she was the main defendant and the only one who may be named.
The judge said extenuating circumstances included unclear rules about procedures and insufficient and outdated training.
"Hommel several times asked her superiors about procedures and specific guidance regarding detention and interrogation without getting any usable answers, and her superiors did not perform the necessary control that all conventions were observed," Judge Lougart said.
Denmark's mandate to keep its around 530 troops serving with US-led forces in Iraq expires on February 1st, but it is expected to be extended to July 1st.