DUBAI: This British Ministry of Defense video footage shows the moment a drone strike was carried out, preventing Daesh from carrying out a street execution in a Syrian street.
Operated from the RAF Waddington base in England, the drone was being used to monitor the insurgents in Abu Kamal, in Eastern Syria, when the “pilot” spotted two handcuffed prisoners being led from a van and being placed in front of a crowd of onlookers.
Aware of the presence of civilians and using the onboard cameras, the drone operators then spotted a Daesh sniper on the roof of a nearby building and fired a hellfire missile.
In the footage the crowds can be seen standing in the street below, then the missile strikes where the sniper was with pinpoint precision, there is an explosion, and in the background the crowds of people can be seen running away.
British Defense Secretary Sir Michael Fallon: “As fighting has evolved we have adapted, ensuring our troops have cutting-edge equipment including unmanned systems operated from outside the battle space.”
He added: “Our troops have made huge contributions to the fight against Daesh, helping end its tyranny in large parts of Iraq and Syria… They have conducted over 1,500 strikes against Daesh terrorist targets and helped train nearly 60,000 Iraqi Security Forces.”