Leaked film shows hand-over

Clip shows Kiwis giving Afghan captive to US

Unauthorised film from the aftermath of the "Battle of Baghak" has emerged showing Kiwi troops handing over a blindfolded enemy insurgent to a United States helicopter gunship.

The three-minute clip was filmed inside the New Zealand Defence Force's forward operating base Romero just after the clash in which Lance Corporals Rory Malone and Pralli Durrer were killed.

It shows a Kiwi soldier leading a captive by the arm as they disembark from an LAV after returning to the forward operating base.

The man, found "acting suspiciously" near the battle zone, was later put on a waiting US Blackhawk helicopter and taken to neighbouring Parwan province.

The film was uploaded to the Liveleaks website this week. A female soldier attached to the K3 unit can be heard calling the man a "piece of shit". "He doesn't want to go," says another soldier as the man slowly gets off the LAV.

The same woman was heard in earlier leaked film, revealed in the Herald on Sunday last week, which showed 10 unedited minutes of combat during the Battle of Baghak on August 4, saying "F***ing get some bitches".

A Defence Force spokeswoman said a military police investigation into continuing leaks would look into how the latest clip ended up on the website.

The Baghak engagement is believed to be the most complex operation involving Kiwi regular forces since Vietnam.

The operation, led by Major Craig Wilson, was also described by a court of inquiry as "problematic".

Malone and Durrer were killed and six others were injured, including at least two by friendly fire.

Two weeks later, on August 19, Corporal Luke Tamatea, Lance Corporal Jacinda Baker and Private Richard Harris died when their vehicle was destroyed by a roadside bomb.

A military police investigation is being carried out into the wounding of Kiwi soldiers at Baghak by their own forces and other allegations of criminal behaviour. Now the Defence Force has also begun an investigation into the leaked film.

The Afghan insurgent was held in US custody before being transferred to Afghan authorities this year.

He has been visited by a Defence Force legal officer each month to ensure his human rights are being met, a spokesman said.