Families of Afghanis who claim they were unlawfully killed by British special forces are calling on an independent inquiry to “provide them with the truth”.
The probe will assess whether dozens of killings were illegally carried out and investigate the alleged cover-up by the Royal Military Police.
It will begin substantive hearings at the Royal Courts of Justice on Monday into the claims between 2010 and 2013, with submissions on behalf of the families of 33 people, including eight children, who were allegedly killed by special forces in Afghanistan.
The probe was launched in the wake of legal challenges to the government by Leigh Day solicitors on behalf of the Saifullah and Noorzai families, as well as a number of significant media investigations.
One member of the Saifullah family said since a raid by British forces, they are “having nightmares and dreams filled with difficulties”.
Ahead of counsel's opening submissions to the inquiry, they said: “On February 16, 2011, as a consequence of a night raid on our house by the British forces, my father, Haji Abdul Khaliq, my two brothers, Sadam Hussein and Atta Ullah, and my cousin, Ahmad Shah, were killed.
“Before their killings, our family had a very beautiful life. This was a very difficult, saddening and painful night.
“Since this raid by the British forces on our house, we have lost our normal sleep and are having nightmares and dreams filled with difficulties.
“When this incident took place, we lost everything.
“My family and I request the inquiry team to provide us with the truth and explain to us why and on what basis we had to go through this cruelty.”
Mansour Aziz has called on the inquiry to listen to two children who were allegedly severely injured during a night raid on his family home on August 6, 2012.
“In 2012, our house was raided by foreigners and my brother and sister-in-law were killed and their two children severely injured while they were sleeping in their bed,” he said.
“We want to know the truth and why it was our house that was raided.
“We are asking for the court to listen to these children and bring justice.”
Two RMP investigations, code-named Operation Northmoor and Operation Cestro, are set to be scrutinised by the inquiry.
No charges were brought under Operation Northmoor – a £10 million investigation which was set up in 2014 to examine allegations of executions by special forces, including those of children.
Operation Cestro saw three soldiers referred to the Service Prosecuting Authority, but none were prosecuted.
Leigh Day partner Tessa Gregory said the families involved in the investigation hope it will “fearlessly uncover the truth of the death of their loved ones”.
“Our clients hope that the opening of this inquiry marks the end of 'the wall of silence' and obstruction that has confronted them over the last decade,” she said.
“The bereaved families look to the inquiry to fearlessly uncover the truth of the deaths of their loved ones and to ensure that those responsible are held to account.
“Proper accountability must involve those at a senior level in the armed forces and in government who are responsible for the management and oversight of our most elite forces.”
The independent statutory inquiry was commissioned by then-defence secretary Ben Wallace under the 2005 Inquiries Act.
A Ministry of Defence spokesman said: “The MoD is fully committed to supporting the inquiry as it continues its work.
“It is not appropriate for us to comment on allegations which may be within the scope of the statutory inquiry and it is up to the statutory inquiry team, led by Lord Justice Haddon-Cave, to determine which allegations are investigated.”
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About Takalam
Date started: early 2020
Founders: Khawla Hammad and Inas Abu Shashieh
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: HealthTech and wellness
Number of staff: 4
Funding to date: Bootstrapped
The specs: 2019 Cadillac XT4
Price, base: Dh145,000
Engine: 2.0-litre turbocharged in-line four-cylinder engine
Transmission: Nine-speed automatic
Power: 237hp @ 5,000rpm
Torque: 350Nm @ 1,500rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 8.7L / 100km
Quick pearls of wisdom
Focus on gratitude: And do so deeply, he says. “Think of one to three things a day that you’re grateful for. It needs to be specific, too, don’t just say ‘air.’ Really think about it. If you’re grateful for, say, what your parents have done for you, that will motivate you to do more for the world.”
Know how to fight: Shetty married his wife, Radhi, three years ago (he met her in a meditation class before he went off and became a monk). He says they’ve had to learn to respect each other’s “fighting styles” – he’s a talk it-out-immediately person, while she needs space to think. “When you’re having an argument, remember, it’s not you against each other. It’s both of you against the problem. When you win, they lose. If you’re on a team you have to win together.”
WHAT IS GRAPHENE?
It was discovered in 2004, when Russian-born Manchester scientists Andrei Geim and Kostya Novoselov were experimenting with sticky tape and graphite, the material used as lead in pencils.
Placing the tape on the graphite and peeling it, they managed to rip off thin flakes of carbon. In the beginning they got flakes consisting of many layers of graphene. But when they repeated the process many times, the flakes got thinner.
By separating the graphite fragments repeatedly, they managed to create flakes that were just one atom thick. Their experiment led to graphene being isolated for the very first time.
In 2010, Geim and Novoselov were awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics.
Soldier F
“I was in complete disgust at the fact that only one person was to be charged for Bloody Sunday.
“Somebody later said to me, 'you just watch - they'll drop the charge against him'. And sure enough, the charges against Soldier F would go on to be dropped.
“It's pretty hard to think that 50 years on, the State is still covering up for what happened on Bloody Sunday.”
Jimmy Duddy, nephew of John Johnson
Day 5, Abu Dhabi Test: At a glance
Moment of the day When Dilruwan Perera dismissed Yasir Shah to end Pakistan’s limp resistance, the Sri Lankans charged around the field with the fevered delirium of a side not used to winning. Trouble was, they had not. The delivery was deemed a no ball. Sri Lanka had a nervy wait, but it was merely a stay of execution for the beleaguered hosts.
Stat of the day – 5 Pakistan have lost all 10 wickets on the fifth day of a Test five times since the start of 2016. It is an alarming departure for a side who had apparently erased regular collapses from their resume. “The only thing I can say, it’s not a mitigating excuse at all, but that’s a young batting line up, obviously trying to find their way,” said Mickey Arthur, Pakistan’s coach.
The verdict Test matches in the UAE are known for speeding up on the last two days, but this was extreme. The first two innings of this Test took 11 sessions to complete. The remaining two were done in less than four. The nature of Pakistan’s capitulation at the end showed just how difficult the transition is going to be in the post Misbah-ul-Haq era.
