SAS troops probed over claims they executed innocent Afghans
Military chiefs dismiss claims amid fears of another witch hunt – but Corbyn calls for inquiry into ‘cover-up’
‘Afghans made up stuff for cash’
SPECIAL forces soldiers were at the centre of a row last night over claims they executed unarmed Afghan civilians in cold blood.
Elite troops from the Special Air Service (SAS) allegedly murdered Afghans, believed to be Taliban insurgents, during raids on their homes that may have been based on false intelligence.
Officers from the Royal Military Police ( RMP) also investigated claims they then planted guns to make the victims appear to be insurgents – then falsified mission reports.
Some victims were handcuffed and hooded before being shot dead, it was claimed. The vast majority of cases were thrown out by Operation Northmoor – the probe into deaths during the Afghan war – as it was deemed there was insufficient evidence.
There is only a single case of unlawful killing by UK troops in Afghanistan that remains under investigation. Last night there were calls for another inquiry amid lurid allegations the Ministry of Defence put pressure on the RMP to wind up the cases.
The remaining case centres on claims British soldiers shot dead four family members during a night raid on their homes in in Qala- e-Bost, east of Lashkar Gah, southern Helmand province, in February 2011.
Family members and local officials told the Sunday Times that at least two of the four victims had been handcuffed with plastic ties before being shot dead.
The RMP is arranging to travel to Afghanistan to interview the witnesses. It is also currently subject to a civil claim. The case was brought by Leigh Day, a law firm seeking compensation for the family of the deceased.
The firm, and three of its solicitors, were cleared of wrongly hounding British troops after a six-week tribunal last month.
Yesterday, Jeremy Corbyn called for an independent inquiry to examine whether the probe into alleged SAS ‘ war crimes’ had been deliberately impeded by the Ministry of Defence. The Labour leader said: ‘The allegations of unlawful killings and war crimes in Afghanistan are extremely serious and must be fully investigated. There can be no question of a cover-up.’
He backed Lord Macdonald, the former director of public prosecutions, who warned of a ‘major scandal’ if the allegations were true. But MoD sources stressed that Operation Northmoor was an independent inquiry and there was no evidence to back up claims.
Officers from Greater Manchester police and the National Crime Agency have also been involved. A defence source said: ‘The evidence has just not been there. As we have seen so far, none of it has really stacked up.’
And a military source insisted: ‘The Afghans have happily made stuff up for cash.
‘There have been cases were people claimed they killed their children, and they never had any children, they just made it up.’
They added: ‘Claims of a coverup are fanciful.’
Colonel Richard Kemp, who commanded British forces in Afghanistan, said: ‘I think it is extremely unlikely that would be happening. The Special Forces are highly trained and highly dis- ciplined and their role is to kill the enemy not unarmed civilians. An investigation has already proved that the claims are false.’
The existence of Operation Northmoor emerged nearly two years ago, when police were examining claims of around 100 Afghans alleging they were mistreated during the 13-year war.
It was launched in 2014 and the inquiry’s workload rapidly soared to 675 claims, before being slashed to just ten. In all, there were 52 allegations of deaths, mainly by special forces.
But 51 were deemed not serious enough to be referred to the Service Prosecuting Authority.
The probe has cost taxpayers £9million to date. A further £2.5 million is expected to be spent as officers examine the remaining ten investigations.
An MoD spokesman said: ‘The Royal Military Police has found no evidence of criminal behaviour by the Armed Forces in Afghanistan. They have discontinued over 90 per cent of the 675 allegations made and less than ten investigations remain’, adding: ‘The MoD has not influenced the direction of Operation Northmoor, which is an independent RMP investigation.’
A spokesman for Leigh Day said: ‘We are involved in one case being investigated by Operation Northmoor which involves allegations of four family members being shot by British Forces in February 2011.’