UK military war crimes in Iraq and Afghanistan
The United Kingdom took part in the US-led invasions and occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan, maintaining its troop presence for a period totaling 20 years.
During that time, multiple atrocities by their armed forces were committed deliberately against civilians in both countries.
And now, a bombshell report has documented the testimony of former British soldiers who bore witness to war crimes committed by their colleagues, especially those in the Special Forces.
The testimonies, revealed to the British state broadcaster, the BBC, expose how elite British soldiers from the SAS deliberately killed civilians, kept a score of how many people they murdered, planted guns and falsified evidence to frame civilians as being armed combatants.
A public inquiry established by the British government is looking into war crimes committed by the SAS during the period between 2010 and 2013 in Afghanistan, but the new accusations say that atrocities were committed in Iraq as well, and that they took place over a far larger period than just three years, leading to fears that the inquiry is merely a damage control exercise.
And the report says that former British Prime Minister David Cameron was repeatedly told by then Afghan President Hamid Karzai about the crimes being committed that he chose not to take action to hold the soldiers accountable.
It goes absolutely to the top. You've got David Cameron, who was the prime minister, who was told by Karzai in Afghanistan that this was happening, and saying, you've got to deal with this.
These people are death squads really going around doing these sorts of things, and yet nothing was done.
So I think there's lots and lots of questions here, and we should be demanding answers from the politicians, as well as from the military.
Lindsey German, Stop the War Coalition
Former soldier Mick Stott, who's now part of the Workers Party of Great Britain, is questioning the motivations behind crimes, fearing lower ranking soldiers are being thrown under the bus by their superiors.
Do I believe that kind of stuff goes on?
Yes, I do. And let's face it, a military system could only engage at the level of the rules of engagement.
So, so when you start to get direction from your command and control, you follow that direction.
So the question I would ask is, who is actually giving the direction? That's another thing.
Mick Stott, Former UK Soldier
The new war crimes revelations have led to multiple questions being asked.
If civilians were deliberately murdered by what amounted to British death squads, who inside government knew about it?
Who approved the operations?
And why hasn't anyone been held accountable yet?
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