SAS to double Afghan force
DAILY WAR ON TALIBAN
THE SAS is to double the size of the force fighting in Afghanistan amid fears it is slipping back into Taliban control.
The elite forces will boost the number of troops in the country from around 50 to over 100 by the end of next month.
Members of the unit have fought in Afghanistan since 2001, longer than any war in the regiment’s history.
The British commandos will conduct kill-or-capture missions alongside US special forces and come under the command of the American-led Joint Special Operations Command.
Part of the force will be around 15 snipers who will be part of a specialist unit tasked with killing Taliban commanders.
The move follows a series of recent attacks by the Taliban and members of the Islamic State terror group in Kabul and other parts of Afghanistan.
Over 100 civilians have already been killed in Taliban attacks this year and senior British intelligence sources believe attacks will become even more deadly.
Almost half of Afghanistan’s 407 districts are now under the control of the Taliban or other militant groups.
Much of Helmand, where many of the 454 British troops who died in Afghanistan were killed, is back under the control of militants.
Britain currently has around 500 regular infantry troops based in the Kabul area, and a special forces unit, including SAS, signallers, agent handlers and interrogators.
SAS troops are fighting almost every day in Afghanistan, usually in support of Afghan commandos meant to be leading the battle against the Taliban.
An SAS squad recently demolished an entire Taliban command.
One source told the Daily Star Sunday: “The JSOC had received intelligence that a Taliban High Value Target was located in a compound in Eastern Afghanistan, close to where an SAS unit was based.
“The mission was passed to the British troops in what was described as a kill-orcapture operation.
“Troops moved into an overwatch position but were spotted by a Taliban drone. The insurgents opened fire and the operation changed from a ‘capture’ to a ‘kill’.
“The SAS opened fire with vehicle-mounted grenade launchers which obliterated the compound in a matter of minutes.
“The attack was over within 15 minutes and when the SAS went into the compound they discovered the body of a local Taliban commander and around 15 other bodies.”
Two hours later the same SAS team were tasked with another mission.
The source added: “Part of the reason for boosting the number of SAS troops is to take some of the pressure off those already there.
“At the moment they carry out missions every day, sometimes several times a day.”