The Reasons Our Team Went Covert to Uncover Criminal Activity in the Kurdish-origin Community

A pair of Kurdish men consented to go undercover to uncover a network behind illegal commercial businesses because the lawbreakers are causing harm the reputation of Kurds in the UK, they explain.

The pair, who we are calling Saman and Ali, are Kurdish-origin reporters who have both lived legally in the United Kingdom for many years.

Investigators found that a Kurdish criminal operation was running small shops, hair salons and car washes across the UK, and sought to discover more about how it operated and who was involved.

Armed with secret cameras, Saman and Ali presented themselves as Kurdish asylum seekers with no permission to be employed, seeking to purchase and manage a mini-mart from which to distribute contraband cigarettes and vapes.

They were able to discover how straightforward it is for an individual in these situations to establish and manage a enterprise on the main street in full view. The individuals involved, we found, compensate Kurdish individuals who have UK residency to register the operations in their identities, assisting to fool the authorities.

Ali and Saman also succeeded to covertly record one of those at the centre of the organization, who claimed that he could eliminate government penalties of up to £60k imposed on those hiring illegal workers.

"I aimed to play a role in uncovering these illegal practices [...] to declare that they don't speak for our community," explains Saman, a ex- asylum seeker personally. Saman came to the UK illegally, having fled the Kurdish region - a region that spans the borders of multiple Middle Eastern countries but which is not globally acknowledged as a country - because his well-being was at threat.

The journalists admit that conflicts over illegal migration are elevated in the UK and explain they have both been concerned that the inquiry could worsen conflicts.

But the other reporter states that the unauthorized employment "harms the entire Kurdish-origin community" and he feels driven to "bring it [the criminal network] out into public view".

Separately, Ali explains he was worried the publication could be seized upon by the extreme right.

He states this notably affected him when he discovered that radical right campaigner a prominent activist's national unity rally was occurring in the capital on one of the weekends he was working covertly. Signs and banners could be seen at the protest, showing "we want our country returned".

Saman and Ali have both been tracking social media feedback to the exposé from inside the Kurdish community and say it has generated significant frustration for certain individuals. One social media comment they observed stated: "In what way can we locate and track [the undercover reporters] to attack them like dogs!"

Another called for their relatives in the Kurdish region to be harmed.

They have also read claims that they were agents for the UK authorities, and betrayers to other Kurdish people. "We are not informants, and we have no aim of damaging the Kurdish-origin community," one reporter explains. "Our goal is to expose those who have harmed its standing. We are honored of our Kurdish-origin heritage and deeply worried about the activities of such people."

The majority of those seeking asylum claim they are escaping politically motivated oppression, according to Ibrahim Avicil from the a charitable organization, a charity that supports asylum seekers and refugee applicants in the UK.

This was the scenario for our undercover reporter one investigator, who, when he initially came to the United Kingdom, experienced challenges for many years. He says he had to live on under twenty pounds a per week while his refugee application was considered.

Refugee applicants now get about £49 a per week - or £9.95 if they are in shelter which offers meals, according to official regulations.

"Practically speaking, this is not enough to maintain a respectable existence," says the expert from the RWCA.

Because refugee applicants are generally prevented from working, he believes numerous are vulnerable to being exploited and are practically "obligated to labor in the black sector for as little as £3 per hour".

A official for the government department said: "The government do not apologize for refusing to grant asylum seekers the permission to be employed - doing so would establish an reason for people to travel to the United Kingdom without authorization."

Asylum applications can require years to be decided with nearly a third taking over a year, according to government statistics from the end of March this year.

Saman explains being employed illegally in a car wash, barbershop or mini-mart would have been quite simple to accomplish, but he explained to the team he would not have done that.

Nonetheless, he says that those he interviewed working in illegal convenience stores during his work seemed "disoriented", particularly those whose refugee application has been rejected and who were in the appeal stage.

"They expended all of their savings to travel to the United Kingdom, they had their refugee application rejected and now they've forfeited all they had."

Ali acknowledges that these people seemed in dire straits.

"When [they] say you're not allowed to be employed - but additionally [you]