British forces committed war crimes in Afghanistan by executing suspects, inquiry told

The UK’s special forces were apparently involved in war crimes in Afghanistan as they executed suspects under suspicious circumstances, a retired senior British officer has told a public inquiry.

The inquiry was launched by the Ministry of Defence after a BBC documentary alleged that soldiers from the Special Air Service had fatally shot 54 people in Afghanistan under suspicious circumstances more than ten years ago.

The panel is reviewing several night raids conducted between mid-2010 and mid-2013, when British troops were operating as part of the US-led coalition against the Taliban and other armed groups.

Although military police previously examined a series of complaints involving British personnel — including claims directed at the SAS — the MoD has maintained that those investigations did not find sufficient evidence to bring charges.

The inquiry is trying to determine whether credible indications of extra-judicial killings existed, whether later military-police inquiries were carried out properly, and whether any unlawful actions were concealed.

The inquiry’s chair, Justice Charles Haddon-Cave, said it was essential that “anyone who broke the law” be referred to the proper authorities, while also ensuring that suspicion was removed from personnel who had acted lawfully.

Earlier testimony included warnings from British soldiers about a specific special forces sub-unit, identified only as UKSF1. One soldier told the inquiry the unit was killing “fighting-age males” on operations regardless of whether they posed an imminent threat.

Newly released evidence, delivered privately by an officer known as N1466 — who served in 2011 as Assistant Chief of Staff for Operations at UK Special Forces Headquarters — described growing concern over the number of detainees who died during UKSF1 missions.