This summer, a BBC documentary revealed that a unit of Britain’s Special Air Service (SAS) had summarily executed more than fifty Afghans over a six-month period in 2010–11. This came as something of a shock to many people. The Ministry of Defence accused the BBC of putting frontline troops at risk, and right-wing newspapers claimed that the story was just an example of unpatriotic left-wing smears and propaganda.

In fact, it would have been a much greater cause for surprise if there had been no shootings of unarmed prisoners or suspects. In the real world, such methods are a routine part of British and US counterinsurgency operations. Indeed, it is safe to assume that such shootings are taking place whether or not hard evidence comes to the surface. This is simply what they do.

However, many people in Britain find the idea of the SAS committing such crimes unthinkable, regardless of the evidence, because its soldiers have become a symbol of Britishness, embodying all the British military virtues that are said to have made the country great and enabled it to conquer much of the world.