According to Michael Yon, one of the reasons the US has succeeded in Iraq is the ability to find and kill those responsible for causing trouble.
So, Hersh finally gets one right.
The Special Operators will get their chance again in A’stan.
Try and mention the SAS in a UK paper and see what happens...
In Viet Nam the Phoenix program used local Provincial Reconnaisance Units to track down and kill the local Viet Cong infrastructure. Books were kept on the numbers and location of such people. Their work was so successful that in one province of South Viet Nam with which I am familiar there was simply no indigenous Viet Cong leadership left by 1972. I would imagine the same sort of thing was employed in Iraq, and is employed in Afghanistan. In the guerrilla/terrorist war no civilian opponent is off limits. Given the opportunity, he will kill you so you must kill him first.
My guess is either Mitch Rapp or Dick Marcinko.