Iraqi interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi claimed today "major neglect" by US-led forces led to the execution of 49 Iraqi army recruits by insurgents last weekend.
"It was a heinous crime where a group of National Guards were targeted," Mr Allawi said. "There was great negligence on the part of some coalition forces. It seems there was sort of determination on doing Iraq and Iraqi people harm."
Mr Allawi told the Iraqi National Council, a government oversight body, that "you should expect an escalation in terrorist acts."
He said he is forming an emergency investigative committee to view this serious issue.
The attack on the unarmed soldiers, who were returning home on leave, occurred on a remote eastern Iraq road after sundown on Saturday when their buses were stopped by insurgents, according to police and defence officials.
Some of the bodies were found in rows - shot in the head - at a site 95 miles east of Baghdad. Other bodies were found on a burned-out bus nearby.
The Defence Ministry is conducting an investigation into whether insurgents had infiltrated the ranks to obtain inside information.
