Comment: Claims SAS Sniper Eliminated IS Death Squad

Speculation is swirling in the media that an SAS sniper killed three members of an Islamic State (IS) death squad as it prepared to murder a Syrian man and his young son.

According to the reports, to be found in mainstream newspapers and websites, a knife-wielding militant was shot dead from a kilometre away with a single bullet as he readied himself to behead the pair.

Two fellow jihadists were then also eliminated by the special forces sniper, who was allegedly on a covert patrol in the Syrian desert with his unit.

It is impossible, however, to know if the story is true. It's certainly not unlikely that members of the UK's special forces are operating in Iraq and possibly even Syria in the fight against IS.

But as to the veracity of the above claim, it all appears to come from a single "defence source".

Officially, British officials rigorously stick to a policy of not commenting on any operation involving members of the SAS or SBS..

"We do not, nor ever intend to, comment on special forces operations."

In the digital age, however, the government and the Ministry of Defence may be forced to reconsider.

With the propaganda war being dominated by Islamic State and increasing evidence of special forces operations appearing on video hosting sites, web articles and books, some former military figures are starting to question if it's time to start being more open about the elite units of the British Armed Forces.