SAS squad to join almost 500 soldiers being sent to Afghanistan to tackle ISIS and resurgence of the Taliban
- The special forces troops and a further 490 soldiers are set to be deployed
- They will join the nearly 650 British troops already in the war-torn country
- A security source said the UK and US are waging a ‘less publicised’ war there
- Threat of ISIS and resurgent Taliban needed to be addressed, the source said
A new SAS squad will join almost 500 British soldiers being sent to Aghanistan to tackle ISIS and the resurgence of the Taliban in the war-torn country.
The special forces troops and another 490 soldiers will be deployed to join the nearly 650 soldiers already based there, The Mirror reports.
Special operation troops from the UK and the United States are waging a ‘less publicised war’ in Afghanistan to tackle the threats, according to a security source.
A new SAS squad will join almost 500 British soldiers being sent to Aghanistan to tackle ISIS and the resurgence of the Taliban. Pictured, British troops leave Camp Bastion
‘They are attacking the networks and those who influence it without attracting attention or making this a full-on jihad for the rebel fighters,’ the source told the newspaper.
The source added that the resurgent Taliban and the fact that ISIS is now ‘a significant threat’ needed to be addressed.
According to the Ministry of Defence, more than 450 British military personnel have died while serving in Afghanistan.
From October 2001 until the end of 2014, the total number of military deaths in the country is 456 – 405 of which were killed due to hostile action.
More than 450 British military personnel have died while serving in Afghanistan. Pictured, mortars fire off over the perimeter of Camp Bastion, Helmand province
Since British troops withdrew from their base in Camp Bastion in the Helmand province, army chiefs had been set on not drawing the Taliban into more conflict.
But NATO agreed that Britain and other members would supply troops to help train soldiers and police in Afghanistan.
It comes as ISIS claimed responsibility on Sunday for an attack on a midwife training centre in the eastern Afghan city of Jalalabad that killed three staff.
The ultra-hardline militant group, which cited no evidence for its claim in a statement issued via its Amaq news agency, said the attack on Saturday was carried out by two gunmen.
ISIS has a stronghold in the province of Nangarhar surrounding Jalalabad, bordering Pakistan.
Advertisement