A SNIPER in the British Army submitted a legal challenge to the Ministry of Defence over a “catastrophic error” that put him and his family at risk of being kidnapped by al Qaeda.
The soldier received huge media coverage when it was reported he had shot dead several Taliban fighters at a range of 1.5 miles during his tour of Afghanistan.
The publicity, which he says he never agreed to, meant that police feared he could be the victim of a reprisal attack by British-based Islamists and he was forced to leave the country with his family.
He has now posted a “letter of claim” with the ministry, accusing it of failing in its duty of care to him by allowing his identity to become public, Britain’s Sunday Telegraph has reported
The soldier was interviewed during a parade at his regiment’s barracks. His story was picked up around the world and received millions of hits on the internet.
The solider claims he was given an undertaking by officials that his personal details would not be made public but that no such guidelines were detailed by Ministry of Defence media representatives present during the interview.
The letter of claim states: “Following the reporting of the story and the publication of our client’s photograph and personal details, he and his family suffered acute distress and anxiety. It was described to our client by the press liaison officer as a ‘catastrophic error.’ This was also accepted later by the Media Operations team within the MoD.”
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