Nigel Farage pledges to battle for Special Forces troops being hounded over their actions in Afghanistan and Iraq
Nigel Farage yesterday pledged to protect Special Forces troops being hounded over their actions in Afghanistan and Iraq.
The Reform UK leader accused Keir Starmer‘s Government of pursuing an agenda against the SAS and threatening the future of the elite regiment.
Speaking at the launch of Veterans For Reform, Mr Farage offered pardons for any soldiers prosecuted under what he described as ‘dubious codes’ and said the attacks on the Special Forces were having a ‘catastrophic’ effect on recruitment.
The Daily Mail has campaigned tirelessly for the restoration of veterans’ rights that have been dismantled by Labour.
Last week Labour MPs voted to remove clauses in the Legacy Act, championed by former veterans minister Johnny Mercer, that offered immunity from vexatious prosecutions and barred civil actions relating to the Troubles in Northern Ireland.
Following the PM’s intervention, hundreds of civil actions – most brought by republicans against the British state – are expected to move forward.
Meanwhile, inquests previously stayed as a result of the Legacy Act are expected to go ahead.
Mr Farage’s defence of the SAS comes as it faces allegations of illegal killings in conflicts after the Troubles.
Nigel Farage yesterday pledged to protect Special Forces troops being hounded over their actions in Afghanistan and Iraq
The Daily Mail has campaigned tirelessly for the restoration of veterans’ rights that have been dismantled by Labour
He said: ‘We are going to stand up and fight for the rights of our military veterans, none of whom should be left behind.’
He said the Government was ‘led by human rights lawyers’, ‘prepared to bow down to a vague concept of international law from foreign courts’ and ‘without a patriotic bone in its body’.
He added: ‘And the prosecutions continue. Not just of people who did their job in tense and difficult circumstances in Northern Ireland.
‘They are going for our Special Forces, they are after the SAS for virtually any action that took place in Afghanistan and Iraq. The results of this are catastrophic.’
Lord Justice Haddon-Cave is expected to pronounce his judgment in the Independent Inquiry Relating to Afghanistan some time next year.
