Secret Operations of the SAS: From the Deserts of Africa to the Mountains of Afghanistan - Hardcover

Secret Operations of the SAS charts the early days of 'the regiment', and follows their major combat actions right through to their current deployment in the war against terrorism. The book begins with the SAS in North Africa in World War II, before describing operations in the Mediterranean and north-west Europe. It then traces the reformation of the SAS in the early 1950s, and its deployment in Malaya and Borneo against the communist guerrillas. It covers the operations in Aden and Oman, before detailing the role of the SAS in protecting the security of the British Isles - particularly in Northern Ireland and the Iranian Embassy siege in 1980. The book describes the regiment's involvement in the 1982 Falklands conflict, plus vital role that the SAS played in hunting Iraqi SCUD missiles in the 1991 Gulf War and UN operations in the Balkans and Sierra Leone, dramatically rescuing British hostages, actions of the SAS after the incidents of 11 September 2001, overthrowing the Taliban and the unit's attempts to find Osama Bin Laden and Aal-Qaeda terrorists. With specially commissioned colour artworks and rare action photographs, Secret Operations of the SAS is a highly-illustrated guide to the combat history of the SAS.

Mike Ryan is the managing director of AVPRO Ltd, a specialist firm that designs and builds equipment for special forces use. He is the co-author of Chariots of the Damned, an account of US aircrew rescue operations from Vietnam to the present day, and the Encyclopaedia of the World's Special Forces. He lives in London