The high court has ruled that British troops on foreign operations work under the Human Rights Act, which bans torture and inhuman or degrading treatment of prisoners.

The judgment means that British soldiers could be put on trial for human rights abuses against people in their custody anywhere in the world.

The Ministry of Defence said the decision has wide implications for current and future military operations.

"We will have to reassess all our procedures," one defence official said.

The high court  was responding to a case where an Iraqi civilian died in the custody of British soldiers.