Why Our Team Went Undercover to Expose Criminal Activity in the Kurdish-origin Community

Two Kurdish-background individuals consented to work covertly to reveal a organization behind unlawful commercial businesses because the lawbreakers are damaging the standing of Kurdish people in the United Kingdom, they explain.

The pair, who we are referring to as Saman and Ali, are Kurdish journalists who have both resided lawfully in the UK for many years.

The team found that a Kurdish crime network was operating small shops, barbershops and car washes throughout Britain, and aimed to learn more about how it functioned and who was involved.

Armed with secret cameras, Saman and Ali presented themselves as Kurdish asylum seekers with no authorization to be employed, looking to purchase and operate a mini-mart from which to distribute unlawful tobacco products and vapes.

They were successful to discover how straightforward it is for a person in these situations to set up and operate a enterprise on the High Street in plain sight. Those participating, we discovered, pay Kurdish individuals who have UK residency to register the operations in their names, assisting to fool the authorities.

Saman and Ali also succeeded to discreetly film one of those at the centre of the organization, who stated that he could eliminate official penalties of up to sixty thousand pounds encountered those hiring illegal laborers.

"Personally wanted to participate in revealing these illegal operations [...] to declare that they do not represent Kurdish people," says one reporter, a ex- asylum seeker himself. The reporter entered the UK without authorization, having fled the Kurdish region - a area that straddles the boundaries of multiple Middle Eastern countries but which is not officially recognized as a nation - because his well-being was at threat.

The reporters recognize that tensions over illegal migration are high in the United Kingdom and explain they have both been anxious that the probe could intensify hostilities.

But the other reporter states that the unauthorized working "harms the whole Kurdish-origin population" and he believes obligated to "reveal it [the criminal network] out into the open".

Furthermore, Ali says he was anxious the reporting could be exploited by the far-right.

He states this notably impressed him when he noticed that far-right activist Tommy Robinson's Unite the Kingdom march was happening in the capital on one of the weekends he was operating undercover. Banners and banners could be seen at the protest, reading "we demand our nation returned".

Both journalists have both been observing online response to the investigation from inside the Kurdish-origin community and report it has sparked significant anger for certain individuals. One social media comment they found read: "How can we find and track [the undercover reporters] to kill them like dogs!"

Another urged their relatives in Kurdistan to be harmed.

They have also read accusations that they were spies for the UK government, and traitors to fellow Kurds. "Both of us are not spies, and we have no desire of damaging the Kurdish-origin population," Saman explains. "Our goal is to uncover those who have compromised its standing. We are proud of our Kurdish-origin heritage and extremely troubled about the behavior of such persons."

The majority of those applying for refugee status claim they are escaping political discrimination, according to an expert from the a charitable organization, a non-profit that assists refugees and refugee applicants in the UK.

This was the case for our covert journalist Saman, who, when he initially arrived to the United Kingdom, faced difficulties for many years. He states he had to live on less than £20 a per week while his asylum claim was considered.

Asylum seekers now get approximately £49 a week - or nine pounds ninety-five if they are in shelter which offers food, according to government regulations.

"Realistically stating, this isn't enough to support a respectable lifestyle," says Mr Avicil from the RWCA.

Because asylum seekers are mostly prohibited from working, he believes a significant number are vulnerable to being exploited and are essentially "obligated to labor in the illegal economy for as low as three pounds per hourly rate".

A representative for the authorities commented: "The government make no apology for refusing to grant asylum seekers the right to be employed - doing so would establish an reason for individuals to come to the United Kingdom illegally."

Refugee applications can require a long time to be decided with almost a one-third requiring more than one year, according to official data from the late March this year.

The reporter explains working illegally in a vehicle cleaning service, barbershop or mini-mart would have been very easy to do, but he told us he would not have done that.

However, he explains that those he interviewed working in unauthorized convenience stores during his investigation seemed "confused", especially those whose refugee application has been refused and who were in the appeal stage.

"They spent their entire money to travel to the United Kingdom, they had their refugee application refused and now they've forfeited their entire investment."

The other reporter agrees that these people seemed in dire straits.

"If [they] say you're not allowed to work - but additionally [you]