The following is a list of known

Special Air Service The Special Air Service (SAS) is a special forces unit of the British Army. It was founded as a regiment in 1941 by David Stirling, and in 1950 it was reconstituted as a corps. The unit specialises in a number of roles including counter-terr ...

(SAS) operations.

Second World War Operations

The Special Air Service began life in July 1941, the brainchild of Lieutenant David Stirling of No. 8 (Guards) Commando. His idea was for small teams of parachute trained soldiers to operate behind enemy lines to gain intelligence, destroy enemy aircraft and attack their supply and reinforcement routes. The SAS carried out this role until the end of the war serving in a number of theatres and campaigns. By the end of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

on 8 May 1945, the SAS had suffered 330 casualties, but had killed or wounded 7,733 and captured 23,000 of their enemies.

North Africa

* Operation Squatter, 16/17 November 1941, unsuccessful raid on forward Axis airfields in North Africa, in support of

Operation Crusader Operation Crusader (18 November – 30 December 1941) was a military operation of the Western Desert campaign during World War II by the British Eighth Army (with Commonwealth, Indian and Allied contingents) against the Axis forces (German and ...

* Operation Green Room * Operation Bigamy, September 1942, diversionary raid on the Port of Benghazi in support of Operation Agreement 13/14 September 1942 * Operation Palmyra

Mediterranean

* '' Operation Albumen'', 7/8 June 1942, 4/5 July 1943, raids on Axis airfields in Crete. * '' Operation Chestnut'', July 1943, raids supporting the

Allied invasion of Sicily The Allied invasion of Sicily, also known as the Battle of Sicily and Operation Husky, was a major campaign of World War II in which the Allies of World War II, Allied forces invaded the island of Sicily in July 1943 and took it from the Axis p ...

(also known as the Battle of Sicily and Operation Husky) * ''

Operation Narcissus During World War II, Operation Narcissus was a raid by forty members of the Special Air Service on a lighthouse on the southeast coast of Sicily Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island ...

'', July 1943, capture of lighthouse in Sicily. * ''

Operation Avalanche Operation Avalanche was the codename for the Allied landings near the port of Salerno, executed on 9 September 1943, part of the Allied invasion of Italy during World War II. The Italians withdrew from the war the day before the invasion, but ...

'', Allied invasion of Italy. * '' Begonia/Jonquil'', October 1943, rescue of POWs in Italy. * '' Operation Candytuft'', October 1943, raid on railway targets in Italy. * ''Operation Maple Driftwood'' 1944, raid on railway targets in Italy. * '' Operation Baobab'', January 1944, raid on rail targets serving

Anzio Anzio (, also ; ) is a town and ''comune'' on region of Italy, about south of Rome. Well known for its seaside resorts, it is a fishing port and a departure point for ferries and hydroplanes to the Pontine Islands of Ponza, Palmarola, and Ve ...

, Italy. * ''Operation Galia'', December 1944 – February 1945, 34 men from 3 Squadron, 2 SAS parachuted into northern Italy, conducted operations alongside local resistance fighters.

Northwest Europe

The below operations were overseen by the brigade formation known as Special Air Service Troops: * Operations in support of

Operation Overlord Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allies of World War II, Allied operation that launched the successful liberation of German-occupied Western Front (World War II), Western Europe during World War II. The ope ...

, the Allied invasion of German-occupied France: ** Operation Titanic, 6 June 1944. ** Operation Nelson, June 1944, operation in the Orleans Gap. ** Operation Samwest, 6 June 1944, 4th SAS Battalion (Free French) dropped in Côtes-du-Nord (Brittany) to hinder German troop movements ** Operation Grog /Grog, 4 SAS in conjunction with Operations Dingson and Samwest 5 June 1944. ** Operation Dingson, 6 June 1944, 4th SAS Battalion (Free French) dropped to Morbihan (Brittany). ** Operation Bulbasket, 1st SAS mission, although partly successful operation 6 June 1944. ** Operation Cooney, 8 June 1944, 18 teams of the 4th SAS Battalion (58 Free French) dropped to Brittany to break communications ways. ** Operation Houndsworth, June 1944. ** Operation Lost, 23 June – July 1944, British and Free French operation in

Brittany Brittany ( ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the north-west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica in Roman Gaul. It became an Kingdom of Brittany, independent kingdom and then a Duch ...

. ** Operation Swan II, 1944. ** Operation Gain, 1944 (originally issued as Operation Cain but corrupted in transmission and the latter adopted). ** Operation Defoe, July 1944, patrols in

Normandy Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy. Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...

. ** Operation Barker, 1944, (originally issued as Operation Barkers as it is named for a famous London department store, but subsequently truncated). ** Operation Derry, 5/18 August 1944. ** Operation Gaff, July 1944, attempt to kill or capture

Erwin Rommel Johannes Erwin Eugen Rommel (; 15 November 1891 – 14 October 1944), popularly known as The Desert Fox (, ), was a German '' Generalfeldmarschall'' (field marshal) during World War II. He served in the ''Wehrmacht'' (armed forces) of ...

. ** Operation Hardy I, 27 July to 19 August 1944, Raids near

Dijon Dijon (, ; ; in Burgundian language (Oïl), Burgundian: ''Digion'') is a city in and the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Côte-d'Or Departments of France, department and of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté Regions of France, region in eas ...

, France. Amalgamated into Operation Wallace. ** Operation Wallace, 19 August to 19 September 1944, Raids near Dijon, France. ** Operation Kipling, 13 August to 26 September 1944, conducted ambushes on German forces in the

Orléans Orléans (,"Orleans"
(US) and Operation Dunhill, August 1944, raid in support of the breakout of American forces from the Normandy beachhead. ** Operation Loyton, August 1944, operations near the Belfort Gap. * Operation Pistol, September 1944, operations to blow railways south of

Metz Metz ( , , , then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle (river), Moselle and the Seille (Moselle), Seille rivers. Metz is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Moselle (department), Moselle Departments ...

and east of Dieuze. * Operation Moses, September 1944, Take over from the ''Bulbasket'' mission and aid the local French resistance forces. * Operation Haggard, (part of a series of randomly allocated cryptonyms derived from famous writers). * Operation Newton, August 1944, attacks on

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

rear areas. * Operation Noah II 16 August/13 September 1944, attack on retreating Germans in

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

. * Operation Canuck, January 1945 operation in Northern Italy. * Operation Cold Comfort, February 1945 failed SAS raid on railway targets near

Verona Verona ( ; ; or ) is a city on the Adige, River Adige in Veneto, Italy, with 255,131 inhabitants. It is one of the seven provincial capitals of the region, and is the largest city Comune, municipality in the region and in Northeast Italy, nor ...

