Why We Went Undercover to Expose Criminal Activity in the Kurdish Population

A pair of Kurdish individuals agreed to go undercover to uncover a operation behind illegal commercial enterprises because the criminals are negatively affecting the reputation of Kurdish people in the UK, they say.

The two, who we are referring to as Ali and Saman, are Kurdish-origin investigators who have both lived lawfully in the UK for years.

The team found that a Kurdish crime network was managing small shops, barbershops and vehicle cleaning services the length of the United Kingdom, and aimed to find out more about how it operated and who was taking part.

Prepared with covert recording devices, Ali and Saman posed as Kurdish refugee applicants with no permission to be employed, looking to purchase and run a convenience store from which to distribute illegal tobacco products and electronic cigarettes.

They were successful to reveal how easy it is for an individual in these circumstances to establish and manage a commercial operation on the High Street in plain sight. Those participating, we learned, compensate Kurds who have UK residency to register the businesses in their names, helping to mislead the officials.

Saman and Ali also managed to covertly document one of those at the core of the organization, who claimed that he could remove government fines of up to £60k faced those using illegal employees.

"I wanted to participate in revealing these unlawful activities [...] to say that they do not speak for us," states Saman, a ex- refugee applicant himself. The reporter came to the United Kingdom illegally, having fled Kurdistan - a area that spans the boundaries of Iraq, Iran, Turkey and Syria but which is not globally acknowledged as a nation - because his well-being was at risk.

The reporters admit that conflicts over illegal immigration are significant in the UK and explain they have both been anxious that the probe could intensify hostilities.

But Ali says that the illegal working "negatively affects the entire Kurdish-origin population" and he considers compelled to "reveal it [the criminal network] out into public view".

Separately, the journalist mentions he was concerned the coverage could be used by the far-right.

He explains this notably affected him when he realized that extreme right activist Tommy Robinson's Unite the Kingdom rally was taking place in the capital on one of the weekends he was operating secretly. Signs and flags could be seen at the rally, displaying "we demand our nation back".

Saman and Ali have both been tracking social media feedback to the exposé from inside the Kurdish-origin population and report it has caused strong outrage for certain individuals. One social media post they spotted said: "How can we identify and track [the undercover reporters] to kill them like animals!"

One more called for their families in Kurdistan to be attacked.

They have also read allegations that they were spies for the British government, and betrayers to other Kurds. "Both of us are not informants, and we have no desire of damaging the Kurdish-origin community," one reporter says. "Our goal is to uncover those who have harmed its standing. We are proud of our Kurdish-origin heritage and profoundly concerned about the activities of such individuals."

Most of those seeking asylum claim they are fleeing political oppression, according to Ibrahim Avicil from the Refugee Workers Cultural Association, a organization that supports refugees and asylum seekers in the UK.

This was the situation for our covert reporter Saman, who, when he initially arrived to the UK, experienced challenges for years. He explains he had to survive on under twenty pounds a week while his asylum claim was reviewed.

Asylum seekers now get about £49 a per week - or nine pounds ninety-five if they are in housing which offers meals, according to Home Office regulations.

"Realistically saying, this is not adequate to maintain a dignified life," says Mr Avicil from the the organization.

Because refugee applicants are mostly prevented from employment, he believes many are open to being manipulated and are effectively "obligated to work in the illegal market for as low as £3 per hour".

A spokesperson for the authorities said: "We do not apologize for denying asylum seekers the permission to be employed - doing so would create an incentive for individuals to travel to the UK without authorization."

Asylum applications can take years to be resolved with approximately a 33% taking more than 12 months, according to government statistics from the end of March this year.

Saman says being employed without authorization in a car wash, hair salon or mini-mart would have been very straightforward to do, but he told the team he would never have participated in that.

However, he explains that those he interviewed laboring in unauthorized convenience stores during his research seemed "confused", especially those whose asylum claim has been rejected and who were in the appeal stage.

"They spent all their money to travel to the United Kingdom, they had their refugee application denied and now they've sacrificed their entire investment."

Ali agrees that these individuals seemed in dire straits.

"When [they] state you're not allowed to be employed - but also [you]