SBS swoop to kill Taliban chief

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/article830969.ece

A TALIBAN chief behind suicide attacks on British troops has been shot dead in a daring operation by elite forces in Afghanistan.

The Special Boat Service ambushed Mullah Abdul Matin as he crossed a desert on a motorbike.

They were dropped into his path by helicopter after a tip-off on his whereabouts. Matin spotted them and opened fire with an AK47 rifle but he was cut down in a hail of bullets.

Two henchmen with him – one his key lieutenant Mullah Karim Agha – were also killed in the firefight.

Matin, who was in his 40s, was killed on Monday near Gereshk in war-torn Helmand province.

Troops recovered night vision goggles, grenades and a detonator.

Matin, a deputy of Taliban chief Mullah Omar, had been one of the Coalition’s top targets for several months.

He had planned several suicide bomb attacks on British convoys, killing two British servicemen and wounding a dozen in the last 18 months.

Crest ... Special Boat Service

Crest ... Special Boat Service

His fanatics are thought to have murdered Royal Marine Gary Wright, 22, from 45 Commando in October 2006, and Sgt Dave Wilkinson, 33, from 19 Regiment Royal Artillery, last July.

He is also thought to be behind the murders of dozens of Afghan civilians.

British Forces spokesman in Helmand, Lieutenant Colonel Simon Millar, said: “Mullah Matin’s been a priority target for some time. He commanded fighters and reported directly to the highest Taliban levels of command.

“He’s responsible for the kidnapping of local nationals, had links with the narcotics trade and had provided security to the traffickers.”

NATO spokesman Brigadier General Carlos Branco said the Taliban had suffered “another severe setback”.
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