Defence secretary ‘unable to say’ if anyone killed after Afghan data breach

The defence secretary has said he was “unable to say for sure” whether anyone had been killed as a result of a data breach that revealed the details of thousands of Afghans who had supported British forces.

But John Healey told the BBC it was “highly unlikely” being a name on the list alone would now increase the risk of being targeted by the Taliban.

Details of nearly 19,000 people who had applied to move to the UK after the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan were mistakenly leaked in February 2022 by a British official. The previous government learned of this in August 2023 when details were posted on Facebook.

A super-injunction blocking reporting about the leak was lifted on Tuesday.

Healey told the BBC the lifting of the super-injunction would now allow “proper press reporting…