THE director of UK Special Forces made a “conscious decision” to cover up potential war crimes in Afghanistan, an inquiry has heard. 

Summaries of closed hearings in which special forces members gave evidence about operations between 2010 and 2013 are being published today by the Afghanistan inquiry.

The assistant chief of staff for operations at UKSF’s headquarters said he believed statistics from deliberate detention operations, including the number of weapons found compared to enemies killed in action, “didn’t seem credible.”

Referred to as N1466, the officer flagged concerns in February 2011 and accused the UKSF director of controlling information about alleged murders “in a way that I think indicated a desire to keep it low profile.”

The director initiated a review on tactics, techniques and procedures, but N1466 said it was “obvious” this was a charade.

N1466 said he remains sure that the director “knew what was happening on the ground” and “clearly in my view made a conscious decision that he is going to suppress this, cover this up and do a little fake exercise to make it look like he’s done something.”

Stop the War Coalition convener Lindsey German said: “This in itself is a war crime – and it goes to the very top. 

“Lord Dannatt, the former head of the army who used his peerage to open doors for businesses, including the US weapons company Teledyne, said war crimes didn’t happen. 

“Every foreign secretary has told us war crimes didn’t happen. 

“Now we know war crimes in Afghanistan were being covered up, we have to demand to be told, what else is being covered up by the Establishment in all the other wars Britain is involved in?”

During one interview, N1466 told how special force members cleared a compound where people were hiding under a mosquito net.

The document read: “They did not reveal themselves, so the UKSF1 shot at the net until there was no movement.

“When the net was uncovered it was women and children.

“The incident was covered up and the individual who did the shooting was allegedly given some form of award to make it look legitimate.”

A Ministry of Defence spokesperson said that it remains “committed to providing the support that our special forces deserve, whilst maintaining the transparency and accountability that the British people rightly expect from their armed forces.”