The Reasons Our Team Chose to Go Undercover to Reveal Crime in the Kurdish Population

Two Kurdish-background men agreed to work covertly to expose a operation behind illegal High Street enterprises because the criminals are damaging the reputation of Kurdish people in the Britain, they state.

The pair, who we are referring to as Saman and Ali, are Kurdish reporters who have both lived lawfully in the United Kingdom for many years.

Investigators uncovered that a Kurdish-linked criminal operation was running small shops, hair salons and vehicle cleaning services across Britain, and wanted to discover more about how it operated and who was involved.

Armed with secret cameras, Ali and Saman posed as Kurdish asylum seekers with no authorization to be employed, looking to buy and operate a mini-mart from which to sell illegal tobacco products and vapes.

They were able to uncover how straightforward it is for an individual in these circumstances to start and manage a business on the commercial area in plain sight. Those participating, we discovered, pay Kurdish individuals who have UK residency to register the businesses in their names, helping to mislead the officials.

Saman and Ali also were able to discreetly record one of those at the core of the network, who asserted that he could remove official fines of up to £60k encountered those using illegal employees.

"I aimed to play a role in revealing these unlawful practices [...] to say that they do not speak for us," states Saman, a ex- refugee applicant personally. Saman came to the country illegally, having fled the Kurdish region - a territory that straddles the boundaries of multiple Middle Eastern countries but which is not internationally recognised as a country - because his safety was at danger.

The reporters recognize that tensions over unauthorized migration are high in the UK and say they have both been concerned that the probe could intensify conflicts.

But Ali says that the unauthorized employment "harms the whole Kurdish population" and he believes obligated to "bring it [the criminal network] out into broad daylight".

Additionally, the journalist explains he was concerned the reporting could be seized upon by the far-right.

He states this especially impressed him when he noticed that radical right activist Tommy Robinson's national unity rally was occurring in the capital on one of the weekends he was working secretly. Placards and flags could be spotted at the protest, showing "we demand our nation back".

Saman and Ali have both been observing online feedback to the inquiry from inside the Kurdish-origin community and say it has generated intense outrage for some. One social media comment they found said: "In what way can we find and find [the undercover reporters] to kill them like dogs!"

A different urged their relatives in Kurdistan to be harmed.

They have also encountered allegations that they were agents for the British authorities, and traitors to other Kurdish people. "We are not informants, and we have no desire of hurting the Kurdish population," Saman explains. "Our objective is to uncover those who have harmed its standing. Both journalists are honored of our Kurdish-origin heritage and extremely troubled about the actions of such persons."

The majority of those applying for asylum claim they are fleeing politically motivated oppression, according to Ibrahim Avicil from the a charitable organization, a charity that supports asylum seekers and asylum seekers in the UK.

This was the case for our undercover reporter one investigator, who, when he initially arrived to the UK, faced difficulties for years. He explains he had to live on less than £20 a per week while his asylum claim was considered.

Asylum seekers now are provided approximately forty-nine pounds a per week - or £9.95 if they are in housing which provides food, according to Home Office regulations.

"Realistically stating, this is not adequate to maintain a respectable existence," states Mr Avicil from the the organization.

Because asylum seekers are generally restricted from employment, he feels numerous are susceptible to being exploited and are effectively "forced to work in the illegal market for as little as £3 per hour".

A spokesperson for the Home Office said: "The government are unapologetic for not granting refugee applicants the authorization to work - granting this would establish an reason for individuals to come to the United Kingdom illegally."

Refugee cases can take multiple years to be resolved with nearly a one-third requiring over a year, according to government figures from the end of March this current year.

Saman states working without authorization in a car wash, hair salon or convenience store would have been very straightforward to achieve, but he explained to us he would never have participated in that.

Nevertheless, he says that those he met employed in unauthorized convenience stores during his research seemed "lost", notably those whose refugee application has been rejected and who were in the appeals process.

"These individuals expended all their savings to migrate to the UK, they had their asylum rejected and now they've sacrificed everything."

Ali acknowledges that these individuals seemed hopeless.

"When [they] state you're not allowed to be employed - but also [you]