Why We Went Covert to Uncover Criminal Activity in the Kurdish Population

Two Kurdish-background men agreed to go undercover to reveal a operation behind illegal commercial businesses because the lawbreakers are negatively affecting the image of Kurds in the UK, they say.

The pair, who we are referring to as Ali and Saman, are Kurdish-origin reporters who have both resided legally in the UK for a long time.

The team uncovered that a Kurdish crime network was running mini-marts, barbershops and vehicle cleaning services throughout Britain, and aimed to find out more about how it operated and who was involved.

Armed with covert cameras, Ali and Saman presented themselves as Kurdish refugee applicants with no authorization to work, looking to acquire and run a convenience store from which to distribute illegal cigarettes and vapes.

The investigators were able to uncover how straightforward it is for a person in these situations to start and run a enterprise on the main street in public view. Those participating, we discovered, pay Kurdish individuals who have UK citizenship to legally establish the operations in their names, helping to mislead the officials.

Ali and Saman also were able to secretly film one of those at the heart of the network, who claimed that he could eliminate government sanctions of up to £60,000 faced those hiring unauthorized laborers.

"I wanted to contribute in exposing these unlawful operations [...] to loudly proclaim that they do not speak for us," states one reporter, a former asylum seeker personally. Saman came to the United Kingdom illegally, having escaped from the Kurdish region - a territory that straddles the boundaries of multiple Middle Eastern countries but which is not officially recognized as a state - because his safety was at threat.

The investigators recognize that conflicts over unauthorized immigration are significant in the UK and state they have both been anxious that the investigation could intensify tensions.

But the other reporter states that the illegal employment "harms the entire Kurdish population" and he considers driven to "reveal it [the criminal network] out into the open".

Furthermore, Ali explains he was anxious the reporting could be exploited by the far-right.

He says this particularly affected him when he noticed that radical right campaigner Tommy Robinson's Unite the Kingdom rally was happening in the capital on one of the weekends he was working covertly. Signs and flags could be seen at the protest, showing "we demand our country back".

The reporters have both been monitoring social media response to the inquiry from within the Kurdish population and explain it has sparked significant anger for certain individuals. One social media message they observed said: "In what way can we identify and find [the undercover reporters] to harm them like animals!"

One more called for their relatives in Kurdistan to be harmed.

They have also encountered accusations that they were agents for the British government, and betrayers to other Kurds. "Both of us are not informants, and we have no intention of damaging the Kurdish community," one reporter states. "Our goal is to uncover those who have harmed its reputation. Both journalists are honored of our Kurdish-origin heritage and profoundly worried about the actions of such individuals."

Most of those applying for asylum claim they are escaping political oppression, according to Ibrahim Avicil from the a refugee support organization, a organization that helps asylum seekers and asylum seekers in the United Kingdom.

This was the case for our covert journalist Saman, who, when he initially came to the United Kingdom, struggled for many years. He states he had to survive on less than twenty pounds a per week while his refugee application was considered.

Asylum seekers now receive about £49 a week - or nine pounds ninety-five if they are in accommodation which includes meals, according to government policies.

"Realistically stating, this isn't adequate to maintain a respectable lifestyle," states Mr Avicil from the RWCA.

Because refugee applicants are largely prevented from employment, he thinks a significant number are vulnerable to being manipulated and are essentially "obligated to labor in the illegal economy for as little as £3 per hour".

A official for the government department said: "The government make no apology for denying refugee applicants the permission to work - doing so would create an reason for people to come to the United Kingdom without authorization."

Asylum cases can require multiple years to be processed with nearly a 33% taking over one year, according to official figures from the late March this year.

Saman states being employed without authorization in a car wash, barbershop or mini-mart would have been extremely simple to achieve, but he told the team he would not have engaged in that.

However, he says that those he interviewed laboring in illegal convenience stores during his investigation seemed "confused", particularly those whose refugee application has been denied and who were in the legal challenge.

"They used all their savings to travel to the United Kingdom, they had their asylum refused and now they've forfeited all they had."

The other reporter acknowledges that these people seemed desperate.

"When [they] say you're prohibited to be employed - but also [you]