Former SAS Commander Exposes Iran's Brutal Role in Iraq War Casualties
Six Royal Military Policemen faced a horrific and methodical execution in Majar Al-Kabir, southern Iraq, on June 24, 2003. After being violently beaten and thrown to the ground, each soldier was shot dead in cold blood, forced to watch his comrades die before meeting the same fate. This brutal incident was not the work of Iraqi insurgents but a calculated act by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), operating covertly to destabilise Western efforts in the region.
The Fatal Mission and Iran's Covert Campaign
The soldiers were stationed in the sun-baked town to maintain order following Saddam Hussein's fall and to train local police recruits. Their deaths marked a violent end to the naive belief that the British Army could exert influence through peaceful patrols in berets and soft-skinned vehicles, engaging in diplomacy over tea with local sheiks. Instead, it served as a costly wake-up call, revealing the IRGC's ruthless strategy to ensure Western stabilisation attempts failed.
Between March 2003 and April 2009, Britain lost 136 service personnel in Iraq, with the vast majority killed by the IRGC and their proxies. Each flag-draped coffin carried through patriotic ceremonies at Royal Wootton Bassett was a direct result of Tehran's orders. Intelligence intercepts revealed simple, warlike directives: continue killing with improvised explosive devices (IEDs), mortars, mines, and shootings until Western forces withdrew, leaving Iraq under Iranian influence.
Expanding the Conflict to Afghanistan
The IRGC's campaign did not end in Iraq. As a former commanding officer of the 22 SAS Regiment in Iraq and Afghanistan, I witnessed firsthand their sinister operations. The same IRGC had deep ties with the Taliban in southern Afghanistan, supplying them with IEDs and weapons to create a hellish environment for British forces transitioning to Helmand. Despite hopes of restoring Britain's counter-insurgency reputation without firing a shot, as optimistically declared by then-Defence Secretary John Reid, this mission ended in disaster, claiming another 457 British lives.
The consequences of Britain's inability to hold ground in southern Iraq against Iranian pressure were even deadlier for American forces. As UK troops retreated to Basra palace, they left an unpatrolled province that became a key supply route for Iran's deadly off-route mines, known as explosively formed penetrators. These weapons, detonating beside vehicles rather than underneath, killed over 600 US soldiers by 2011, with many more maimed physically and mentally.
Legal Warfare and Subversion Tactics
Iran's campaign against Britain extended beyond the battlefield into legal and media subversion. Skilled in espionage, the IRGC masterfully fed false allegations to the poorly-conceived Iraq Historic Allegations Team, as well as to eager British media and London-based lawyers. This included figures like Phil Shiner, who was later convicted of legal aid fraud and struck off for pursuing false torture and murder claims against British troops.
This state-sponsored 'lawfare' exploited Britain's human rights legislation, effectively outlawing many forms of combat and undermining military morale with the constant threat of legal action. The IRGC realised they could deter British forces not just through violence but by turning our own laws against us, a strategy less effective in the US but devastating in the UK context.
A Call to Confront a Ruthless Enemy
Iran's regime is an utterly ruthless enemy, now seeking nuclear weapons to destroy other nations, brutally suppressing internal dissent, and viewing Western tolerance as an opportunity for state-sponsored subversion. As Defence Secretary John Healey and Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer engage in discussions, the lessons from Iraq remain stark. In 2007, then-Defence Secretary Des Browne insisted, despite overwhelming evidence, that Iran was not Britain's enemy in southern Iraq—a claim proven dangerously wrong.
Those who deny the IRGC's terrorist nature, advocate for negotiations with Iran, or hesitate to support the US only strengthen Tehran's hand. The pearl-clutching of international conflict resolution experts often fails against such evil. As a nation and as individuals, maintaining dignity requires facing this threat head-on and fighting back, as the blood of our countrymen in Iraq and Afghanistan so painfully illustrates.
