The Reasons Our Team Chose to Go Covert to Uncover Criminal Activity in the Kurdish-origin Community

Two Kurdish men consented to go undercover to uncover a operation behind illegal commercial enterprises because the criminals are negatively affecting the reputation of Kurdish people in the UK, they state.

The two, who we are calling Ali and Saman, are Kurdish reporters who have both lived lawfully in the United Kingdom for many years.

Investigators found that a Kurdish crime network was operating convenience stores, hair salons and vehicle cleaning services the length of the United Kingdom, and sought to discover more about how it worked and who was involved.

Armed with covert cameras, Saman and Ali presented themselves as Kurdish asylum seekers with no permission to work, attempting to purchase and operate a mini-mart from which to trade unlawful tobacco products and vapes.

They were successful to discover how easy it is for someone in these conditions to establish and run a enterprise on the commercial area in plain sight. The individuals involved, we found, pay Kurdish individuals who have UK citizenship to register the operations in their names, helping to mislead the government agencies.

Saman and Ali also managed to secretly record one of those at the centre of the organization, who stated that he could erase government fines of up to sixty thousand pounds faced those hiring unauthorized workers.

"I aimed to play a role in revealing these unlawful practices [...] to declare that they do not represent our community," says Saman, a former asylum seeker personally. Saman entered the country without authorization, having fled the Kurdish region - a region that straddles the borders of Iraq, Iran, Turkey and Syria but which is not officially recognized as a country - because his life was at risk.

The reporters admit that conflicts over illegal migration are elevated in the United Kingdom and state they have both been concerned that the investigation could worsen conflicts.

But the other reporter states that the unauthorized labor "negatively affects the entire Kurdish community" and he believes obligated to "bring it [the criminal network] out into broad daylight".

Additionally, Ali says he was concerned the coverage could be exploited by the extreme right.

He says this particularly impressed him when he realized that far-right activist Tommy Robinson's Unite the Kingdom protest was taking place in London on one of the Saturdays and Sundays he was operating covertly. Placards and flags could be spotted at the protest, showing "we want our nation returned".

Saman and Ali have both been observing online reaction to the exposé from inside the Kurdish-origin population and say it has generated significant anger for some. One social media post they observed read: "In what way can we find and track [the undercover reporters] to kill them like dogs!"

A different demanded their families in Kurdistan to be harmed.

They have also encountered allegations that they were agents for the British authorities, and betrayers to fellow Kurdish people. "We are not informants, and we have no aim of hurting the Kurdish-origin population," Saman explains. "Our aim is to expose those who have damaged its standing. We are proud of our Kurdish-origin heritage and extremely concerned about the activities of such persons."

Most of those seeking refugee status state they are escaping politically motivated persecution, according to an expert from the Refugee Workers Cultural Association, a charity that assists asylum seekers and refugee applicants in the United Kingdom.

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

Asylum seekers now are provided approximately £49 a per week - or £9.95 if they are in accommodation which provides meals, according to government regulations.

"Realistically stating, this isn't sufficient to support a dignified lifestyle," states Mr Avicil from the the organization.

Because refugee applicants are generally prohibited from employment, he feels many are vulnerable to being exploited and are effectively "compelled to work in the unofficial market for as low as three pounds per hour".

A representative for the Home Office stated: "The government make no apology for denying asylum seekers the permission to be employed - granting this would generate an motivation for individuals to come to the United Kingdom without authorization."

Asylum cases can take a long time to be decided with nearly a one-third taking more than 12 months, according to official figures from the late March this year.

The reporter says being employed without authorization in a vehicle cleaning service, barbershop or convenience store would have been extremely easy to do, but he explained to us he would not have participated in that.

Nevertheless, he says that those he met laboring in illegal mini-marts during his work seemed "confused", notably those whose asylum claim has been refused and who were in the legal challenge.

"They used all their funds to come to the United Kingdom, they had their asylum rejected and now they've lost everything."

The other reporter agrees that these individuals seemed hopeless.

"If [they] declare you're not allowed to be employed - but simultaneously [you]