The Reasons We Went Undercover to Expose Criminal Activity in the Kurdish Community

A pair of Kurdish-background individuals decided to work covertly to expose a operation behind illegal High Street establishments because the criminals are causing harm the reputation of Kurds in the United Kingdom, they explain.

The pair, who we are referring to as Ali and Saman, are Kurdish reporters who have both lived legally in the UK for years.

The team discovered that a Kurdish crime network was operating mini-marts, barbershops and car washes the length of the UK, and aimed to discover more about how it operated and who was participating.

Armed with hidden cameras, Ali and Saman presented themselves as Kurdish asylum seekers with no right to work, attempting to buy and run a small shop from which to sell illegal tobacco products and vapes.

The investigators were able to reveal how straightforward it is for a person in these conditions to establish and run a enterprise on the commercial area in full view. Those involved, we found, pay Kurds who have UK citizenship to register the businesses in their names, assisting to mislead the officials.

Saman and Ali also were able to discreetly record one of those at the centre of the operation, who claimed that he could eliminate official penalties of up to £60k encountered those using unauthorized workers.

"Personally sought to contribute in revealing these unlawful practices [...] to loudly proclaim that they do not speak for Kurdish people," says one reporter, a former asylum seeker personally. The reporter came to the United Kingdom without authorization, having fled Kurdistan - a region that covers the borders of Iraq, Iran, Turkey and Syria but which is not globally acknowledged as a nation - because his safety was at risk.

The investigators admit that conflicts over unauthorized migration are significant in the United Kingdom and say they have both been concerned that the investigation could worsen tensions.

But Ali says that the unauthorized working "damages the entire Kurdish community" and he feels compelled to "expose it [the criminal network] out into the open".

Furthermore, the journalist explains he was worried the coverage could be exploited by the radical right.

He states this notably struck him when he realized that radical right activist a prominent activist's Unite the Kingdom protest was occurring in the capital on one of the weekends he was operating undercover. Banners and banners could be spotted at the rally, displaying "we demand our country returned".

Saman and Ali have both been monitoring online response to the investigation from inside the Kurdish community and explain it has caused strong anger for some. One social media post they observed read: "How can we find and locate [the undercover reporters] to harm them like animals!"

A different called for their relatives in Kurdistan to be harmed.

They have also read claims that they were informants for the British authorities, and betrayers to fellow Kurdish people. "Both of us are not spies, and we have no intention of harming the Kurdish population," one reporter says. "Our goal is to expose those who have compromised its image. Both journalists are proud of our Kurdish-origin identity and deeply worried about the actions of such people."

Most of those applying for asylum say they are escaping politically motivated oppression, according to an expert from the a refugee support organization, a charity that helps refugees and refugee applicants in the UK.

This was the situation for our covert journalist one investigator, who, when he initially arrived to the UK, experienced challenges for many years. He states he had to live on less than twenty pounds a per week while his refugee application was considered.

Refugee applicants now are provided about £49 a per week - or nine pounds ninety-five if they are in housing which provides meals, according to Home Office policies.

"Honestly stating, this isn't enough to sustain a acceptable existence," explains the expert from the RWCA.

Because asylum seekers are generally prohibited from employment, he believes numerous are vulnerable to being manipulated and are essentially "obligated to labor in the illegal sector for as little as £3 per hour".

A official for the authorities said: "We are unapologetic for not granting refugee applicants the authorization to work - granting this would generate an reason for individuals to come to the United Kingdom illegally."

Asylum cases can require years to be resolved with almost a third requiring more than one year, according to official data from the spring this current year.

Saman states working without authorization in a vehicle cleaning service, hair salon or convenience store would have been extremely easy to accomplish, but he told us he would not have engaged in that.

However, he says that those he met employed in illegal convenience stores during his research seemed "confused", notably those whose refugee application has been denied and who were in the appeals process.

"They expended their entire money to come to the UK, they had their asylum denied and now they've lost everything."

Ali acknowledges that these people seemed desperate.

"If [they] say you're prohibited to be employed - but simultaneously [you]