SAS using 'toy drones' to pinpoint location of IS militants before airstrikes

The sophisticated carbon-fibre drones, available in shops for 2,500 pounds, are reportedly being used by the British Special Air Service (SAS) increasingly as a surveillance tool to pinpoint the location of Islamic State (IS) commanders and suicide bombers.

According to The Daily Star, these drones are capable of spying on terrorists inside rooms and monitor their activities around towns and villages. They can silently hover above targets for up to half an hour and are impossible to detect by eye.

The devices, which come with hi-tech cameras, have proved to be one of the cheapest but effective weapons in the war against IS. The idea was first put forward by an SAS man who tried one out while on leave and recommended them to senior officers.

The micro-drone has been used in several operations and has played an important role in ensuring zero civilian casualties.

In one of the operations, the drone monitored an IS commander as he moved from room to room in a house, enabling the SAS to check if there were civilians in the house before calling in an airstrike that killed the terrorist and two of his henchmen.

In another instance, a drone was used to target a group of militants making suicide vests in northern Iraq.