Post by SAS P&P Admin on Oct 18, 2005 10:14:20 GMT -5
Source: www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=90168&in_page_id=1770
Two SAS fighters hunting Osama Bin Laden may be awarded the Victoria Cross - the first time a living soldier has been considered for the honour for more than 30 years. The rare move to bestow the highest military accolade is under consideration by senior defence officials who will ultimately make the recommendation to the Queen.
Plans to make the award, which is given only for acts of valour in action, reflect the level of high-risk, close-combat fighting in the Tora Bora caves in eastern Afghanistan between the elite regiment and the Arab terrorists loyal to Bin Laden.
The Mail on Sunday understands that the two men have been singled out for exceptional acts of courage, involving taking and saving lives.
One senior source said: 'To give these awards to men who have survived conflict is extremely rare. But when the full details of the SAS's role become known, people will understand why we are considering such an honour.'
Only 11 VCs have been awarded since 1945, the last both posthumously to Lieutenant Colonel Herbert Jones and Sergeant Ian McKay, who were killed in the Falklands.
The last living recipient of the VC, instituted by Queen Victoria in 1856 during the Crimean War, was an Australian. Warrant Officer Keith Payne was honoured in 1969 for his valour while fighting in Vietnam.
No serviceman received a VC for action in Northern Ireland or the Gulf War. The last living British recipient was William Speakman, a private in the Black Watch, for heroics under fire in Korea in 1951.
Of the 1,351 men awarded the VC, only 21 are still alive.
The award of any medal is the result of a consultation process which begins, in the case of the SAS, with a citation from the Commanding Officer of the regiment, based in Hereford.
The case is then considered by a panel chaired by the Chief of Defence Staff. If the panel agrees, the recommendation is passed to the Queen for approval.
Defence sources say the SAS pair have engaged in hand-to-hand combat with Al Qaeda fighters in the complex of caves in the snowclad slopes of the Tora Bora range.
They have fought only with knives, killing enemy fighters and rescuing colleagues. In one daring assault on a Taliban cave near Kandahar in southern Afghanistan, 18 Afghans were killed and four British soldiers wounded.
During the four-hour battle, around 90 troops stormed a heavily-guarded mountain stronghold after being told Bin Laden was in the caves.
They were met with fierce resistance. As the SAS took dozens of prisoners, the most serious casualty took three bullets from an AK-47 assault rifle - one in the arm, one in the abdomen and another in the thigh. It is reported that he has had a leg amputated since returning for treatment in Britain.
Last night The Mail on Sunday was given astonishing details of how SAS units are silently closing in on Bin Laden.
The conditions for many of the SAS, operating in groups of four or five, have improved in the past few days as they use the caves to cloak their own presence at Tora Bora. M
any have been hiding in the cave complex for days, directing American bombers with lasers to lairs where they have identified Al Qaeda and Taliban fighters sheltering.
During the past week, an absence of moonlight has helped the British troops to place UGSs - unattended ground sensors - in key positions.
The UGSs pick up movement, light, sound and heat sources on the slopes and inside the caves where Bin Laden is believed to be making his last stand.
The SAS troops have been able to set up self-contained units inside disused caves abandoned by the Al Qaeda fighters. They have lights and power and enough food and water to last several months.
More than a third of all the bombs dropped on Afghanistan have fallen on Tora Bora, most guided in by the precision spotting of the SAS troops on the ground.
Some of the most important equipment being used is portable thermal imaging devices which detect heat signals, showing black on grey on the imagers, to reveal secret ventilation ducts and bolt holes.
The exact targeting of the ' daisycutter bombs' - which create lethal downward impact - has destroyed entrances and exits to the caves.
The defence source added: 'It is the SAS with their imagers and laser guides who have made it possible. They were literally able to get in among the enemy without being observed, and by doing that they pinched the nose of the Tora Bora complex so that it couldn't breathe.'
Two SAS fighters hunting Osama Bin Laden may be awarded the Victoria Cross - the first time a living soldier has been considered for the honour for more than 30 years. The rare move to bestow the highest military accolade is under consideration by senior defence officials who will ultimately make the recommendation to the Queen.
Plans to make the award, which is given only for acts of valour in action, reflect the level of high-risk, close-combat fighting in the Tora Bora caves in eastern Afghanistan between the elite regiment and the Arab terrorists loyal to Bin Laden.
The Mail on Sunday understands that the two men have been singled out for exceptional acts of courage, involving taking and saving lives.
One senior source said: 'To give these awards to men who have survived conflict is extremely rare. But when the full details of the SAS's role become known, people will understand why we are considering such an honour.'
Only 11 VCs have been awarded since 1945, the last both posthumously to Lieutenant Colonel Herbert Jones and Sergeant Ian McKay, who were killed in the Falklands.
The last living recipient of the VC, instituted by Queen Victoria in 1856 during the Crimean War, was an Australian. Warrant Officer Keith Payne was honoured in 1969 for his valour while fighting in Vietnam.
No serviceman received a VC for action in Northern Ireland or the Gulf War. The last living British recipient was William Speakman, a private in the Black Watch, for heroics under fire in Korea in 1951.
Of the 1,351 men awarded the VC, only 21 are still alive.
The award of any medal is the result of a consultation process which begins, in the case of the SAS, with a citation from the Commanding Officer of the regiment, based in Hereford.
The case is then considered by a panel chaired by the Chief of Defence Staff. If the panel agrees, the recommendation is passed to the Queen for approval.
Defence sources say the SAS pair have engaged in hand-to-hand combat with Al Qaeda fighters in the complex of caves in the snowclad slopes of the Tora Bora range.
They have fought only with knives, killing enemy fighters and rescuing colleagues. In one daring assault on a Taliban cave near Kandahar in southern Afghanistan, 18 Afghans were killed and four British soldiers wounded.
During the four-hour battle, around 90 troops stormed a heavily-guarded mountain stronghold after being told Bin Laden was in the caves.
They were met with fierce resistance. As the SAS took dozens of prisoners, the most serious casualty took three bullets from an AK-47 assault rifle - one in the arm, one in the abdomen and another in the thigh. It is reported that he has had a leg amputated since returning for treatment in Britain.
Last night The Mail on Sunday was given astonishing details of how SAS units are silently closing in on Bin Laden.
The conditions for many of the SAS, operating in groups of four or five, have improved in the past few days as they use the caves to cloak their own presence at Tora Bora. M
any have been hiding in the cave complex for days, directing American bombers with lasers to lairs where they have identified Al Qaeda and Taliban fighters sheltering.
During the past week, an absence of moonlight has helped the British troops to place UGSs - unattended ground sensors - in key positions.
The UGSs pick up movement, light, sound and heat sources on the slopes and inside the caves where Bin Laden is believed to be making his last stand.
The SAS troops have been able to set up self-contained units inside disused caves abandoned by the Al Qaeda fighters. They have lights and power and enough food and water to last several months.
More than a third of all the bombs dropped on Afghanistan have fallen on Tora Bora, most guided in by the precision spotting of the SAS troops on the ground.
Some of the most important equipment being used is portable thermal imaging devices which detect heat signals, showing black on grey on the imagers, to reveal secret ventilation ducts and bolt holes.
The exact targeting of the ' daisycutter bombs' - which create lethal downward impact - has destroyed entrances and exits to the caves.
The defence source added: 'It is the SAS with their imagers and laser guides who have made it possible. They were literally able to get in among the enemy without being observed, and by doing that they pinched the nose of the Tora Bora complex so that it couldn't breathe.'