. * Operation Brake, (part of a series of operations named after parts of aircraft). * Operation Tombola, March 1945, major operation around

Bologna Bologna ( , , ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in northern Italy. It is the List of cities in Italy, seventh most populous city in Italy, with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nationalities. Its M ...

. * Operation Archway, March 1945, reconnaissance in support of the crossing of the

Rhine The Rhine ( ) is one of the List of rivers of Europe, major rivers in Europe. The river begins in the Swiss canton of Graubünden in the southeastern Swiss Alps. It forms part of the Swiss-Liechtenstein border, then part of the Austria–Swit ...

. * Operation Amherst, In the night of 7 April 1945, more than 700 Free French SAS of the 3rd and 4th SAS were dropped in the Netherlands between

Hoogeveen Hoogeveen (; or '' 't Oveine'') is a municipality and a town in the Dutch province of Drenthe. Population centres Elim, Fluitenberg, Hoogeveen and Noordscheschut, which still have the canals which used to be throughout the town. Other v ...

and

Groningen Groningen ( , ; ; or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen (province), Groningen province in the Netherlands. Dubbed the "capital of the north", Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of ...

. * Operation Keystone, April 1945, operation near

IJsselmeer The IJsselmeer (; , ), also known as Lake IJssel in English, is a closed-off freshwater lake in the central Netherlands bordering the Provinces of the Netherlands, provinces of Flevoland, North Holland and Friesland. It covers an area of with a ...

. * Operation Howard, April–May 1945, B and C Squadrons of 1 SAS, provided reconnaissance ahead of the Canadian 4th Armoured Division's drive towards northern Germany.

Known Postwar Operations

Immediately following the conclusion of the Second World War the SAS was disbanded; however the continued necessity for a commando unit was recognised and they were reformed again in 1947. In 1950 an SAS squadron trained to be deployed in the

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

, however they were eventually transferred to Southeast Asia to serve in the ongoing

Malayan Emergency The Malayan Emergency, also known as the Anti–British National Liberation War, was a guerrilla warfare, guerrilla war fought in Federation of Malaya, Malaya between communist pro-independence fighters of the Malayan National Liberation Arm ...

. The SAS continued to serve successfully in a variety of theatres and roles throughout the Cold War, and following the

September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, also known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, crashing the first two into ...

the SAS deployed in the 2001 invasion of Afghanistan, it has continued its diverse selection of roles to the present day.

1950s–1970s – the Cold War

* ''Operation Helsby'', February 1952, series of deep penetration operations in Malaya. * ''Operation Hive'' Jebel Akhdar War * In 1958 two squadrons of 22 SAS were deployed to Oman to put down a rebellion. In January 1959 the SAS carried out a successful assault on a large guerrilla force on the Sabrina plateau.de B. Taillon, p. 30 Indonesian Confrontation * '' Operation Claret'', June 1964 – 1966, series of high risk cross-border patrols into

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

Aden Emergency The Aden Emergency, also known as the 14 October Revolution () or as the Radfan Uprising, was an armed rebellion by the National Liberation Front (South Yemen), National Liberation Front (NLF) and the Front for the Liberation of Occupied South ...

* ''"Keeni-Meeni Operations"'', 10 December 1963 – 1967, the search for Yemeni-trained assassins.

Lufthansa Flight 181 Lufthansa Flight 181, a Boeing 737-230C jet airliner (reg. D-ABCE) named ''Landshut'', was hijacked on 13 October 1977 by four militants of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine while en route from Palma de Mallorca, Spain, to Fr ...

* '' Operation Feuerzauber (Fire Magic)'', 18 October 1977, supplemented German GSG9 commando operation.

1980s–1990s

Iranian Embassy Siege The Iranian Embassy siege took place from 30 April to 5 May 1980, after a group of six armed men stormed the Embassy of Iran, London, Iranian embassy on Prince's Gate in South Kensington, London. The gunmen, Iranian Arabs campaigning for th ...

* '' Operation Nimrod'', 5 May 1980, successful rescue of hostages from the Iranian embassy in London.

Falklands War The Falklands War () was a ten-week undeclared war between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982 over two British Overseas Territories, British dependent territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland Islands and Falkland Islands Dependenci ...

* '' Operation Corporate'', 2 April–14 June 1982, the overall British operation to recover the Falkland Islands. The SAS alongside the SBS carried out numerous reconnaissance missions and diversionary raids in East and West Falkland to support the campaign. SAS forward observers also directed British artillery and aircraft. ** '' Operation Paraquet'', 25 April 1982, successful recapture of the Island of

South Georgia South Georgia is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic Ocean that is part of the British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. It lies around east of the Falkland Islands. ...

. ** '' Pebble Island Raid'', 14–15 May 1982, successful attack on Argentinian-held airbase in

West Falkland West Falkland () is the second largest of the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic. It is a hilly island, separated from East Falkland by the Falkland Sound. Its area is , 37% of the total area of the islands. Its coastline is long. Popula ...

. ** ''

Operation Sutton Operation Sutton was the code name for the British landings on the shores of San Carlos Water, at Ajax Bay and Port San Carlos, near San Carlos on East Falkland. Landings During the night, 3 Commando Brigade along with attached units of ...

'', 21–23 May 1982, landings in

East Falkland East Falkland () is the largest island of the Falkland Islands, Falklands in the South Atlantic, having an area of or 54% of the total area of the Falklands. The island consists of two main land masses, of which the more southerly is known as L ...

. ** '' Operation Mikado'', May 1982, abortive operation to destroy the three remaining Exocet missiles in Argentine possession. ** '' Mount Kent'', 29–31 May 1982, D Squadron of 22 SAS seized and then held the vital Mount Kent high ground for three nights against repeated Argentine assaults until being reinforced by 42 Commando.

