For decades, the SAS has operated beyond public view, its missions shaped by secrecy and its reputation burnished by the rare moments when that secrecy has fallen away.
In SAS: The Shadow War, The Independent’s international affairs editor Sam Kiley traces the regiment’s covert campaign against the IRA in Northern Ireland, from the surveillance operations and ambushes of the Troubles to the hard questions that still endure today. Along the way, the Iranian Embassy siege and a deadly operation in Gibraltar reveal how the SAS became both a celebrated and a contested force.
Drawing on rare and previously unheard first-hand accounts from former operatives and those who witnessed the conflict up close, this eight-part documentary series explores a war fought largely out of sight – and the legal battle now being waged over how its actions should be judged.
Follow the show on Apple Podcasts or Spotify to get a notification when the first episodes of SAS: The Shadow War drop on Monday 5 October
