The Reasons We Went Undercover to Uncover Crime in the Kurdish-origin Population

A pair of Kurdish-background men consented to operate secretly to uncover a operation behind illegal High Street enterprises because the criminals are negatively affecting the reputation of Kurdish people in the Britain, they explain.

The pair, who we are calling Ali and Saman, are Kurdish-origin reporters who have both lived legally in the UK for a long time.

Investigators discovered that a Kurdish criminal operation was managing mini-marts, barbershops and vehicle cleaning services throughout Britain, and wanted to learn more about how it worked and who was taking part.

Prepared with covert recording devices, Saman and Ali posed as Kurdish-origin refugee applicants with no permission to be employed, attempting to purchase and run a mini-mart from which to trade unlawful tobacco products and vapes.

They were able to uncover how easy it is for a person in these conditions to set up and manage a enterprise on the High Street in full view. Those participating, we learned, compensate Kurdish individuals who have British citizenship to register the operations in their names, assisting to mislead the government agencies.

Ali and Saman also succeeded to discreetly record one of those at the centre of the operation, who claimed that he could erase official sanctions of up to sixty thousand pounds faced those hiring illegal employees.

"I sought to participate in exposing these illegal operations [...] to say that they do not represent us," explains one reporter, a former asylum seeker himself. The reporter entered the United Kingdom without authorization, having fled the Kurdish region - a territory that straddles the boundaries of Iraq, Iran, Turkey and Syria but which is not internationally recognised as a nation - because his life was at danger.

The investigators admit that tensions over illegal immigration are high in the UK and state they have both been anxious that the probe could inflame conflicts.

But the other reporter says that the illegal employment "damages the entire Kurdish population" and he feels driven to "bring it [the criminal network] out into public view".

Additionally, the journalist mentions he was worried the publication could be exploited by the extreme right.

He explains this particularly affected him when he discovered that far-right campaigner a prominent activist's Unite the Kingdom march was taking place in London on one of the Saturdays and Sundays he was operating undercover. Placards and flags could be seen at the protest, displaying "we want our nation returned".

The reporters have both been observing online response to the investigation from within the Kurdish community and report it has sparked significant anger for some. One social media post they spotted said: "In what way can we identify and track [the undercover reporters] to attack them like dogs!"

One more demanded their relatives in the Kurdish region to be slaughtered.

They have also encountered allegations that they were agents for the British authorities, and betrayers to other Kurds. "We are not spies, and we have no desire of hurting the Kurdish-origin community," one reporter says. "Our goal is to reveal those who have compromised its image. Both journalists are proud of our Kurdish-origin identity and profoundly troubled about the activities of such people."

The majority of those seeking refugee status say they are fleeing political persecution, according to Ibrahim Avicil from the a refugee support organization, a organization that supports asylum seekers and refugee applicants in the UK.

This was the situation for our covert journalist Saman, who, when he first came to the UK, faced difficulties for years. He explains he had to survive on less than £20 a week while his refugee application was reviewed.

Asylum seekers now get approximately £49 a per week - or £9.95 if they are in accommodation which offers food, according to Home Office policies.

"Realistically stating, this isn't adequate to maintain a acceptable lifestyle," explains Mr Avicil from the RWCA.

Because refugee applicants are mostly prohibited from employment, he thinks a significant number are susceptible to being exploited and are effectively "compelled to labor in the black economy for as little as three pounds per hour".

A spokesperson for the authorities commented: "We make no apology for not granting refugee applicants the right to be employed - granting this would create an motivation for people to migrate to the United Kingdom without authorization."

Refugee applications can take years to be processed with nearly a 33% taking more than one year, according to government data from the spring this year.

Saman says being employed without authorization in a car wash, hair salon or convenience store would have been extremely straightforward to do, but he told us he would never have engaged in that.

However, he states that those he interviewed employed in unauthorized mini-marts during his investigation seemed "confused", particularly those whose asylum claim has been refused and who were in the appeals process.

"They used all their money to travel to the UK, they had their asylum rejected and now they've sacrificed everything."

The other reporter concurs that these individuals seemed hopeless.

"If [they] declare you're forbidden to work - but also [you]