The Troubles The Troubles () were an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted for about 30 years from the late 1960s to 1998. Also known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict, it began in the late 1960s and is usually deemed t ...

* ''

Operation Banner Operation Banner was the operational name for the British Armed Forces' operation in Northern Ireland from 1969 to 2007, as part of the Troubles. It was the longest continuous deployment in British military history. The British Army was initia ...

'', 1969–1997, deployment of the British army in Northern Ireland, the official SAS deployment from 1976. See also: Timeline of British undercover forces in Operation Banner ** ''Forkhill'', 1976, senior IRA member Peter Cleary killed in struggle after capture by SAS. ** ''Coagh'', 1978. ** ''Maghera'', 1978, IRA members and an SAS unit exchange fire near

Maghera Maghera ( ; ) is a small town at the foot of the Glenshane Pass in Northern Ireland. Its population was 4,235 in the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 census. Formerly in the Barony (Ireland), barony of Loughinsholin within the historic County ...

, County Londonderry. One British soldier shot dead. A prominent IRA member, Francis Hughes, was wounded and captured following the shootout. ** ''Derry'', 1978, ambush of IRA member in Derry. ** ''Belfast'', 1978, ambush of three IRA members, one civilian also killed ** ''Dunloy'', 1978, ambush of teenage civilian mistaken for IRA member. ** ''M60 gang'', 1980, eight IRA members arrested, SAS Captain Herbert Westmacott killed. ** ''

Kesh ambush On 2 December 1984, a four-man Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) active service unit was ambushed by a British Army Special Air Service team while attempting to bomb a Royal Ulster Constabulary patrol who they had lured to Drumrush Lodg ...

'', 1984, ambush of four IRA members, two IRA members and one SAS soldier killed. ** '' Strabane ambush'', 1985, ambush of three IRA members ** ''Roslea'', 1986, ambush of two IRA members. ** '' Operation Judy'', 1987, ambush of eight IRA members. ** '' Flavious'', 1988, operation against three IRA members in Gibraltar. ** ''Belfast'', 1988, ambush of IRA unit as it attacked an RUC Station in Belfast, passing taxi driver killed. ** '' Drumnakilly'', 1988, military confrontation that took place at Drumnakilly in County Tyrone. ** ''Loughgall'', 1990, ambush of two IRA members. ** ''Strabane'', 1990, ambush of INLA members, one killed. ** '' Coagh'', 1991, ambush of three IRA members. ** '' Clonoe'', 1992, ambush of six IRA members. ** ''Coalisland'', 1997, one alleged IRA member shot and wounded after a grenade attack on RUC barracks. ** '' South Armagh Sniper'', 1997, the SAS captured one of two IRA sniper teams employing .50 BMG calibre

Barrett M82 The Barrett M82 (standardized by the U.S. military as the M107) is a Recoil operation, recoil-operated, semi-automatic rifle, semi-automatic anti-materiel rifle developed by Barrett Firearms Manufacturing and produced in the United States. Als ...

and M90 rifles.

Persian Gulf War , combatant2 = , commander1 = , commander2 = , strength1 = Over 950,000 soldiers3,113 tanks1,800 aircraft2,200 artillery systems , page = https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-PEMD-96- ...

* '' Operation Granby'', January 1991, the deployment British forces during the Persian Gulf War. The SAS adopted its classic deep penetration role behind enemy lines, being deployed in numerous reconnaissance missions and raids on Scud launchers and communications sites. They also acted as observers for Coalition artillery and aircraft. ** ''Bravo Two Zero'', the task was to find and destroy Iraqi Scud missile launchers along a 250 km stretch of the MSR. The patrol was compromised which lead to contact with Iraqi Forces, eventually the 8 man SAS patrol withdrew and began trying to escape and evade the Iraqi forces. Unfortunately 3 members died, 4 were captured and 1 successfully managed to escape alone. ** ''Operation Victor Two'', February 1991, a successful assault on a Scud communications installation.

Bosnian War The Bosnian War ( / Рат у Босни и Херцеговини) was an international armed conflict that took place in Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995. Following several earlier violent incid ...

* ''

Operation Joint Endeavor The Implementation Force (IFOR) was a NATO-led multinational peace enforcement force in Bosnia and Herzegovina under a one-year mandate from 20 December 1995 to 20 December 1996 under the codename ''Operation Joint Endeavour''. Background In ...

'', 16 July 1992 – 2 December 2004, NATO intervention in Bosnia and Herzegovina. ** ''Operation Tango'', 10 July 1997, the arrest of two suspected war criminals in

Prijedor Prijedor ( sr-cyrl, Приједор, ) is a city in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina. As of 2013, it had a population of 80,916 inhabitants within its administrative limits. Prijedor is situated in the northwestern part of the Bosanska ...

. The men were wanted for involvement in the ethnic cleansing of Bosnian Muslims. ** ''Operation Ensue'', November 1998, the arrest of a Serbian War criminal. Japanese embassy hostage crisis * '' Operation Chavín de Huántar'', 22 April 1997, supplemented

Peruvian Army The Peruvian Army (, abbreviated EP) is the branch of the Peruvian Armed Forces tasked with safeguarding the independence, sovereignty and integrity of national territory on land through military force. Additional missions include assistance in s ...

operation. Sierra Leone Civil War * '' Operation Palliser'', May 2000, deployment of British forces in

Sierra Leone Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered to the southeast by Liberia and by Guinea to the north. Sierra Leone's land area is . It has a tropical climate and envi ...

. ** '' Operation Barras'', 10 September 2000, joint SAS/SBS rescue of 6 captured members of the Royal Irish Regiment in Sierra Leone.

2000s–2010s – The War on Terror

War in Afghanistan War in Afghanistan, Afghan war, or Afghan civil war may refer to: *Conquest of Afghanistan by Alexander the Great (330 BC – 327 BC), the conquest of Afghanistan by the Macedonian Empire * Muslim conquests of Afghanistan, a series of campaigns in ...

* ''

Operation Enduring Freedom Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) was the official name used by the U.S. government for both the first stage (2001–2014) of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) and the larger-scale Global War on Terrorism. On 7 October 2001, in response ...

