About 25 Iraqis, mainly interpreters, employed by British Forces in Iraq are to take legal action against the Government for allegedly failing to protect them from militias that regarded the men as traitors.

The group members, who failed to benefit from an assistance scheme offered by Britain, said that they were owed a duty of care. Some still fear for their life despite a big drop in the influence of the Iranian-backed militants who once controlled Basra, southern Iraq. They say the tense relationship between Iran and Britain makes anyone associated with the British military more of a target.

One former interpreter, who is in hiding in Basra, told The Times: “I am worthless. I have lost my life.”

The Government has relocated more than 200 former workers and, where appropriate, their immediate families to Britain under the assistance programme, introduced two years ago after a Times campaign about the plight of Iraqi interpreters.

Many more received one-off cash payments as compensation for their work and the intimidation suffered. Almost 700, however, failed to qualify for the scheme, which offered help only to those who worked for the British mission for at least 12 consecutive months from the start of 2005.

The law firm Leigh Day & Co is co-ordinating the legal action, which is expected to begin on Friday. “It is for financial compensation for those who have suffered the loss of the breadwinner of the family to help them to start rebuilding their lives,” said Sapna Malik, a partner at the firm.

“It is also to send a message to the Armed Forces that they must have better planning for this in the future,” she told The Times. It was important to ensure better protection of the identity of people who work for British troops in difficult places such as Afghanistan, where local residents are employed.

The 25 claimants include the families of two interpreters and a man who worked in the laundry of a base in Basra who were killed by militiamen. The remainder comprise former interpreters and two Iraqis in other roles.

One former interpreter said that he was rejected from the assistance scheme because he worked six days shy of the one-year minimum. The father of two was forced to quit after receiving three death threats. Six of his friends, all interpreters, were killed by militants. One had his severed head dumped outside the British base where the man worked.

“I suffer horrible days and dark nights,” said the interpreter, who has been unable to find work since leaving his job three years ago. “I have lost hope.” He wants the Government to give him compensation so that he and his family can start a new life. He said Basra is still dangerous for people associated with the British.

A second man, who worked as a labourer for the military before he was kidnapped by militants in August 2005 and forced to resign, agreed. “We are in danger,” he said. “The militia considers us to be agents. Relations between Iran and London have become very tense. I keep changing where I stay, one day at my brother’s another at my aunt’s. . . . It is exhausting. Sometimes, I feel hopeless and don’t care what happens.”

A father of six, he was held hostage for 12 days before his family paid a $10,000 (£6,000) ransom. He received no help from the British. The man said his request for asylum as part of the assistance scheme was rejected because he was not regarded as a skilled labourer such as an interpreter.

The man just wants to be relocated outside Iraq. “Mere compensation is no good. My life is threatened, my family is threatened. I am living in terror.” Shia militiamen effectively ruled Basra for several years while British Forces were in the area. They conducted a campaign of terror against local residents associated with Britain. The assistance scheme closed in May for former Iraqi staff. It is still open to those who continue to work for Britain’s vastly reduced presence in Iraq.

A Foreign and Commonwealth Office spokesman said: “We have made a decision to focus assistance on those staff who have had a sustained association with us in the most difficult circumstances.”

Explore UK News

• Crime News

• Education News

• Health News

• Scotland News

Times Recommends

• Times Christmas appeal: Letter from the Editor
• Conferences — what a waste of money
• Schools supremo learns a painful lesson