Five SAS soldiers arrested on suspicion of murder after shooting two people during a mission in Syria have submitted legal complaints to the Defence Serious Crimes Unit, saying their treatment was inappropriate and potentially unlawful.
The soldiers were on a mission to hunt down Isis terrorists when the shootings took place. They were subjected to a three-year criminal investigation that sources said plunged the regiment into crisis. One of the five said they understood the SAS was not above the law, but believed the process did not reflect the unique position the soldiers found themselves in.
Arrests and raid on homes
The Sunday Times reported that the men were sent back into the war zone just 48 hours after being questioned by military police. The five soldiers from the elite Special Air Service were arrested on secret bases in Syria and Iraq and had their homes raided by the Royal Military Police in 2022.
The midnight mission took place in July 2022, when the SAS were deployed to capture a senior Isis commander. During the raid, the soldiers heard shots overhead as they pursued their target in a field. They approached two individuals who refused to surrender. They said they believed their lives were in danger and they shot the pair dead.
Teenagers killed and investigation
It later emerged the pair killed were two teenagers working for Isis. The five men were arrested for double murder and faced life in jail if convicted. They said they were left in limbo for three years before being cleared. During that time, they were deployed on dozens of missions, including jumping out of helicopters to capture jihadist terrorists in the Syrian desert.
One soldier said they faced the psychological pressure of parachuting behind enemy lines while being treated like "members of a criminal organisation". The former suspects have all since left the military. They wrote to Sir Keir Starmer, then prime minister, to complain about their potentially unlawful arrests, but received no response.
Retention concerns and MoD response
One involved said the conduct and duration of the inquiry had contributed to "existential" retention issues, with many of the SAS's most experienced soldiers leaving the regiment.
A spokesman for the Ministry of Defence said: "Our personnel are respected worldwide for their professionalism and dedication, and they make extraordinary sacrifices in defence of the nation. They are also entitled to expect that any investigation is conducted fairly and professionally, and rightly there are procedures in place for people to report concerns, including through the service police complaints commissioner. If allegations of wrongdoing arise, it is right that they are properly assessed and, where appropriate, investigated."
A defence source said: "We recognise the seriousness of the concerns raised in this case. The defence secretary has asked that the Defence Serious Crime Unit consider the concerns raised on the handling of the service police investigation."
