The Reasons We Chose to Go Covert to Expose Criminal Activity in the Kurdish-origin Community

A pair of Kurdish men decided to operate secretly to uncover a network behind unlawful High Street businesses because the lawbreakers are negatively affecting the standing of Kurds in the UK, they say.

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

The team uncovered that a Kurdish crime network was managing convenience stores, barbershops and car washes throughout the United Kingdom, and aimed to learn more about how it functioned and who was involved.

Armed with covert recording devices, Ali and Saman presented themselves as Kurdish refugee applicants with no right to be employed, attempting to acquire and operate a small shop from which to distribute unlawful cigarettes and electronic cigarettes.

They were able to uncover how simple it is for a person in these circumstances to start and operate a commercial operation on the main street in full view. Those involved, we learned, pay Kurds who have UK citizenship to register the enterprises in their names, helping to mislead the government agencies.

Saman and Ali also succeeded to discreetly film one of those at the heart of the organization, who stated that he could remove official penalties of up to £60k faced those employing illegal employees.

"Personally sought to contribute in uncovering these unlawful practices [...] to loudly proclaim that they do not speak for our community," explains one reporter, a former asylum seeker personally. The reporter entered the country without authorization, having fled the Kurdish region - a area that spans the borders of Iraq, Iran, Turkey and Syria but which is not officially recognized as a nation - because his safety was at danger.

The journalists recognize that conflicts over illegal immigration are elevated in the UK and state they have both been concerned that the probe could worsen conflicts.

But the other reporter states that the unauthorized employment "harms the entire Kurdish-origin population" and he feels driven to "expose it [the criminal network] out into the open".

Furthermore, Ali says he was concerned the reporting could be seized upon by the extreme right.

He says this particularly affected him when he noticed that radical right activist a prominent activist's Unite the Kingdom march was happening in London on one of the Saturdays and Sundays he was operating secretly. Banners and flags could be seen at the gathering, reading "we want our country back".

Saman and Ali have both been monitoring online response to the inquiry from inside the Kurdish-origin community and say it has sparked intense anger for certain individuals. One social media comment they spotted read: "How can we identify and locate [the undercover reporters] to attack them like dogs!"

Another demanded their families in the Kurdish region to be attacked.

They have also seen allegations that they were spies for the UK government, and betrayers to other Kurdish people. "Both of us are not spies, and we have no aim of hurting the Kurdish-origin community," Saman says. "Our goal is to expose those who have harmed its standing. We are honored of our Kurdish-origin identity and extremely concerned about the behavior of such persons."

The majority of those applying for asylum say they are escaping politically motivated oppression, according to an expert from the Refugee Workers Cultural Association, a charity that assists refugees and asylum seekers in the United Kingdom.

This was the case for our undercover reporter one investigator, who, when he first arrived to the UK, faced difficulties for many years. He says he had to survive on less than £20 a week while his asylum claim was reviewed.

Refugee applicants now are provided approximately £49 a week - or nine pounds ninety-five if they are in accommodation which provides food, according to government policies.

"Honestly saying, this is not sufficient to sustain a dignified lifestyle," explains Mr Avicil from the the organization.

Because refugee applicants are mostly restricted from working, he believes a significant number are vulnerable to being manipulated and are practically "obligated to labor in the unofficial sector for as low as £3 per hour".

A representative for the Home Office commented: "The government make no apology for refusing to grant refugee applicants the right to work - doing so would generate an incentive for people to come to the United Kingdom without authorization."

Refugee applications can take a long time to be resolved with nearly a 33% requiring more than a year, according to government statistics from the end of March this year.

Saman states working illegally in a vehicle cleaning service, barbershop or mini-mart would have been extremely simple to do, but he told us he would not have participated in that.

However, he says that those he encountered employed in illegal convenience stores during his investigation seemed "confused", notably those whose asylum claim has been denied and who were in the appeals process.

"They expended all of their funds to travel to the United Kingdom, they had their asylum refused and now they've sacrificed their entire investment."

The other reporter acknowledges that these people seemed desperate.

"If [they] state you're forbidden to be employed - but simultaneously [you]