British snipers kill 15 IS fighters at a distance of 1,000 m

Two British commandos shot down an IS fighter to save the lives of an Iraqi family about to be executed.

British special forces fired from a distance of 1,000 meters. Illustration photo: Express.

A Christian family of eight near Mosul, Iraq, were about to be beheaded by the Islamic State (IS) group when the British Special Air Service (SAS) intervened. The rescue took place in July but details of the operation were only revealed last week, according to the Daily Star.

Two snipers shot dead the executioners who held knives to the throats of a father and son who refused to convert to Islam. They used L115 sniper rifles loaded with .338 Lapua Magnum bullets, capable of killing at ranges of up to 1,800 meters.

The two executioners were hit in the head almost simultaneously and died instantly. The shots were fired from a distance of about 1,000 meters. The commandos shot down two more IS fighters shortly after.

"After the four IS fighters fell, the remaining ones tried to escape and panicked, firing in all directions. Only the hostages' families sat still," a source told the Daily Star.

"The IS fighters tried to escape into a truck, but the driver was shot dead and those who climbed into the truck were also killed," he said. "The battle lasted for about half an hour until all the IS fighters were killed or fled."

Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga forces, who were working in conjunction with the SAS, then arrived to rescue the family and safely escort them out of the area.

"It was a great day for the SAS. They killed up to 15 terrorists and saved the lives of a family who were about to be executed," the source said.

According to VNE