“An SAS Unit may have killed 54 people during its six months tour in Afghanistan, an investigation by the BBC reveals. The Ministry of Defence, however, claims that British forces “served with courage and professionalism in Afghanistan.”
Newly obtained military reports by the BBC suggest that a SAS unit may have committed war crimes in Afghanistan. One unit of troops may have unlawfully killed 54 Afghan detainees in a six months tour. General Sir Mark Carleton Smith, then formal head of the Special Forces, was briefed about the incident. Yet he didn’t pass evidence to the Royal Military Police. The RMP was investigating the incident at the time. Gen.
Carleton Smith has however denied commenting on it. The Special Air Service or SAS is a commando unit falling under UK Special Forces. The UK had sent its Special forces in 2003 during the US-led “War on Terror” in Afghanistan.
General Sir Mark Carleton Smith was apparently aware of the incident but failed to act, image BBC.
BBC Panorama has analyzed hundreds of documents on SAS’s operational accounts. Some of these reports cover more than a dozen “kill or capture” raids in Helmand province, Afghanistan 2010/11. SAS operatives killed unarmed people during night raids, former SAS servicemen of that unit told the BBC. Operatives used “drop weapons” – AK-47s and grenades planted at the scene to justify an execution. The pattern left senior officials baffled, yet they were unable to do anything.
SAS Units Competed with Each Other for the Most Kills
Several service persons claim to have witnessed SAS squadrons competing with each other for the most kills. The particular squadron in question was trying to outdo its previous kill record. E-mails accessed by the BBC show high-level officials were aware of the concerns over the killings but failed to report them to the RMP.
The Ministry of Defence has declined to comment on the allegations saying that its silence shouldn’t mean that the allegations are factually accurate. “The Ministry of Defence of course stands open to considering any new evidence, there would be no obstruction. But in the absence of this, we strongly object to this subjective reporting”, it stated.
British forces served with courage and professionalism in Afghanistan and were held to the highest standards, a MOD spokesperson said.
( Inputs BBC)
