Robert Jenrick used footage of a soldier who has since died to make a misleading claim about SAS troops killing rather than capturing militants, it is claimed.
Tom Tugendhat, who served with the Special Forces trooper, could barely conceal his rage as he described Mr Jenrick's allegation as "simply not true". Tory leadership hopeful Mr Jenrick faces calls to apologise and withdraw his claim.
He has been accused of putting lives in danger after making the extraordinary allegation in a social media video. Mr Tugendhat, who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, made clear he was furious the video of his deceased friend had been used.
He said: "What's particularly upsetting is that video is using a piece of footage of some of the people I served with, one of who died shortly after that film was taken in an accident and is not able to defend himself against the allegation that is being effectively levelled against him."
BBC Newsnight presenter Victoria Derbyshire told him: "You sound quietly furious." Mr Tugendhat said: "How would you feel if a friend of yours who died a few years after the film was taken was being included in an accusation that would be - were he to be responsible for it, which let me be absolutely clear he would not and did not do - in an accusation that would be against the values and standards of the Armed Forces?"
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Mr Tugendhat said the clip used in Mr Jenrick's video had been taken in Afghanistan in around 2002. He did not name the soldier shown in the footage. In his video, hardliner Mr Jenrick claimed that militants were being killed rather than captured because of fears they would be freed by European courts.
Mr Tugendhat described this as a "complete and fundamental misunderstanding" of what it is to be a military commander on operations. He said: "It simply isn't true. That would be a breach of the law of armed conflict and it would be a violation of the values and standards of the British Armed Forces. I've spoken to a few former directors of special forces today, friends of mine who have commanded operations like the ones that are referred to. It is simply not true that Special Forces are doing that."
Fellow leadership contender James Cleverly, who has also served in the military, was applauded as he called on Mr Jenrick to produce evidence. He told the Tory Party Conference in Birmingham: "Whoever says that needs to justify their words. I've never accused the British Armed Forces of murdering anybody. If you're going to make that accusation you need to back it up."
Mr Jenrick was arguing that the UK must withdraw from the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). Former Tory attorney general Dominic Grieve wrote on Twitter/X that it was "one of the most astonishing videos I have ever seen posted by a Conservative MP, let alone a candidate for the leadership".
He rubbished Mr Jenrick's argument, saying: "Most of it is twaddle, a series of promises of change that leaving the ECHR will do nothing to take forward.”
But Mr Jenrick doubled down, telling an audience in Birmingham: "I don't want our human rights apparatus to be standing in the way of taking the right operational decisions for our national security, and for protecting the lives of the brave men and women who serve in our special forces."
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