British Sniper Shoots ISIS Commander From a Mile Away

A British sniper reportedly shot and killed an ISIS commander from more than a mile away in June, and he did it with a single shot from an "ancient" machine gun rather than a special sniper rifle.

The pickoff was made in northern Afghanistan while the British Special Air Service was on secret patrol in an Islamic State-held area, the Daily Star reported on Sunday. The SAS team was monitoring an ISIS base there when they identified a commander who was on a joint British-U.S. "kill list."

After receiving permission to engage the target from the Joint Special Operations Command headquarters in Kabul, the sniper used a powerful .50 Cal Browning machine gun mounted on an armed vehicle, the Daily Star said.

"The .50 Cal has got a phenomenal range and is very accurate even though it is almost 40 years old," one source told the Daily Star. "It can be fired on single shot. The sniper fitted a special sight to the machine gun and got a spotter to estimate the wind speed.”

"He also took into account the heat of the day and the light. The image of his target was quite 'watery' because of the heat being given off from the ground."

The Daily Star said the sniper's bullet hit the commander in the chest with enough force to rip off his arm and shoulder, killing him instantly.

"The Islamic State commander was briefing his men and clearly liked the sound of his own voice because he was standing still for a least 20 minutes while his fighters sat on the ground in front of him," the source told the Daily Star.

"The sniper knew he only had one chance. It took several seconds for the round to hit the commander who appeared to fly into several pieces. For a few seconds no one moved. When they realized what had happened they got up and ran away."

Targeting Taliban commanders in precision attacks from a so-called "kill list" has been an important part of NATO's strategy in Afghanistan, and U.S., British and Afghan special forces have also used drones in the effort as well, The Guardian reported, adding that the “kill list” has long been a closely-guarded secret but a concern of human rights groups

Sources told the Daily Star that the gun has now been decommissioned and taken to the SAS headquarters near Hereford as a memento.

A British Ministry of Defense spokesman, though, has declined to talk about the mission, saying, "We do not comment on special forces operations."

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