– Afghanistan '', 7 October 2001 – 28 December 2014, NATO deployment in Afghanistan. The SAS were involved in the initial invasion and remained active in the conflict. ** ''Operation Determine'', October 2001, A and G squadron of 22 SAS, reinforced by members of the Territorial SAS, conducted reconnaissance tasks in north west Afghanistan none of which resulted in enemy contact. ** '' Operation Trent'', November 2001, A and G squadron of 22 SAS, attacked an

Al Qaeda , image = Flag of Jihad.svg , caption = Jihadist flag, Flag used by various al-Qaeda factions , founder = Osama bin Laden{{Assassinated, Killing of Osama bin Laden , leaders = {{Plainlist, * Osama bin Lad ...

opium plant and command centre 250 miles southwest of

Kandahar Kandahar is a city in Afghanistan, located in the south of the country on Arghandab River, at an elevation of . It is Afghanistan's second largest city, after Kabul, with a population of about 614,118 in 2015. It is the capital of Kandahar Pro ...

, the operation was a success, but 4 SAS soldiers were wounded. ** '' Operation Moshtarak'', March 2010, as part of a U.S.-led operation in

Helmand Province Helmand (Pashto language, Pashto/Dari language, Dari: ; ), also known as Hillmand, in ancient times, as Hermand and Hethumand, is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, in the south of the country. It is the largest province by area, covering ...

, operating with Navy SEALs striking against and capturing

Taliban , leader1_title = Supreme Leader of Afghanistan, Supreme leaders , leader1_name = {{indented plainlist, * Mullah Omar{{Natural Causes{{nbsp(1994–2013) * Akhtar Mansour{{Assassinated (2015–2016) * Hibatullah Akhundzada (2016–present) ...

leaders. ** ''Operation Jubilee'', 28 May 2012, a team from the SAS and DEVGRU conducted Operation Jubilee to rescue 4 aid workers (1 British, 1 Kenyan, 2 Afghan) captured by bandits and held in two separate caves in the Koh-e-Laram forest,

Badakhshan Province Badakhshan Province (Dari: بدخشان) is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in the northeastern part of the country. It is bordered by Tajikistan's Gorno-Badakhshan in the north and the Pakistani regions of Lower and Upper C ...

. The SAS and SEALs arrived by Blackhawk helicopters from the 160th SOAR at an LZ 2 km away and travelled on foot to the caves where the hostages were being held. The SAS and SEALs stormed the caves simultaneously – DEVGRU killed 7 bandits but didn't find any hostages, the SAS killed 4 bandits and recovered all 4 hostages, there were no casualties to hostages or rescuers. * ''

Operation Toral Operation Toral was the codename for the United Kingdom, British presence within Afghanistan post-2014 as part of NATO's Resolute Support Mission. UK forces had two major tasks: training and mentoring Afghan Forces, and providing force protecti ...

'', in December 2015, it was reported that 30 members of the SAS alongside 60 US special forces operators joined the Afghan Army in the Battle to retake parts of

Sangin Sangin () is a town in Helmand province of Afghanistan, with a population of approximately 20,000 people. It is located on in the valley of the Helmand River at altitude, to the north-east of Lashkargah. Sangin is notorious as one of the cent ...

from Taliban insurgents.

Iraq War The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with 2003 invasion of Iraq, the invasion by a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition, which ...

* ''

Operation Telic Operation Telic (Op TELIC) was the codename under which all of the United Kingdom's military operations in Iraq were conducted between the start of the invasion of Iraq on 19 March 2003 and the withdrawal of the last remaining British forces on ...

'', 19 March 2003 – 30 April 2009, the British deployment in Iraq. The SAS were involved in the 2003 Invasion of Iraq (they were designated as Task Force 14Neville, Leigh, ''The SAS 1983–2014 (Elite)'', Osprey Publishing, 2016, , p. 34,) and they were involved in later operations during the occupation. ** ''Operation Row'', 17 March 2003, was Britain's contribution to the taking of large parts of western and northern Iraq, this would pin down several Iraqi divisions stopping Saddam Hussein reinforcing his efforts against the main invasion. B and D squadron infiltrated Iraq (B by ground vehicles and D by air), a few members of D Squadron were deployed to southern Iraq to support the coalition advance on Basra, the team conducted forward route reconnaissance and infiltrated the city and brought in strikes on the Ba'athist loyalist leadership. After capturing H-2 and H-3 air bases, the British and Australian SAS teams moved to their next objective – the intersection of the two main highways linking Baghdad with Syria and Jordan, securing Highway 2 and 4. The SAS lost not a single soldier during the taking of Iraq, although two members of D Squadron had died in a training accident before the invasion. Later the SAS operated out of Baghdad International Airport; the force accompanied MI6 officers into

Baghdad Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the central part of the country. With a population exceeding 7 million, it ranks among the List of largest cities in the A ...

so they could carry out missions with security, by early May, B and D Squadrons were replaced roughly 30 members of G Squadron, who still had about a dozen members deployed in Afghanistan. *** ''Assault on suspected WMD facility in al-Qa'im'', 17 March 2003, two days before the Coalition invasion, the majority of B & D Squadrons 22 SAS were tasked to assault a suspected chemical munitions site at a water-treatment plant in the city of al-Qa'im. It's been reported that the site might have been a SCUD launch site or a depot, an SAS officer was quoted by author Mark Nicol as saying "it was a location where missiles had been fired at Israel in the past, and a site of strategic importance for WMD material." D squadron, along with their 'Pinkie' DPVs (the last time the vehicles were used before their retirement), was flown 120 km into Iraq in 6 CH-47s in 3 waves. Following their insertion, D squadron established a patrol laager at a remote location outside al-Qa'im and awaited the arrival of B squadron, who had driven overland from Jordan. Their approach to the plant was compromised, and a firefight developed which ended in one 'pinkie' having to be abandoned and destroyed, repeated attempts to assault the plant were halted, leading the SAS calling in an air strike which finally silenced the opposition. *** ''Seizure of H-2 and H-3 Air Bases'', 18 and 25 March 2003, after infiltrating Iraq at full strength, a combined force consisting of B and D squadron of British Special Air Service and 1 squadron of Australian Special Air Service Regiment set up observation posts around H-2 and H-3 air base and called in airstrikes that defeated the Iraqi defenders, the combined British and Australian Squadrons took H-2 virtually unopposed. H-3 airbase was defended by a battalion of Iraqi troops and significant numbers of mobile and static anti aircraft guns, the British and Australian SAS were joined by members of Delta Force and on 24 March by Green Beret ODAs from Bravo company, 1st Battalion 5th SFG, together they called in constant 24 hours of precision airstrikes on H-3 forcing the Iraqi defenders to flee, the Coalition SOF secured H-3 and seized around 80 assorted anti aircraft cannon guns and an enormous amount of ammunition. A company of Rangers and Royal Marines from 45 Commando flew from Jordan to reinforce the air bases. The British SAS then headed eastwards to search for and destroy Iraqi SCUD missile launchers – which Saddam might again use to attack Israel.British Special Forces – Gulf War 2
/ref> ** ''Capture of Lieutenant-General Abid Hamid Mahmud al-Tikriti'', On the night of 16 June 2003, members of G Squadron SAS and B squadron Delta Force captured Saddam Hussein's personal secretary who was ranked fourth most important HVT (High Valued Target) in

