Lord Hermer, then a senior lawyer, represented Iraqi clients who accused British soldiers of unlawful killings and mistreatment following the Battle of Danny Boy in 2004. Emails reportedly show he was warned the claims were 'nonsense' and expressed his own doubts, according to major media reports. He worked on a no-win, no-fee basis and stood to gain significantly if the claims succeeded.
Lord Hermer backed moves to publicise the lawsuits, including an interview on Radio 4's Today programme, where he noted the need to leave 'some wiggle room if the killings did not in fact happen', according to major media. The publicity drive was part of an effort to secure taxpayer-funded compensation settlements before the Al-Sweady inquiry in 2014 exposed the claimants as liars, reports said.
I have gone through hell for years. It's disgusting that Hermer is Attorney General. He pursued us in a witch hunt and yet is now the senior lawyer in Government. That is just wrong...he was representing the people trying to kill us.
The Al-Sweady public inquiry found the allegations amounted to 'deliberate lies' driven by 'ingrained hostility' towards the British Army. The claimants were identified as members of the Mahdi Army, an Islamist insurgent group backed by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. British troops were fully exonerated in 2014.
Solicitor Phil Shiner, who collaborated with Lord Hermer on the case, was removed from the legal register and convicted of fraud. According to Daily Mail - News, Brian Wood described the ordeal as 'hell' and said it was 'disgusting' that Hermer is now Attorney General. Iraq veteran Philip Ingram backed the resignation demand and described Lord Hermer's actions as 'absolutely disgusting'. According to Daily Express - UK News, Hilary Meredith called on the Bar Standards Board to investigate Lord Hermer's conduct. General Sir Peter Wall said the orchestrated claims were 'tantamount to treason', according to Daily Express - UK News.
I think this is even bigger than the Mandelson scandal. Keir Starmer's closest advisor was clearly trying to get more clients to fuel his ego and fill his pockets, even while rightly suspecting their claims were false. It's quite clear that he knew it was total nonsense, but was pushing it with no consideration the dreadful impact these lawsuits had on the soldiers who had put their lives on the line. It seemed to be almost a sport to him. It's lower than low. This individual is not fit to hold a British passport, never mind to be the Attorney General providing advice to our country. You can understand why this country is in such a mess, when we've got a Prime Minister who doesn't have any principles and relies on advice from his people like Lord Hermer.
Lord Hermer reportedly maintained it was irrelevant whether his clients were 'a saint or a member of al-Qaeda' when bringing human rights cases against British troops, according to Daily Express - UK News. The Attorney General has not yet responded to the allegations. It remains unclear whether the Bar Standards Board will investigate his conduct or if any disciplinary proceedings are underway.
We went over the top in making sure that our interrogations met human rights standards. I had one eye on law the whole time I was there, it's something that [soldiers] always consider carefully. Sadly, thanks to people like Lord Hermer, w
the worst case ever of soldiers, who had fought so bravely in that battle, being dragged through the mud for years.
tantamount to treason.