A former senior British officer has testified before a public inquiry alleging that British special forces in Afghanistan committed war crimes, including executing suspects. The officer detailed how concerns about killings were raised within the chain of command but were not addressed, with reviews ordered instead of criminal investigations.
A former senior British officer has testified before a public inquiry alleging that British special forces in Afghanistan appeared to have committed war crimes , including the execution of suspects, and that despite widespread awareness within the chain of command, no action was taken.
The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) initiated the inquiry following a BBC TV documentary that reported soldiers from the elite Special Air Service (SAS) were responsible for the deaths of 54 individuals during the Afghan war more than a decade ago under suspicious circumstances. This inquiry is specifically examining a series of night-time raids conducted by British forces between mid-2010 and mid-2013, a period when they were part of a US-led coalition fighting against the Taliban and other militant groups. The officer, identified as N1466, who at the time served as the Assistant Chief of Staff for Operations in the UK Special Forces Headquarters, detailed his growing concerns in 2011 regarding the number of detainees killed during UKSF1 operations. His suspicions arose from an analysis of official reports following raids, where the number of enemies killed in action (EKIA) consistently exceeded the number of weapons recovered, coupled with what he considered the implausibility of reports that detainees repeatedly attempted to pick up weapons or use grenades after being captured. He stated explicitly, I will be clear we are talking about war crimes we are talking about taking detainees back on target and executing them with a pretence, the pretence being that they conducted violence against the forces. The officer further revealed that he had raised these concerns with the Director of Special Forces, referred to as 1802, but instead of considering criminal action, the director only ordered a review of the operational tactic. N1466 expressed regret that he did not personally approach the military police at the time, although he did later report his concerns in 2015, stating he was deeply troubled by what he strongly suspected was the unlawful killing of innocent people, including children. He indicated his belief that the issue of extra-judicial killings was not limited to a small number of soldiers within a single sub-unit of UKSF1 but was potentially more widespread and apparently known to many within UKSF. The inquiry's chair, senior judge Charles Haddon-Cave, underscored the importance of referring anyone who broke the law to the appropriate authorities, while also aiming to clear any suspicion from those who acted appropriately.
Afghanistan War Crimes Special Forces SAS Military Inquiry
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