Tikrit Tikrit ( ) is a city in Iraq, located northwest of Baghdad and southeast of Mosul on the Tigris River. It is the administrative center of the Saladin Governorate. In 2012, it had a population of approximately 160,000. Originally created as a f ...

, where British intelligence had traced him to. He was captured in a joint helicopter and ground assault without resistance or casualties and was considered a highly successful operation. ** '' Operation Jocal'', on 24 June 2003, six Royal Military Police soldiers from 156 Provost Company of the

16 Air Assault Brigade 16 Air Assault Brigade Combat Team, known simply as 16 Air Assault Brigade from 1999–2021, is a formation of the British Army predominantly based in Colchester, Essex. It makes up the Air Assault Task Force, a battlegroup held at high readines ...

were assaulted and killed by an Iraqi mob numbering several hundred at a police station in Majar al-Kabir. The town was known for banditry and lawlessness, the people there insisted that they had liberated themselves from Ba'athist party occupation and did not want coalition troops there, British tactics in sweeping for weapons angered the population. Some of the soldiers were shot and others beaten to death. A couple of days after the incident, members of the G squadron arrived in the town to conduct Operation Jocal to find those responsible, they then gathered intelligence on who was responsible and withdrew from the town under fire by armed Iraqis, however British military commanders discouraged the SAS from going back in and arresting those responsible. ** ''Operation Paradoxical'', was authorised in the summer of 2003 and lasted until winter of that year when the SAS were placed under the command of the Chief of Joint Operations in Northwood. The broadly drawn operation was for the SAS to hunt down threats to the

coalition A coalition is formed when two or more people or groups temporarily work together to achieve a common goal. The term is most frequently used to denote a formation of power in political, military, or economic spaces. Formation According to ''A G ...

, it also gave them greater latitude to work with US "classified" forces prosecuting the best available intelligence. They are known to have operated covertly in

Ramadi Ramadi ( ''Ar-Ramādī''; also formerly rendered as ''Rumadiyah'' or ''Rumadiya'') is a city in central Iraq, about west of Baghdad and west of Fallujah. It is the capital and largest city of Al Anbar Governorate which shares borders with Syri ...

and

Fallujah Fallujah ( ) is a city in Al Anbar Governorate, Iraq. Situated on the Euphrates, Euphrates River, it is located roughly to the west of the capital city of Baghdad and from the neighboring city of Ramadi. The city is located in the region ...

in October and November 2003 and other more remote parts of Al Anbar Province. In A Squadrons four-month deployment in 2003 they carried out 85 missions. one mission, in late November, soldiers from A Squadron SAS launched a heliborne assault on a remote farm in Al Anbar province, after they came under fire from insurgents inside, air support was called in and hit the farm, after it was cleared; seven dead insurgents were found whom American intelligence believed were foreign fighters. *** '' Operation Abalone'', on the night of 31 October 2003, two dozen members of A Squadron (G Squadron left Iraq in August) with Delta Force, supported by a platoon of US M2A3 Bradley IFV's manning an outer cordon, assaulted four compounds/dwellings on the outskirts of Ramadi where US intelligence had tracked a Sudanese jihadist who was facilitating Islamist militants into Iraq. The SAS were tasked with assaulting 2 of the dwellings whilst Delta Force assaulted another 2 dwellings; both of Delta's and one of the SAS's target buildings were cleared without incident, but as the SAS assaulted their final dwelling the assault team were wounded by a hail of fire and an

RPG-7 The RPG-7 is a portable, reusable, unguided, shoulder-launched, anti-tank, rocket launcher. The RPG-7 and its predecessor, the RPG-2, were designed by the Soviet Union, and are now manufactured by the Russian company Bazalt. The weapon has t ...

rocket, they returned fire and withdrew from the building. After a head count, it was realised that 2 soldiers were still in the building (one had been killed and another, an SAS Corporal, was wounded), A squadron's CO and several soldiers moved to the roof of another building from which they could fire onto the target building, whilst several soldiers re-entered the building to find the 2 missing personnel. After finding the body of one soldier and recovering the wounded Corporal under fire, Bradley IFV's 'pummelled' the dwelling with its armaments and then Delta force assaulted it, killing several terrorists; whilst the SAS assaulted another house that they were receiving fire from, killing 1 and capturing 4 foreign insurgents. The operation was brought to a successful conclusion, the more seriously wounded SAS soldiers were medevaced and as the SAS and Delta Force collapsed back to their cordon, they received small arms fire from the neighbourhood. Although they did not find the Sudanese jihadist, he's believed to have been killed with a dozen other insurgents; the soldier killed – Corporal Ian Plank, who had been attached to A Squadron from the SBS, was the first UKSF combat fatality in the Iraq War. The Operation turned up actual proof of an internationalist jihadist movement. ** 2005 Royal Air Force Hercules shootdown, 2005, Iraqi insurgents shot down an RAF Hercules flying out of Baghdad in January 2005, in response to this G Squadron of the 22nd SAS Regiment immediately began hunting down the insurgents responsible, after a long intelligence operation that led to operations later in that year the SAS captured some of those responsible. ** '' Task Force Black/Knight'', 2004–2008, the new UKSF mission and deployment was codenamed Operation Crichton, a title that would remain in use until 2009 and the new UKSF codename for them in Iraq was known as "Task Force Black". An SAS team worked jointly with American

Delta Force The 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment–Delta (1st SFOD-D), also known as Delta Force, Combat Applications Group (CAG), or within Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) as Task Force Green, is a Special operation forces, special operat ...

in a secret war against

and other insurgents based in Iraq. The Task Force size was roughly around 150 personnel and their "Black Ops" operation claimed to have cleared 3,500 insurgents off the streets with "several hundred" of them believed to have been killed. 6 SAS soldiers had also been killed and 30 injured in the Operation.

