LONDON, Oct 5 (Reuters & JMCC) - Britain's Foreign Office said it would appeal a High Court judgement on Friday that three elderly Kenyans who were tortured under British rule in the 1950s could pursue their claim for damages from London.

The judgement has potentially significant and far reaching legal implications, it said in a statement.

The normal time limit for bringing a civil action is 3 to 6 years. In this case, that period has been extended to over 50 years despite the fact that the key decision makers are dead and unable to give their account of what happened.

The ruling, if upheld, could have implications for former subjects of British rule in Mandate Palestine, say lawyers for the claimants, as well as other areas that were under colonial rule. Israel's much-criticized practice of holding Palestinians without trial is based on British law implemented during its control of the area.

The Foreign Office added that it did not dispute that each of the three claimants in the case suffered torture and other ill treatment at the hands of the colonial administration.