A Royal Air Force doctor who refused orders to return to Iraq will face a full court martial, having failed to persuade a military judge advocate that his refusal was justified because the invasion of the country was illegal.

In the event, the issue of the invasion's legality was never tested in the pretrial hearing of Flight Lieutenant Dr Malcolm Kendall-Smith. The prosecutor relied instead on subsequent United Nations resolutions authorising the multinational force's presence in Iraq.

David Perry, prosecuting, said the charges related to a period when Britain's presence in Iraq was authorised by UN resolutions. He …