LONDON - A British newspaper published transcripts on Tuesday of a cockpit video recording from a US jet at the center of an inquest into "friendly fire" in Iraq in which a British soldier was killed.

An undated pool photograph released on March 30, 2003 shows the late Lance Corporal Horse Matty Hull, 25, of The Blues and Royals Household Cavalry Regiment which is based in Berskshire, Britain. [Reuters]

The Sun, Britain's biggest-selling tabloid, said the video tape revealed the pilots, realizing they had hit a convoy of British armored vehicles, saying "God dammit" and "We're in jail, dude."

Lance Corporal Matty Hull was killed near the southern Iraqi city of Basra in March 2003 when two US A-10 tankbusters twice fired on the British convoy.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) said in a statement: "This recording is the property of the United States government and the MoD does not have the right to release it without their permission."

It also said a copy of the video was used as evidence by a British military board of inquiry (BOI) investigation.

"When the BOI findings were released to the family we did inform them that some classified material had been withheld, but we did not specify its exact nature. There has never been any intention to deliberately deceive or mislead LCoH Hull's family."

An inquest into Hull's death was adjourned last week after the coroner said he had no choice but to delay his verdict until the recording of the incident was produced by the government.

A BBC radio reporter who has seen the video said it showed the pilots were "confused" about what they were doing.