Why We Chose to Go Undercover to Expose Crime in the Kurdish Community

Two Kurdish-background individuals decided to work covertly to uncover a organization behind unlawful commercial enterprises because the criminals are damaging the image of Kurdish people in the United Kingdom, they say.

The two, who we are calling Ali and Saman, are Kurdish reporters who have both resided legally in the UK for many years.

Investigators discovered that a Kurdish-linked illegal enterprise was running small shops, hair salons and vehicle cleaning services the length of the United Kingdom, and aimed to learn more about how it worked and who was participating.

Equipped with covert recording devices, Ali and Saman posed as Kurdish asylum seekers with no authorization to be employed, seeking to purchase and manage a mini-mart from which to sell unlawful cigarettes and vapes.

The investigators were able to discover how straightforward it is for someone in these situations to start and operate a commercial operation on the High Street in full view. The individuals involved, we discovered, compensate Kurdish individuals who have UK residency to register the enterprises in their identities, helping to fool the government agencies.

Saman and Ali also were able to secretly record one of those at the heart of the organization, who claimed that he could erase official sanctions of up to sixty thousand pounds imposed on those using illegal workers.

"Personally wanted to participate in uncovering these illegal practices [...] to declare that they don't speak for Kurdish people," says one reporter, a former asylum seeker personally. The reporter entered the country without authorization, having escaped from the Kurdish region - a region that covers the boundaries of Iraq, Iran, Turkey and Syria but which is not officially recognized as a state - because his safety was at risk.

The investigators recognize that conflicts over illegal migration are elevated in the United Kingdom and state they have both been concerned that the probe could inflame tensions.

But Ali says that the unauthorized working "harms the entire Kurdish-origin population" and he considers obligated to "reveal it [the criminal network] out into public view".

Furthermore, Ali says he was anxious the coverage could be exploited by the far-right.

He explains this notably struck him when he realized that far-right activist Tommy Robinson's Unite the Kingdom rally was happening in the capital on one of the Saturdays and Sundays he was working covertly. Signs and flags could be spotted at the protest, showing "we demand our nation back".

The reporters have both been tracking social media reaction to the investigation from within the Kurdish population and say it has sparked strong anger for some. One social media post they found read: "How can we locate and track [the undercover reporters] to harm them like dogs!"

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

They have also read claims that they were spies for the UK authorities, and traitors to fellow Kurds. "Both of us are not spies, and we have no aim of harming the Kurdish-origin population," Saman says. "Our objective is to expose those who have damaged its image. We are proud of our Kurdish-origin heritage and deeply worried about the activities of such individuals."

Most of those applying for refugee status claim they are escaping political persecution, according to an expert from the a refugee support organization, a charity that helps refugees and asylum seekers in the UK.

This was the situation for our covert reporter one investigator, who, when he initially came to the UK, faced difficulties for many years. He says he had to survive on under twenty pounds a week while his refugee application was reviewed.

Asylum seekers now receive about forty-nine pounds a week - or nine pounds ninety-five if they are in accommodation which provides food, according to Home Office policies.

"Honestly saying, this isn't sufficient to maintain a dignified life," explains Mr Avicil from the the organization.

Because refugee applicants are generally prohibited from employment, he believes a significant number are vulnerable to being manipulated and are effectively "compelled to work in the illegal economy for as little as three pounds per hour".

A representative for the Home Office commented: "The government do not apologize for denying refugee applicants the authorization to work - granting this would establish an incentive for individuals to migrate to the United Kingdom illegally."

Refugee cases can take a long time to be resolved with almost a third requiring over one year, according to government statistics from the late March this current year.

The reporter says being employed illegally in a car wash, hair salon or convenience store would have been very straightforward to accomplish, but he told us he would not have engaged in that.

Nonetheless, he states that those he interviewed laboring in illegal mini-marts during his investigation seemed "disoriented", particularly those whose refugee application has been refused and who were in the appeal stage.

"These individuals spent all of their money to come to the United Kingdom, they had their refugee application rejected and now they've lost everything."

Ali concurs that these individuals seemed in dire straits.

"If [they] state you're prohibited to work - but simultaneously [you]