Public inquiry into allegations of unlawful killings by British soldiers in Afghanistan to be held partly in secret

Published

2 years ago

August 21, 2023

admin

A public inquiry into allegations of war crimes by British armed forces in Afghanistan will be held partly in secret, the chair has decided.

Sir Charles Haddon-Cave ruled some evidence, witness identities and testimonies will be limited to closed sessions which the media and public are prohibited from attending.

It comes after the Ministry of Defence (MoD) and the Royal Military Police (RMP), which is accused of failing to investigate the claims, sought sweeping restrictions citing national security and privacy.

The reasons for the chair’s conclusions are laid out in a ruling that itself is private.

In his decision, Lord Justice Haddon-Cave said there are “cogent national security and other reasons why many hearings will need to be held entirely in closed [behind closed doors].” Sky News has asked the inquiry to explain what “other reasons” means.

The chair said he studied the evidence and concluded “for reasons set out in my closed ruling, it amounts to a strong and compelling case that there is a real risk that serious national security damage would be caused” if the MoD’s application for secrecy was not granted.

The order withholds from disclosure information relating to methods, tactics and equipment of UK and foreign partner operatives, as well as details of the identity of MoD and RMP witnesses. It prohibits public access to “risk of information,” though the chair himself seeks clarity on what that means.

The allegations of extrajudicial killings are part of a BBC and The Times investigation which claimed rogue SAS units executed innocent civilians during a campaign of night raids set up to capture Taliban fighters.

Evidence submitted to the inquiry claims as many as 80 people were killed in suspicious circumstances by three out of four SAS squadrons between 2010 and 2013.

The documents outlined the high kill rate of the squadrons, with one soldier shooting 35 people dead in a single six-month tour.

‘Blanket’ restrictions not in interest of open justice – victims’ families

The victims’ families had argued “blanket” restrictions were not in the interest of open justice. Public hearings may be painful and humiliating, they submitted, but “reputational damage is not a blanket justification for anonymity”.

In an unusual move, the chair has also denied the families access to special advocates whose roles are to examine material heard in closed sessions and to represent the excluded party’s interests.

Tessa Gregory, partner at Leigh Day solicitors, who is acting for the Afghan families, told Sky News: “We are carefully considering this ruling and its implications for the conduct of the inquiry.

“It is of utmost important to our clients, who alleged their relatives were murdered by UK Special Forces in Afghanistan, that the truth is uncovered and that they are able to participate fully in the inquiry.”

Sky News and other media outlets challenge application

Sky News is part of a number of media outlets that submitted challenges to the application for restrictive orders from the MoD and RMP.

An MoD spokesperson said: “The independent statutory inquiry relating to Afghanistan will investigate alleged unlawful activity by British Armed Forces during deliberate detention operations between mid-2010 to mid-2013.

“It is not appropriate for the MoD to comment on cases which are within the scope of the statutory inquiry and it is up to the statutory inquiry team, led by Lord Justice Haddon-Cave, to determine which allegations are investigated.”

Politics

Nearly 400,000 FTX users risk losing $2.5 billion in repayments

Published

3 hours ago

April 6, 2025

admin

Nearly 400,000 FTX users risk losing .5 billion in repayments

Nearly 400,000 creditors of the bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX risk missing out on $2.5 billion in repayments after failing to begin the mandatory Know Your Customer (KYC) verification process.

Roughly 392,000 FTX creditors have failed to complete or at least take the first steps of the mandatory Know Your Customer verification, according to an April 2 court filing in the US Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.

FTX users originally had until March 3 to begin the verification process to collect their claims.

“If a holder of a claim listed on Schedule 1 attached thereto did not commence the KYC submission process with respect to such claim on or prior to March 3, 2025, at 4:00 pm (ET) (the “KYC Commencing Deadline”), 2 such claim shall be disallowed and expunged in its entirety,” the filing states.

Nearly 400,000 FTX users risk losing $2.5 billion in repayments — *FTX court filing. Source:* *Bloomberglaw.com*

The KYC deadline has been extended to June 1, 2025, giving users another chance to verify their identity and claim eligibility. Those who fail to meet the new deadline may have their claims permanently disqualified.

According to the court documents, claims under $50,000 could account for roughly $655 million in disallowed repayments, while claims over $50,000 could amount to $1.9 billion — bringing the total at-risk funds to more than $2.5 billion.

The next round of FTX creditor repayments is set for May 30, 2025, with over $11 billion expected to be repaid to creditors with claims of over $50,000.

Under FTX’s recovery plan, 98% of creditors are expected to receive at least 118% of their original claim value in cash.

How FTX users can complete KYC

Many FTX users have reported problems with the KYC process.

However, users who were unable to submit their KYC documentation can resubmit their application and restart the verification process, according to an April 5 X post from Sunil, FTX creditor and Customer Ad-Hoc Committee member.

Impacted users should email FTX support (support@ftx.com) to receive a ticket number, then log in to the support portal, create an account, and re-upload the necessary KYC documents.

FTX’s Bahamian subsidiary, FTX Digital Markets, processed the first round of repayments in February, distributing $1.2 billion to creditors.

The crypto industry is still recovering from the collapse of FTX and more than 130 subsidiaries launched a series of insolvencies that led to the industry’s longest-ever crypto winter, which saw Bitcoin’s (BTC) price bottom out at around $16,000.

