(CBS) Letter from London is Larry Miller's weekly look at news from across the pond.

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Britain is shaming itself.

Its army came to Iraq, recruited local interpreters and others to help in its war effort, and is now abandoning them.

Insurgent death squads view those who help the British as traitors; by refusing to offer asylum, the U.K. is condemning them and their families to rape, torture, exile and murder.

The reports about what happens to interpreters are gruesome. The London Times tells of 30-year-old Haidr al-Murty: ”Holes were drilled into his hands and knees before both legs were broken and acid poured over his face. Finally, he was shot in the head.”

The Independent tells the story of Hula, a 24-year-old working as an interpreter in Basra, who was raped and beheaded. Another interpreter had a gun put to his head and warned if he didn’t leave the country within 3 days he and his family would be killed. He’s now hiding out in Syria.

Recently, A. Kinani, an army interpreter for three years, wrote to Downing Street begging, “I plead you take pity on me. I live in hope British forces will not abandon me and my family as a reward for my loyalty and hard work.” He was brushed off, told to visit Britain’s Web site and apply for a visa online.

Even the army apparently has no sway with government bureaucrats. A British major serving in Iraq wrote to Prime Minster Gordon Brown, saying he feared for an interpreter's life, yet the government insisted it could not bend asylum rules.

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"Rules," though, did not stand in the way of Denmark, which took 60 local staff and their families to Copenhagen before pulling out of Iraq, nor the U.S. which pledges to take in 7,000 Iraqis this year.

There are 91 interpreters working for the British. However, Defense Secretary Des Brown wonders where the government might draw the line, because 20,000 Iraqis have helped British forces since the war began — and once the gates are open, how many would flood in? Although Browne says “The challenge we face here is quite complex,” for those he seeks to reject, the challenge is staying alive.

Public sentiment though is with the interpreters. One person wrote on a Web site, ”Shame. Gordon Brown's talk of values are just for public consumption, sound bite and short term spin."

Even Britain's ambassador in Baghdad said there is a "duty of care" and paid an emotional tribute to local employees who are under a "very, very severe threat."

Feeling a bit of heat, the Prime Minister says he’ll look at the issue again, suggesting the interpreters might be treated as a special case.

Now, merits of the war can be debated, but to the loyal there are obligations that must be honored.

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