Hundreds of Afghan troops win right to resettle in UK

Minister admits soldiers were employed by government after The Independent revealed their fate at hands of the Taliban

- HOLLY BANCROFT

Hundreds of Afghan special forces soldiers and their family members will be allowed to resettle in the UK after ministers admitted that new evidence has confirmed they were paid by the government.

Luke Pollard, the armed forces minister, told the Commons yesterday that a Ministry of Defence review, sparked by campaigning MPs and a joint investigation by The Independent, Lighthouse Reports and Sky News, has found that members of Afghan specialist units were directly employed by the UK government, despite previous denials.

Thousands of these soldiers, who fought side-by-side with British troops, had been denied relocation to the UK under the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (Arap). Conservative ministers had told parliament that these soldiers, known as the Triples, were not directly employed by the UK.

However, Mr Pollard confirmed that this was wrong. Around 2,000 applications by members of Afghan specialist units, who had previously been rejected for help, are being reviewed. About 25 per cent of these are expected to have their decisions overturned, Mr Pollard said. Eligible Afghans and their families are now being invited to relocate to the UK, the minister said.