While not a “market-moving catalyst” in itself, the beginning of the FTX repayments is a positive sign for the maturation of the crypto industry, which may see a “significant portion” reinvested into cryptocurrencies, Alvin Kan, chief operating officer at Bitget Wallet, told Cointelegraph.

Magazine: XRP win leaves Ripple a ‘bad actor’ with no crypto legal precedent set

Politics

Sir Keir Starmer pledges to protect UK companies from Trump tariff ‘storm’

Published

5 hours ago

April 6, 2025

admin

Sir Keir Starmer pledges to protect UK companies from Trump tariff 'storm'

Sir Keir Starmer has said his government stands ready to use industrial policy to “shelter British business from the storm” after Donald Trump’s new 10% tariff kicked in.

The UK was among a number of countries hit with the lowest import duty rate following the president’s announcement on 2 April – which he called ‘Liberation Day’, while other nations, such as Vietnam, Cambodia and China face much higher US levies.

But a global trade war will hurt the UK’s open economy.

The prime minister said “these new times demand a new mentality”, after the 10% tax on British imports into America came into force on Saturday. A 25% US levy on all foreign car imports was introduced on Thursday.

It comes as Jaguar Land Rover announced it would “pause” shipments to the US for a month, as firms grapple with the new taxes.

On Saturday, the car manufacturer said it was working to “address the new trading terms” and was looking to “develop our mid to longer-term plans”.

Referring to the tariffs, Sir Keir said “the immediate priority is to keep calm and fight for the best deal”.

Writing in The Sunday Telegraph, he said that in the coming days “we will turbocharge plans that will improve our domestic competitiveness”, adding: “We stand ready to use industrial policy to help shelter British business from the storm.”

It is believed a number of announcements could be made soon as ministers look to encourage growth.

NI contribution rate for employers goes up

From Sunday, the rate of employer NICs (national insurance contributions) increased from 13.8% to 15%.

At the same time, firms will also pay more because the government lowered the salary threshold at which companies start paying NICs from £9,100 to £5,000.

Also, the FTSE 100 of leading UK companies had its worst day of trading since the start of the pandemic on Friday, with banks among some of the firms to suffer the sharpest losses.

Sir Keir said: “This week, the government will do everything necessary to protect Britain’s national interest. Because when global economic sands are shifting, our laser focus on delivering for Britain will not. And these new times demand a new mentality.”

UK spared highest tariff rates

Some of the highest rates have been applied to “worst offender” countries including some in Southeast Asia. Imports from Cambodia will be subject to a 49% tariff, while those from Vietnam will face a 46% rate. Chinese goods will be hit with a 34% tariff.

Imports from France will have a 20% tariff, the rate which has been set for European Union nations. These will come into effect on 9 April.

Sir Keir has been speaking to foreign leaders on the phone over the weekend, including French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, to discuss the tariff changes.

A Downing Street spokesperson said of the conversation between Sir Keir and Mr Macron: “They agreed that a trade war was in nobody’s interests but nothing should be off the table and that it was important to keep business updated on developments.

“The prime minister and president also shared their concerns about the global economic and security impact, particularly in Southeast Asia.”

👉 Follow Trump 100 on your podcast app 👈

Trump’s warning

Mr Trump has warned Americans the tariffs “won’t be easy”, but urged them to “hang tough”.

In a post on his Truth Social platform, he said: “We are bringing back jobs and businesses like never before.

“Already, more than FIVE TRILLION DOLLARS OF INVESTMENT, and rising fast!

“THIS IS AN ECONOMIC REVOLUTION, AND WE WILL WIN. HANG TOUGH, it won’t be easy, but the end result will be historic.”

Politics

Billionaire investor would ‘not be surprised’ if Trump postpones tariffs

Published

8 hours ago

April 6, 2025

admin

<div>Billionaire investor would 'not be surprised' if Trump postpones tariffs</div>

Crypto-friendly billionaire investor Bill Ackman is considering the possibility that US President Donald Trump may pause the implementation of his controversial proposed tariffs on April 7.

“One would have to imagine that President Donald Trump’s phone has been ringing off the hook. The practical reality is that there is insufficient time for him to make deals before the tariffs are scheduled to take effect,” Ackman, founder of Pershing Square Capital Management, said in an April 5 X post.

Trump may postpone tariffs to make more deals, says Ackman

“I would, therefore, not be surprised to wake up Monday with an announcement from the President that he was postponing the implementation of the tariffs to give him time to make deals,” Ackman added.

On April 2, Trump signed an executive order establishing a 10% baseline tariff on all imports from all countries, which took effect on April 5. Harsher reciprocal tariffs on trading partners with which the US has the largest trade deficits are scheduled to kick in on April 9.

Ackman — who famously said “crypto is here to stay” after the FTX collapse in November 2022 — said Trump captured the attention of the world and US trading partners, backing the tariffs as necessary after what he called an “unfair tariff regime” that hurt US workers and economy “over many decades.”

Following Trump’s announcement on April 2, the US stock market shed more value during the April 4 trading session than the entire crypto market is currently worth. The fact that crypto held up better than the US stock market caught the attention of both crypto industry supporters and skeptics.

United States, Donald Trump — *Source:* *Cameron Winklevoss*

Prominent crypto voices such as BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes and Gemini co-founder Cameron Winklevoss also recently showed their support for Trump’s tariffs.

Ackman said a pause would be a logical move by Trump — not just to allow time for closing potential deals but also to give companies of all sizes “time to prepare for changes.” He added: