Free Republic

Elite special forces are some of the best-trained and most formidable units a country can boast. They go where other soldiers fear to tread, scoping out potential threats, taking out strategic targets, and conducting daring rescue missions. These really are the best of the best. Although it's extremely difficult to rank these forces relative to one another, there are some units that rise above the rest in their track record and the fear they instill in their adversaries. These soldiers have been through rigorous training exercises designed to weed out those who can't hit their exacting standards. In a world...

British Special Forces are conducting covert operations against drug smugglers in southern Afghanistan for the first time. The operations represent a shift from the British military's long-held opposition to direct involvement in Afghanistan's drugs war. British Special Forces in Helmand province had previously been limited to targeting members of the Taliban leadership. A British Army patrol passes a field of poppies in Helmand province The operations are being conducted at night with members of Battalion 333, a secretive unit from the elite Afghan counter-narcotics police. Nato commanders have long been resistant to taking a direct role in the drugs war,...