Comment permalink

Claims have been made that New Zealand SAS troops killed civilians in Afghanistan in 2010. Photo:...
Claims have been made that New Zealand SAS troops killed civilians in Afghanistan in 2010. Photo: NZ Herald
A group of New Zealand lawyers have put up their hands to represent the Afghan villagers at the centre of claims New Zealand SAS troops killed civilians in 2010.

The lawyers have announced they will be asking the Attorney General and Government for a full and independent inquiry.

Law firm McLeod Associates will represent the villagers allegedly killed or injured during an SAS-led raid.

Allegations of civilian deaths were made this week in Hit and Run, a new book by investigative journalists Nicky Hager and Jon Stephenson.

The law firm says it has written to attorney general Chris Finlayson and Prime Minister Bill English to notify them.

They say that "every day there's a different version" of events and an enquiry is needed to clarify what actually happened.

Immigration lawyer Deborah Manning, one of those representing the villagers, says they are demanding a full and independent inquiry as a first step.

Manning said Stephenson had approached her to represent the affected villagers.

She said what happened was a "voilation of human rights, there must be an independent inquiry".

On Tuesday, investigative journalist Nicky Hager and war correspondent Jon Stephenson released a new book, Hit & Run: The New Zealand SAS in Afghanistan and the meaning of honour.

The book claimed that six civilians were killed - and another 15 people were injured in a raid by the SAS in August, 2010.

It was a contrast to assurances given at the time by former Prime Minister John Key, former defence ministers Jonathan Coleman and Wayne Mapp and the New Zealand Defence Force.

The book claimed Mapp later told the friend the raid was ""our biggest and most disastrous operation". The book stated that he called the raid "a fiasco".

The Defence Force has said this week it stands by its 2011 statement that "the allegations of civilian casualties were unfounded".

Mapp appeared to concede the deaths this week and Key has only released a one-line statement saying he was proud "of the work the SAS did, and the support they provided in Afghanistan."

Prime Minister Bill English said yesterday the govt would not "rush into an inquiry".

In an exclusive interview with a current SAS soldier in the Herald today, the man confirmed civilians were killed.

He said the two people found shot dead were killed by NZSAS marksmen who believed they were acting under "Rules of Engagement" governing their actions on the battlefield.

He said the other four people killed died in a barrage of fire from United States aircraft called in by a New Zealander operating as the joint terminal air controller - the person responsible for directing air support.

The soldier said it emerged no combatants were identified on the battlefield.

But he said the lack of an obvious opposing force contradicted the soldiers' expectation based on the United States-sourced intelligence used to frame the Rules of Engagement and the raid itself.​

According to her website, from 2008-11 Manning was a senior legal consultant to a Geneva human rights organization, Al Karama (Dignity). The organisation represents victims of grave human rights violations in the Arab region. She worked closely with the United Nations human rights protections mechanisms, regional human rights protection mechanisms and international organisations.

She was co-counsel for the Algerian refugee Ahmed Zaoui, successfully representing him in the review of the first national security risk certificate issued in New Zealand from 2003-2007. This was a landmark case which saw successful applications and appeals before the High Court, Court of Appeal and Supreme Court.

Comments

Were civilians killed by marksmen? These are specialists who identify, aim and pull the trigger. Add a private enquiry into military objectives, the claim of a Revenge operation and "Rules of Engagement", which seem to be subjectively interpreted in battle.

While it unfortunate civilians may have been killed in this situation, what would Mr. Hager have us do?

Given in and appease violent thugs like ISIS and Al Quada? Chamberlain did that with Hitler and look how many millions suffered globally under the Nazi's.

Our armed forces do us proud - I would urge Kiwi's to boycott Hager's book until he is prepared to stick his own neck out on the line and serve with them.

It's easy to come up sensationalist stories to sell books - in a firefight against insurgents who are too cowardly to wear uniforms, methinks the situation would be a darn site less clear.

You're correct at the end of the day. It's to sell books....wars are not nice things. We have to have SAS and special forces types as we have Isis and others. Simple. We need to back our military and back up our allies.