General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

Stanley McChrystal Stanley Allen McChrystal (born 14 August 1954) is a retired United States Army General (United States), general best known for his command of Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) from 2003 to 2008 during which his organization was credited w ...

, the American commander of NATO forces in Iraq, commented that A Squadron 22 SAS Regiment, when part of Task Force Black and Task Force Knight, carried out 175 combat missions during a six-month tour of duty. In the early months of 2004, the SAS used their capabilities in reconnaissance and surveillance to watch suspects and develop/gather intelligence for the coalition intelligence services. The SAS operational process in Baghdad was known as find-fix-finish, working backwards with the 'finish' part being a raid to take down a suspect, 'fix' involved pinpointing a time and place which a target can be taken and 'find' would be finding the insurgent/terrorist. In February 2004, they almost captured/killed

Abu Musab al-Zarqawi Abu Musab al-Zarqawi (; , "Father of Musab, of Zarqa"; October 30, 1966 – June 7, 2006), born Ahmad Fadeel Nazal al-Khalayleh (), was a Jordanian militant jihadist who ran a training camp in Afghanistan. He became known after going to Iraq a ...

the leader of AQI when they assaulted a house in Baghdad; after forcing entry they withdrew when they discovered a booby trap, they still managed to overwhelm the occupants of the building and captured intelligence revealed Zarqawi had left a short time before. By autumn 2004, Task Force Black were operating in a 'semi detached way'; due to senior British officials taking issues with mistreatment and poor quality cells at JSOCs detention facility at Balad (handing over to regular US Army units rather than sending them to Balad), the deportation of detainees captured in Operation Aston etc. that JSOC had no other choice but to unconsciously end UK-US cooperation in special operations in Iraq – given the importance of rapidly exploiting intelligence. On 11 April 2005, G squadron, SAS captured Fadhil Ibrahim al-Mashhadani, one of Saddam Hussein's former apparatchik after assaulting a farm north-east of Baghdad that intelligence had traced him to. At about the same time, in an attempt to find the kidnappers of a foreigner, the SAS also captured a former senior Ba'athist party official and another man, they didn't find the hostage but the men were definitely connected to the kidnappers, however they were later released when US intelligence revealed that they were CIA assets. Due to the Basra Prison incident in which the name of the UKSF forces in Iraq 'Task force Black' was leaked to the press; the force was renamed 'Task force Knight' During the Spring and summer of 2007 the SAS suffered several men seriously wounded as it extended its operations into

Sadr City Sadr City (), formerly known as Al-Thawra () and Saddam City (), is a suburb district of the city of Baghdad, Iraq. It was built in 1959 by Prime Minister of Iraq, Prime Minister Abd al-Karim Qasim, Abdul Karim Qassim and named Al-Rafidain Distric ...

. With Al-Qaeda surging in April 2007, Delta Force and Task Force Knight (in particular A squadron 22nd SAS) began conducting operations in Baghdad nearly every night. They also focused operations on takedowns of Shia and Sunni militants as well as Al-Qaeda bomb makers in May and June 2007, between May and November A squadron arrested 338 people and killed 88.Neville, Leigh, '' Special Forces in the War on Terror (General Military)'', Osprey Publishing, 2015 , p. 200 *** ''Operation Aston'', February 2004, personnel from B Squadron of 22 SAS, assaulted a house in southern Baghdad that MI6 intelligence showed was part of a 'jihadist pipeline' from Iran to Iraq that American and British intelligence agencies were tracking suspects on and these suspects fell in with a jihadist group. Just before the SAS assaulted the house they were compromised by locals and a firefight with the jihadist ensued, the SAS pressed on and assaulted the house, as soon as they broke in a jihadist fired his AK-47 lightly wounding one SAS

Sergeant Sergeant (Sgt) is a Military rank, rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and in other units that draw their heritage f ...

. After a short-range firefight, the building was secured, killing two and capturing two foreign jihadist, the two captured jihadist were from LeT. Both terrorists captured were from/originated from Pakistan and were flown out of Iraq for interrogation at the US facility at Bagram Air base, this strained relations between the US and UK, (unknown to the British, there were no interrogators in Iraq that had the linguistic skills to screen the detainees) this in combination with the

Abu Ghraib torture and prisoner abuse During the early stages of the Iraq War, members of the United States Army and the Central Intelligence Agency were accused of a series of human rights violations and war crimes against detainees in the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq. These abuses ...

and the media reports about the First Battle of Fallujah, the government decided that they could no longer hand over detainees to JSOC if they were going to be flown elsewhere. *** ''

Operation Marlborough Operation Marlborough was the code name of a mission carried out by M Squadron Special Boat Service. The mission involved an SBS team from Task Force Black, in Baghdad, Baghdad, Iraq, on 23 July 2005 with support from the Special Air Service an ...

