The High Court has extended an injunction that prevents a former SAS member, identified by the pseudonym Christian Craighead, from publishing a book in the UK. The book details his involvement in a counter-terrorism operation.
The block on publication will continue until the government's legal action against Craighead concludes. The Ministry of Defence (MoD) alleges that the book contains a breach of a confidentiality contract Craighead signed upon joining the UK's special forces.
Oliver Sanders KC, representing the MoD, told the court that the claim of contract breach was "straightforward and really unarguable." Mr Justice Saini, in extending the injunction, stated that Craighead "willingly entered into" the agreement and was "clearly and consistently told by his superiors" that he could not publish the book.
Craighead, who served in the special forces from 2006 to 2020, received the Conspicuous Gallantry Cross for his role in an incident following an al-Shabaab attack in Nairobi in 2019. He claims to have saved over 700 people from a hotel complex during the assault.