SAS soldiers investigated over ‘war crimes’ in Syria

Danny RiggPublished Mar 6, 2024, 4:32pm|Updated Mar 6, 2024, 4:33pm

Five SAS soldiers under investigation for war crimes committed in Syria could face murder charges.

The soldiers are accused of using excessive force on a man killed during a UK Special Forces operation in Syria two years ago, MailOnline reported.

It’s alleged the five Special Forces members should have arrested the man instead.

The soldiers are understood to reject this, claiming the dead man intended to carry out a suicide attack and posed a threat.

A primed bomb vest was found nearby, according to Special Air Service sources cited by the Mail, but the suspect was not wearing it when he was killed.

UK Special Forces, which includes the SAS, have been active in the country since 2014 when the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) came to prominence seizing large swathes of the region.

Covert operations have focused on supporting the Syrian Democratic Forces – the west’s Kurdish allies based in the northeastern Syria – in their fight against the extremist terrorist group.

Sergeant Matt Tonroe, 33, became the first British soldier to die while fighting ISIS in Syria when he was killed during a joint US-UK operation to capture or kill high-ranking member of the terror group in 2018.

He was killed by the accidental detonation of explosives carried by a colleague.

Case files recommending murder charges against the five soldiers were sent to the Service Prosecuting Authority (SPA), the military equivalent of the Crown Prosecution Service.

This follows an investigation by the Defence Serious Crimes Unit.

It’s unclear whether or not the soldiers have been arrested as part of this investigation.

The Mail described them as still ‘on active duty’ and the BBC said it was told they have not been arrested.

However, The Guardian said the Ministry of Defence indicated reports of the soldiers’ arrest are accurate.

A Ministry of Defence spokesperson refused to discuss the accuracy of these reports with Metro because the department does not comment on individual investigations.

Since the 1980s, it has been standard practice for government ministers and officials to comment on SAS activities, which operates in secrecy.

An MoD spokesperson said: ‘We hold our personnel to the highest standards and any allegations of wrongdoing are taken seriously.

‘Where appropriate, any criminal allegations are referred to the Service Police for investigation.’

The identities of the soldiers are not publicly known, and this is likely to remain the case even if the soldiers are charged and brought before a court martial.

If the SPA does charge the five soldiers with murder, they would stay behind screens while giving testimony at the trial.

War crimes convictions of British soldiers are rare.

The first was in 2006 when Donald Payne, then 35, pleaded guilty to the inhumane treatment of Iraqi civilians.

He denied a charge of manslaughter for the death of an Iraqi hotel receptionist, for which he was acquitted. Six other soldiers were cleared of all charges.

This investigation into SAS soldiers in Syria comes just as a public inquiry is being held into the activities of the Hereford-based SAS during its time operating in Afghanistan.

The Independent Inquiry relating to Afghanistan is investigating claims the Special Forces carried out ‘numerous unlawful killings’, which were then covered up, between 2010 to 2013.

It is also investigating whether the investigations carried out by the Royal Military Police were adequate.

The identities of soldiers facing these allegations in the Afghanistan inquiry are also not publicly known.

Kristyan Benedict, a crisis response manager with the human rights group Amnesty International, said: ‘As a matter of principle, it’s vital that all members of the UK’s armed forces are fully answerable before the law.’

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