'', 23 July 2005, members of G squadron 22 SAS, supported the SBS operation that killed 3 AQI would-be suicide bombers in Baghdad. *** '' Christian Peacemaker hostage crisis'', B squadron 22 SAS (along with a small team from JTF2) led an operation as part of Task Force Black to free British and Canadian peace activists in Baghdad who had been taken hostage in late November 2005 (one hostage was eventually murdered). The release effort was part of Operation Lightwater: the intelligence agencies and SAS initiated the operation with the aim of finding the hostages: which involved raiding houses and arresting suspects almost every day and night. The total number of building raids amounted to 50, (44 of them being conducted British special forces which in total detained 47 people). In the early hours of 23 March 2006, as part of Operation Lightwater, the SAS carried out Operation Ney 3: their target was a house in Mishahda, 20 miles northwest of Baghdad, they found two men they were looking for that revealed the location of the hostages in western Baghdad. At 0800, the SAS stormed the house, finding the insurgents had abandoned the building the SAS rescued the hostages.Neville, Leigh, '' Special Forces in the War on Terror (General Military)'', Osprey Publishing, 2015 , p. 212 ** ''Operation Traction'', mid-January 2006, was the SAS upgrade into JSOC, they deployed TGHG (Task Group Headquarters Group): this included senior officers and other senior members of 22 SAS - to JSOCs base at Balad. This was the first deployment of TGHG to Iraq since the invasion of Iraq in 2003, the upgrade now meant that the SAS were "joined at the hip" with JSOC and it gave the SAS a pivotal role against Sunni militant groups, particularly AQI. *** '' Operation Larchwood 4'', 16 April 2006, that night, soldiers from B squadron and a platoon of British paratroopers from the SFSG/Task Force Maroon launched the operation that was aimed at mid-level Al-Qaeda leadership, it had been developed out of raids carried out on previous days by Delta Force and the SAS against AQI in the outskirts of Baghdad, killing at least 7 insurgents. B squadron inserted by helicopter and assaulted the terrorist-occupied farmhouse on the outskirts of

Yusufiyah Yusufiyah (; also transliterated as Yusafiyah, Youssifiyah or Yusifiyah, occasionally prefixed with Al-) is a regional township in the Baghdad Governorate of Iraq. Background Yusufiyah is named after Yūsuf (Joseph). It is about south of Baghd ...

whilst the paratroopers set up a cordon, soon after entering the house a firefight broke out and 3 SAS soldiers were wounded by gunfire, the SAS regrouped and continued to assault the house but two more were wounded. However the SAS overcame this setback and took the house and the combined force killed a total of 5 terrorists and captured five men and several women and children, it also gathered valuable intelligence on Al Qaeda in Iraq including its leader. *** On 15 April 2007, G squadron of the SAS assaulted a house near Taji containing a suspected Sunni insurgent leader in the early hours, whilst inserting by helicopter two RAF Pumas collided, two SAS personnel and an RAF crewman were thrown from one of the Puma and crushed by it as it rolled onto its side, two died but one SAS soldier was saved, several others were wounded by flying debris. *** On 6 September 2007, a 30-man SAS team from A squadron, supported by paras from Task Force Maroon part of Task Force Black assaulted a house in Baghdad that intel had pinpointed as the location of a senior Al-Qaeda figure and/or a Sunni group. The mission was a success with at least one insurgent killed, but it cost the life of one of the SAS servicemen; Sergeant Eddie Collins. *** On 20 November 2007, A squadron, backed up by paras, attacked Sunni insurgents in

Salman Pak Salman Pak (, ) is a city located approximately south of Baghdad near a peninsula formed by a broad eastward bend of the Tigris. It is named after Salman the Persian, a companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad who is believed to be buried i ...

from RAF Puma and Lynx helicopters, after engaging them from the air one Puma began inserting its SAS team when it crashed which trapped and killed two SAS men. *** In early 2008, B Squadron of TF Knight performed a nighttime parachute assault into Anbar province from a C-130, their target was a man counterfeiting dollar bills for Al-Qaeda, after landing they assaulted the targets house and "got" their target. *** On 26 March 2008, B Squadron were once again called upon to hit a terrorist bomb makers house in

at 0200, after trying to call him out and sending in a Combat Assault dog – receiving no response, they stormed the house, they received a hail of fire and one SAS soldier, Sergeant Nick Brown was killed and four more SAS personnel were wounded. An orbiting AC-130 fired on the house as the assault team withdrew from the house, grenades were thrown at them and gunmen from another building joined in the firefight until a circling helicopter destroyed most of the building with its rockets. With Helicopter support, they pressed on and the SAS chased their 2 targets into another house who used civilians as hostages who were then accidentally killed beside the terrorists by the AC-130. ** ''Operation Hathor'', The SAS maintained a detachment in southern Iraq called Operation Hathor: that consisted of a handful of personnel based with British forces in Basra. Their primary role was to protect SIS (MI6) officers and to conduct surveillance and reconnaissance for the British Battle Group. *** '' Basra prison incident'', 2005, two undercover Special Air Service soldiers who were operating in Basra as part of Operation Hathor were captured by Iraqi police after it was alleged they opened fire on a police check point. The British army used tanks to encircle the prison they were being held at and after nightfall members of A Squadron SAS stormed the house the prisoners had been moved to and rescued the captured operatives. According to the governor of Basra province, Mohammed al-Waili, the British had used "more than ten tanks backed by helicopters" to carry out the raid. After the British army left, around 150 other prisoners fled the prison. On 25 December 2006, the SAS again raided the Al Jameat station, killing seven gunmen and freeing 127 prisoners being held by Shia militias there. They then blew up the building. A British Army spokesperson stated that the 127 prisoners freed had been tortured and that there were fears that they were about to be executed. *** On 17 July 2006, Hathor detachment spearheaded the mission that resulted in British troops from the Brigade Reconnaissance Company of 20th Armoured Brigade capturing Sajjad Badr Adal Sayeed, the leader of the

Mahdi Army The Mahdi Army () was an Iraqi Shia militia created by Muqtada al-Sadr in June 2003 and disbanded in 2008. The Mahdi Army rose to international prominence on April 4, 2004, when it spearheaded the first major armed confrontation against the ...

