Tweet
19 February 2011
Last updated at 21:40 ET
A security guard who killed two colleagues in Baghdad is to find out if he will face the death penalty later.
Danny Fitzsimons, 30, from Rochdale, has admitted killing Paul McGuigan, from the Scottish Borders, and Darren Hoare, from Australia, in August 2009.
The former soldier pleaded not guilty to murder, but admitted manslaughter with diminished responsibility.
His parents, who are in Baghdad for the trial verdict, say he was suffering from post traumatic stress disorder.
The defence team said the condition was a result of his service with the British army in Kosovo.
Mr Fitzsimons, Mr McGuigan and Mr Hoare had all been working for British security firm ArmorGroup, based in the Iraqi capital's fortified Green Zone, at the time of the shooting.
Mr Fitzsimons has said he shot the men in self-defence, after an altercation broke out.
Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.
Danny Fitzsimons' parents have flown to Baghdad for the trial
He is the first Westerner to stand trial in Iraq after a 2009 US-Iraqi security agreement lifted immunity for foreigners.
His case was adjourned on 23 January while judges considered psychiatric reports.
Mr McGuigan's fiancee Nicci Prestage, 37, from Tameside near Manchester said: "Whilst I and Paul's family wait for the judges' verdict in Iraq, the stress for us is intolerable."
Mr Fitzsimons told the BBC from his cell: "From the bottom of my heart, I feel nothing but sorrow and sadness for the families, for the mothers, the fathers, for the children.
"It was something I was forced into and it could only end one way."
His family hope he will be allowed to return to the UK to serve a sentence and seek treatment closer to home.
Danny Fitzsimons, 30, from Rochdale, has admitted killing Paul McGuigan, from the Scottish Borders, and Darren Hoare, from Australia, in August 2009.
The former soldier pleaded not guilty to murder, but admitted manslaughter with diminished responsibility.
His parents, who are in Baghdad for the trial verdict, say he was suffering from post traumatic stress disorder.
The defence team said the condition was a result of his service with the British army in Kosovo.
Mr Fitzsimons, Mr McGuigan and Mr Hoare had all been working for British security firm ArmorGroup, based in the Iraqi capital's fortified Green Zone, at the time of the shooting.
Mr Fitzsimons has said he shot the men in self-defence, after an altercation broke out.
Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.Danny Fitzsimons' parents have flown to Baghdad for the trial
He is the first Westerner to stand trial in Iraq after a 2009 US-Iraqi security agreement lifted immunity for foreigners.
His case was adjourned on 23 January while judges considered psychiatric reports.
Mr McGuigan's fiancee Nicci Prestage, 37, from Tameside near Manchester said: "Whilst I and Paul's family wait for the judges' verdict in Iraq, the stress for us is intolerable."
Mr Fitzsimons told the BBC from his cell: "From the bottom of my heart, I feel nothing but sorrow and sadness for the families, for the mothers, the fathers, for the children.
"It was something I was forced into and it could only end one way."
His family hope he will be allowed to return to the UK to serve a sentence and seek treatment closer to home.