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

A pair of Kurdish-background individuals decided to operate secretly to expose a organization behind unlawful commercial establishments because the criminals are negatively affecting the image of Kurdish people in the UK, they state.

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

Investigators found that a Kurdish-linked crime network was managing convenience stores, barbershops and vehicle cleaning services throughout the UK, and sought to discover more about how it functioned and who was participating.

Prepared with hidden cameras, Ali and Saman presented themselves as Kurdish refugee applicants with no permission to work, attempting to acquire and manage a small shop from which to distribute illegal cigarettes and electronic cigarettes.

They were able to reveal how easy it is for an individual in these circumstances to set up and manage a business on the commercial area in full view. Those participating, we found, pay Kurdish individuals who have UK citizenship to legally establish the enterprises in their identities, helping to fool the officials.

Ali and Saman also succeeded to discreetly film one of those at the heart of the operation, who asserted that he could eliminate official sanctions of up to sixty thousand pounds encountered those hiring illegal laborers.

"I wanted to contribute in uncovering these illegal activities [...] to say that they don't characterize Kurdish people," states one reporter, a former asylum seeker himself. Saman came to the UK without authorization, having escaped from Kurdistan - a area that straddles the borders of Iraq, Iran, Turkey and Syria but which is not officially recognized as a country - because his safety was at danger.

The journalists admit that conflicts over illegal migration are high in the UK and explain they have both been anxious that the investigation could worsen conflicts.

But the other reporter explains that the unauthorized working "negatively affects the entire Kurdish-origin community" and he feels obligated to "expose it [the criminal network] out into broad daylight".

Separately, the journalist mentions he was worried the publication could be used by the far-right.

He says this notably affected him when he discovered that far-right campaigner a prominent activist's Unite the Kingdom march was happening in the capital on one of the Saturdays and Sundays he was operating secretly. Signs and flags could be observed at the rally, reading "we want our country returned".

Saman and Ali have both been observing social media response to the inquiry from inside the Kurdish community and report it has sparked significant frustration for some. One social media message they spotted stated: "In what way can we identify and find [the undercover reporters] to kill them like dogs!"

Another urged their families in Kurdistan to be harmed.

They have also encountered accusations that they were informants for the UK government, and traitors to fellow Kurdish people. "Both of us are not informants, and we have no aim of hurting the Kurdish-origin population," Saman states. "Our objective is to reveal those who have harmed its standing. We are honored of our Kurdish identity and extremely worried about the behavior of such people."

Most of those applying for asylum state they are fleeing politically motivated discrimination, according to an expert from the a charitable organization, a organization that supports refugees and asylum seekers in the United Kingdom.

This was the situation for our covert reporter Saman, who, when he initially came to the UK, experienced challenges for many years. He states he had to survive on less than £20 a per week while his asylum claim was considered.

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

"Honestly saying, this isn't adequate to support a dignified lifestyle," states the expert from the RWCA.

Because asylum seekers are largely restricted from working, he believes many are susceptible to being exploited and are essentially "compelled to work in the black economy for as little as £3 per hour".

A representative for the authorities stated: "The government are unapologetic for refusing to grant asylum seekers the permission to be employed - granting this would generate an reason for people to travel to the United Kingdom without authorization."

Asylum applications can require years to be resolved with approximately a one-third taking more than 12 months, according to government data from the late March this current year.

Saman says working without authorization in a car wash, hair salon or convenience store would have been extremely easy to achieve, but he explained to the team he would not have engaged in that.

Nonetheless, he says that those he met laboring in unauthorized convenience stores during his research seemed "confused", especially those whose asylum claim has been denied and who were in the legal challenge.

"These individuals expended all their money to travel to the UK, they had their refugee application rejected and now they've forfeited everything."

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

"When [they] say you're prohibited to work - but additionally [you]