Spies and special forces among 100 Britons included in Afghan data leak
The personal details of spies and special forces operatives were included in a massive data breach that saw thousands of Afghan citizens being relocated to the UK in secret.
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It is believed information about more than 100 Brits has been found in the unprecedented leak.
MI6 spies, special forces personnel and members of the SAS were included in the spreadsheet, according to defence sources.
An unprecedented superinjunction was used by the government to suppress information about the breach, which exposed the personal details of thousands of Afghans who had worked with UK forces.
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The breach, which happened under the previous Conservative government, involved the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP) - a scheme designed to offer sanctuary in the UK to Afghans who supported British military operations during the 20-year war in Afghanistan.
Between 80,000 and 100,000 people, including family members of the ARAP applicants, were affected by the breach and could be at risk of harassment, torture or death if the Taliban obtained their data, judges said in June 2024.
So far, around 4,500 people – made up of 900 ARAP applicants and approximately 3,600 family members - have been brought to the UK or are currently in transit through the Afghanistan Response Route.
A further estimated 600 people and their relatives are expected to be relocated before the scheme closes, bringing the total to around 6,900 individuals by the end of the programme.
The Ministry of Defence says that the cost of the 6,900 who have been brought over because of the data breach will be £800m.
However, court documents suggest the total cost of Afghan relocations could reach £7 billion - most of which has not been scrutinised by Parliament.
On Thursday, Former Armed Forces minister James Heappey shared the "gut-wrenching" moment he learned of the Afghan data leak, admitting the previous government "let the country down badly" in a long apology.
In August 2023, Mr Heappey, then armed forces minister, was alerted to the leak in an email by a ARAP volunteer.
It read: “The Taliban may well now have a 33,000 long kill list – essentially provided to them by the UK government."
Mr Heappey has offered up a long apology regarding his response, admitting he's "let the country down badly" after the "gut-wrenching" realisation.
He wrote on X: "I’d like to add my sincere apology to those of other current & former defence ministers for the data breach which compromised details of so many applicants to the ARAP scheme.
"A great deal happened during my 4 years as MinAF - war in Ukraine, UN mission to Mali, COVID-19, evacuations from Kabul & Khartoum, the Queens’s death, the Coronation & much more. MOD was magnificent in response to it all.
"But on this breach we let the country down badly."
He later added that it was "gut-wrenching to find out that someone in MOD had screwed up so awfully although I also came to find out subsequently that they were incredibly dedicated to those we served with in Afghanistan."
"Few had done more to get people who served alongside our special forces out of Afghanistan. It is incredibly unfair that someone who’d done so much good & changed so many lives deservedly for the better, should also be responsible for RUBIFIC (the codename for the breach)," Mr Heappey wrote.