A BBC survey has identified fifty-four people killed by bullet in circumstances suspicious by a SAS unit, between November 2010 and May 2011, in the province of Helmand.
Le Monde with AP and AFP
They are supposed to be the elite of the British army. However, a unit of the Special Air Service (SAS), the British special forces, killed around fifty Afghans in suspicious circumstances, reports the BBC, Tuesday July 12.
The investigation made it possible to identify fifty-four people killed by bullet in circumstances suspicious by a SAS unit, between November 2010 and May 2011, in the province of Helmand. These unarmed Afghans were killed “composure” by the SAS during night raids and weapons were then arranged on their corpses to justify these crimes, reports the British channel after a four-year investigation .
High officials, including General Mark Carleton-Smith, who led the British special forces at the time, were aware of the concerns that these operations within the SAS aroused but did not inform the military police, According to the BBC.
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According to British law which governs the armed forces, the fact for a commander not to inform the military police if he is aware of potential war crimes constitutes a criminal offense, note our colleagues. Mr. Carleton-Smith, retired last month after having directed the entire British army, declined any comment from the BBC, including The investigation is based on judicial documents , e-mails having leaked and on field work of his journalists in Afghanistan.
The Ministry of Defense said it was lacking in evidence to start prosecution. “No new evidence has been presented, but the police will study any allegation if new evidence is highlighted,” he said in a press release. Military police investigation
“Too many people were killed during night raids and the explanations did not make sense. When someone is detained, he must not finish killed, reacted a military official with the BBC. It was clear at the time that something was wrong. “
Several warnings were dated, according to the BBC, but the commando was authorized to finish its mission and was even deployed for another mission in 2012. In 2014, the Royal Military Police (RMP) launched a more investigation Six hundred alleged offenses committed by British forces in Afghanistan, including the SAS. His investigators said that they had been “hampered” by the army and the investigation ended in 2019.
British forces were deployed in Afghanistan as part of an international coalition led by NATO after the September 11 attacks. Thousands of British soldiers were sent to the Helmand from 2006 to try to ensure the safety of reconstruction projects. Their mission quickly became a combat operation.