The Reasons We Chose to Go Undercover to Uncover Criminal Activity in the Kurdish Community

A pair of Kurdish individuals consented to operate secretly to expose a operation behind illegal main street enterprises because the criminals are damaging the reputation of Kurdish people in the UK, they state.

The pair, who we are calling Ali and Saman, are Kurdish reporters who have both resided lawfully in the United Kingdom for a long time.

Investigators found that a Kurdish illegal enterprise was operating convenience stores, barbershops and vehicle cleaning services throughout the UK, and aimed to discover more about how it worked and who was participating.

Armed with hidden recording devices, Ali and Saman presented themselves as Kurdish asylum seekers with no right to work, looking to purchase and manage a small shop from which to distribute illegal cigarettes and vapes.

They were able to reveal how straightforward it is for an individual in these circumstances to start and manage a enterprise on the commercial area in full view. The individuals participating, we discovered, compensate Kurdish individuals who have UK citizenship to legally establish the operations in their identities, assisting to fool the government agencies.

Ali and Saman also were able to discreetly document one of those at the heart of the organization, who claimed that he could remove government fines of up to sixty thousand pounds encountered those hiring illegal workers.

"I sought to participate in uncovering these illegal practices [...] to loudly proclaim that they don't characterize Kurdish people," explains one reporter, a former refugee applicant personally. The reporter entered the United Kingdom illegally, having fled Kurdistan - a area that straddles the boundaries of Iraq, Iran, Turkey and Syria but which is not officially recognized as a nation - because his safety was at danger.

The reporters recognize that tensions over illegal immigration are elevated in the United Kingdom and state they have both been worried that the probe could intensify hostilities.

But the other reporter explains that the illegal labor "harms the whole Kurdish-origin community" and he considers compelled to "reveal it [the criminal network] out into broad daylight".

Additionally, the journalist says he was concerned the reporting could be seized upon by the extreme right.

He says this particularly affected him when he realized that extreme right activist a prominent activist's Unite the Kingdom protest was happening in the capital on one of the Saturdays and Sundays he was working undercover. Signs and banners could be spotted at the gathering, showing "we want our nation back".

Both journalists have both been tracking social media feedback to the exposé from inside the Kurdish-origin population and report it has sparked strong anger for certain individuals. One social media message they observed read: "In what way can we identify and track [the undercover reporters] to harm them like animals!"

One more urged their families in Kurdistan to be harmed.

They have also read accusations that they were spies for the British authorities, and betrayers to fellow Kurds. "We are not spies, and we have no desire of harming the Kurdish-origin population," Saman says. "Our objective is to uncover those who have compromised its standing. Both journalists are honored of our Kurdish-origin identity and profoundly concerned about the actions of such people."

Most of those seeking refugee status claim they are fleeing politically motivated discrimination, according to Ibrahim Avicil from the a refugee support organization, a charity that assists asylum seekers and asylum seekers in the UK.

This was the case for our covert journalist one investigator, who, when he initially arrived to the UK, experienced challenges for many years. He states he had to survive on under £20 a per week while his refugee application was reviewed.

Refugee applicants now get about £49 a per week - or £9.95 if they are in shelter which offers food, according to government policies.

"Honestly speaking, this is not adequate to maintain a acceptable life," says Mr Avicil from the the organization.

Because asylum seekers are generally restricted from working, he feels many are susceptible to being taken advantage of and are practically "obligated to work in the unofficial sector for as little as £3 per hourly rate".

A official for the authorities stated: "The government make no apology for refusing to grant refugee applicants the right to work - granting this would generate an reason for individuals to come to the UK without authorization."

Asylum cases can take a long time to be processed with almost a one-third requiring more than one year, according to official data from the end of March this current year.

The reporter explains working illegally in a car wash, barbershop or mini-mart would have been quite straightforward to do, but he told us he would not have participated in that.

Nevertheless, he states that those he interviewed employed in unauthorized convenience stores during his work seemed "lost", notably those whose asylum claim has been denied and who were in the appeal stage.

"They spent their entire money to come to the UK, they had their asylum refused and now they've sacrificed everything."

The other reporter agrees that these people seemed hopeless.

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