, in a raid on a building in Basra. Mahdi Army militia soon engaged the strike force cordon with assault rifles and RPGs, the engagement lasted for 2 hours resulting in 1 British soldier killed and at least 4 militiaman killed. *** In September 2006, Hathor detachment carried out a raid on the residence of an important member of Al Qaeda international network called Omar al-Faruq in Basra, following an intelligence tip off. Faruq opened fire on the assault force and was killed, the operation was an intelligence coup and underlined the value of the detachment. *** In November 2006, during an assault on a building block occupied by insurgents in Basra by 'Hathor' detachment, Sergeant Jon Hollingsworth of D squadron who had been detached to 'Hathor' was leading his team when he was shot and he died of his wound not long afterwards. *** ''Operation Dover'', December 2006, a team from G Squadron stormed a building in northern Basra and apprehended an insurgent cell and its leader whom were responsible for carrying a bomb attack on the Shatt al-Arab waterway in Basra in November that killed 2 soldiers and 2 Royal Marines, video of the attack and other intelligence was gathered. ** ''Operation Traction 2'', early 2007, was part of a drive by JSOC to target Shia militants particularly in the southern Iraq. G squadron was deployed to Basra in mid-March 2007 and 'Hathor detachment was upgraded and renamed 'Task Force Spartan'. They immediately began gathering intelligence and on the night of 20 March 2007 G squadron raided a house in Basra containing Qais Khazali; a senior Shia militant and an Iranian proxy, and Laith al-Khazali and Ali Mussa Daqduq, a

Hezbollah Hezbollah ( ; , , ) is a Lebanese Shia Islamist political party and paramilitary group. Hezbollah's paramilitary wing is the Jihad Council, and its political wing is the Loyalty to the Resistance Bloc party in the Lebanese Parliament. I ...

advisor, without casualties. The raid turned out to be most significant raid conducted by British forces in Iraq, gaining valuable intelligence on Iranian involvement in the Shia insurgency, including the Karbala raid. 'Task Force Spartan' was disbanded when British forces pulled out of Basra in 2007.

Operation Enduring Freedom – Horn of Africa Operation Enduring Freedom has had related activities in the Horn of Africa. United States counter-terrorist activities in the region have included advisers, supplies, and other forms of non-combat support, but more prominently have included dro ...

* Members of the SAS and the SRR were deployed to

Djibouti Djibouti, officially the Republic of Djibouti, is a country in the Horn of Africa, bordered by Somalia to the south, Ethiopia to the southwest, Eritrea in the north, and the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden to the east. The country has an area ...

as part of Combined Joint Task Force – Horn of Africa to conducting operations against Islamist terrorists in

Somalia Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia, is the easternmost country in continental Africa. The country is located in the Horn of Africa and is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the northwest, Kenya to the southwest, th ...

; they have carrying out surveillance missions of Britons believed to be travelling to Somalia for terrorist training and they are also working with US counterparts observing and "targeting" local terror suspects. They have also been carrying out a similar role in

Yemen Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen, is a country in West Asia. Located in South Arabia, southern Arabia, it borders Saudi Arabia to Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, the north, Oman to Oman–Yemen border, the northeast, the south-eastern part ...

. Libyan Civil War *

2011 military intervention in Libya On 19 March 2011, a NATO-led coalition began a military intervention into the ongoing Libyan civil war (2011), Libyan Civil War to implement United Nations Security Council Resolution 1973 (UNSCR 1973). The UN Security Council passed the reso ...

, an early operation was conducted by E Squadron, this was to contact the Libyan rebel and opposition leaders, however the mission was a failure after the team was captured and held prisoner for 72 hours by Libyan rebels. **

Operation Ellamy Operation Ellamy was the codename for the United Kingdom participation in the 2011 military intervention in Libya. The operation was part of an international coalition aimed at enforcing a Libyan no-fly zone in accordance with the United Natio ...

, a BBC news broadcast on 19 Jan 2012 revealed that the SAS had, in fact been redeployed to Libya as part of the larger British deployment, in a joint operation with French and Qatari special forces. A troop of 20 personnel from D Squadron 22 SAS were in the East of Libya, operating in small groups in places like

Misrata Misrata ( ; , Libyan Arabic: ; also spelled Misratah and known by the Italian spelling Misurata) is a city in northwestern Libya located in the Misrata District, situated to the east of Tripoli on the Mediterranean coast near Cape Misrata. ...

and

Brega Brega , also known as ''Mersa Brega'' or ''Marsa al-Brega'' ( , i.e. "Brega Seaport"), is a complex of several smaller towns, industry installations and education establishments situated in Libya on the Gulf of Sidra, the most southerly point of ...

by August. They assisted in training, coordinating and commanding opposition groups on and off the front line, and they were very active directing

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...

airstrikes. It was also alleged that 22 SAS were leading the hunt for

Gaddafi Muammar Muhammad Abu Minyar al-Gaddafi (20 October 2011) was a Libyan military officer, revolutionary, politician and political theorist who ruled Libya from 1969 until his assassination by Libyan rebel forces in 2011. He came to power ...

after the Battle of Tripoli.

Military intervention against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant Many states began to intervene against the Islamic State, in both the Syrian civil war and the War in Iraq (2013–2017), in response to its rapid territorial gains from its Northern Iraq offensive (June 2014), 2014 Northern Iraq offensives, u ...

Operation Shader Operation Shader is the operational code name given to the contribution of the United Kingdom in the ongoing military intervention against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. The operation involves the British Army providing ground su ...

, In August 2014, the SAS were reported to be on the ground gathering intelligence and helping with the evacuation of Yazidi refugees from the

Sinjar mountains The Sinjar Mountains (, , ), are a mountain range that runs east to west, rising above the surrounding alluvial steppe plains in northwestern Iraq to an elevation of . The highest segment of these mountains, about long, lies in the Nineveh Gov ...

At least one full squadron have been deployed to Iraq.and have reportedly been helping Kurdish forces in northern Iraq. Sources say that SAS and US Special Forces fought alongside Kurdish forces during Siege of Kobane in Syria. ** '' May 2015 U.S. special forces raid in Syria'', On 15 May after surveillance by the SAS who confirmed the presence of a senior leader of ISIL/ISIS named Abu Sayyaf in al-Amr in Deir Ezzor, who was then killed in a US Special forces raid.

Citations

Bibliography

* * * * * {{cite book, first=Urban , last=Mark , title=Task Force Black: The Explosive True Story of the Secret Special Forces War in Iraq , publisher= St. Martin's Griffin , date=2012 , isbn=978-1-250-00696-7

External links

The Regiment – Post-War Years

eliteukforces – SAS
* SAS