SBS commando: I was hounded out by false claim I killed civilians
After MoS exposes f laws in war crimes ‘witch-hunt’ of Special Forces...
A SPECIAL Forces commando told last night how he was hounded out after being falsely accused of killing three civilians during a fierce battle in Afghanistan.
The Special Boat Service sergeant resigned in disgust following a year-long Royal Military Police (RMP) investigation into the deaths of two women and a child. The inquiry was launched after one of their relatives, a village elder, made a £15,000 compensation claim.
RMP detectives accused the sergeant of indiscriminately firing grenades into the home of an Afghan family, even though official records confirmed the SBS unit had not used the weapon. Following the battle, SBS troops returned the same number of grenades to base that they had been issued with. The commando told The Mail on Sunday how he was questioned four times by military police, who challenged his testimony and the postbattle reports signed off by UK commanders. The sergeant was eventually exonerated but as the experience left him feeling ‘harassed’, he chose to end his distinguished 19-year career.
His distressing account comes after The Mail on Sunday exposed flaws in the RMP’s £6 million war crimes probe, Operation Northmoor, which troops have labelled a witch-hunt.
The former sergeant said: ‘Each time I was questioned, the RMP insisted I’d killed three civilians by firing an under-slung grenade launcher (UGL) into their house. The police wouldn’t take No for an answer... The accusations continued for a year, ruining how I felt about my career and almost my marriage because I was so fed up. Afterwards I never wanted to serve my country again. So I resigned.’
The official report into the 2011 battle, which was written by the sergeant and approved by Special Forces’ chiefs, reveals the dangers faced by the troops as they approached a Taliban stronghold on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border and how they prioritised the safety of local people. It reads: ‘Within minutes of our arrival, radio intercepts revealed the enemy were present in large numbers and they were reinforcing. I was concerned about the risk of civilian casualties and that we could be drawn into a 360 (when troops are surrounded by enemy on all sides). Our mission had been compromised, probably by Afghan National Security Forces. Then at 0450hrs the enemy launched their first rocket-propelled grenade strike. Another SBS trooper climbed on to the roof of a compound and identified their firing position.
‘I then called in an attack helicopter (AH) for support. Fearing an AH attack, seven enemy moved into two pick-up trucks.
‘We engaged both. One got away and one crashed. Four enemy in the second pick-up were KIA (killed in action)... We did not fire UGL and at no point did I see any civilians.’
The sergeant continued: ‘The RMP interviewers wanted to prove something against me, which simply hadn’t happened. It felt like harassment, like they thought I was a war criminal. It made me call time on my military career.’
The elder’s £15,000 claim was dismissed. An MoD spokesman said: ‘Our military served with great courage and professionalism... Where credible allegations are raised it is right they are effectively investigated by an independent police force like the Royal Military Police.
‘They have found no evidence of criminal behaviour by the Armed Forces in Afghanistan, have discontinued over 90 per cent of the 675 allegations made and fewer than ten investigations now remain.’
MoD’s £6m ‘computer witch-hunt’ targets SAS FLAWS: The Mail on Sunday’s report on the Afghanistan war crimes inquiry