A former high-ranking British officer has testified before a public inquiry, alleging that UK Special Forces in Afghanistan may have committed war crimes through the execution of suspected insurgents. The officer claims that the chain of command was aware of these actions, but failed to take appropriate measures.
The UK Ministry of Defence initiated the inquiry following allegations that soldiers from the Special Air Service (SAS) killed 54 individuals in Afghanistan over a decade ago under questionable circumstances. The investigation is focused on a series of night raids conducted by British forces between mid-2010 and mid-2013, during their involvement in a US-led coalition against the Taliban.
In newly revealed evidence, a former staff officer, identified as ‘N1466,’ who served as the assistant head of operations at the British Special Forces headquarters, disclosed his growing suspicions in 2011 regarding the number of detainees killed by a particular unit.
Based on his review of official reports following these raids, the officer stated that the number of fatalities exceeded the number of weapons recovered. He also found the consistent reports of detainees repeatedly attempting to seize weapons or use grenades after being captured to be implausible.
The officer told the inquiry’s lead counsel, Oliver Glasgow, that he believed these actions constituted war crimes. ‘We are talking about war crimes… We are talking about escorting detainees back to locations and executing them under the guise that they had posed a threat to the forces.’
He further explained that he raised the issue with the Director of Special Forces, known as ‘1802’. However, instead of initiating a criminal investigation, the director only ordered a review of operational tactics. The officer expressed regret for not contacting the military police himself at the time, although he later reported his concerns in 2015.
In his testimony, the officer stated, ‘I was extremely concerned about what I strongly suspected was the unlawful killing of innocent people, including children.’ He added, ‘I came to the belief that the issue of extrajudicial killings was not limited to a few soldiers within the unit.’
