SAS soldiers helped to raid Poppy Day bomber lairs as part of an elite unit that joined the hunt against potential terrorist accomplices.
Photos show an operator of the SAS’s counter terror squad, dressed in tactical gear and equipped with a powerful rifle automatic as they stormed Liverpool properties following the suicide bombing attack.
MailOnline believes that special forces officers used new drone technology, which is fitted with integrated electronic security. It can neutralize any remote-controlled IED.
Military insiders claimed that the Liverpool raids were led by an elite team because they had specialized training which allowed them to handle the stressful situation of hunting down terrorist potential threats.
It comes as police revealed Liverpool bomber Emad Al Swealmeen, 32, started building a ‘bomb factory’ at a rented bedsit as early as April.
Armed units raided a property in the Sefton Park area of Liverpool shortly after Al Swealmeen accidentally blew himself up at Liverpool Women’s Hospital on Remembrance Sunday.
Bomb disposal officers conducted a controlled explosion within the park the next day. Rutland Avenue remains closed, which is where the explosives plant was.
Yesterday afternoon, officers extended a line of protection around Sutcliffe Street, Kensington, central Liverpool. This is where Al Swealmeen was believed to have been living.
Photos show an operator of the SAS’s counter terror squad, dressed in tactical gear and equipped with a powerful rifle automatic as they stormed Liverpool properties following the suicide bombing attack.
According to military insiders, the elite group was called in by the Liverpool raiders because of their “specialized training” which made them ideal for the highly-pressured situation of hunting down active terror threats.
The SAS were summoned to head-up the anti-terror raids in the historic waterfront city amid fears there were other jihadist-sympathisers operating with Al-Swealmeen, the Mirror reports.
MailOnline understood that anti-terrorist squad searched for evidence of IEDs in drains, toilets systems, and other outlets.
One part of their elite unit’s training in Afghanistan is to work with potential threats to remove them before they can detonate explosive devices.
For combat in Middle Eastern theater, you can use ladders to climb walls instead of using doors or main entrances that could be boobytrapped.
The SAS’s high-level training made it easy to quickly decide to send them in. The police counter-terror teams are extremely good but special forces are so highly trained that when the doors go in they don’t flinch,’ one military source told the Mirror.
SAS troops raided Poppy Day-related properties as part of an elite unit’s hunt for terrorist accomplices
They are capable of making quick, decisive decisions that save lives even in extremely risky situations.
It was discovered that Al Swealmeen spent many months searching the Internet for small amounts of chemicals and metal parts to avoid detection.
An online shopping package was said to be constantly delivered to the apartment of this failed asylum seeker who came from Iraq.
Emad Al-Swealmeen, 32, pictured, loaded a homemade explosive device with nails and bolts but it failed to fully detonate when it went off in a taxi outside Liverpool Women’s Hospital just before 11am on Sunday
Agents found traces chemicals in the bomb factory, which indicates that he had experimented with different explosives.
One of the recipes he is understood to have followed was for hexamethylene triperoxide diamine – the same material used by the July 7 2005 London bombers.
The Counterterrorism Police confirmed their belief that the Remembrance Day weapon used by the 32 year-old would have caused serious injury or death if it went off outside.
However, the bomber was only killed when it detonated in a taxi outside Liverpool Women’s Hospital.
After being ‘jolted,’ his homemade bomb burst as soon as he reached the hospital. Experts believe it was a Mother of Satan device that had been poorly constructed or one made with fireworks.
Also, Friday’s police report revealed that Al Swealmeen, a deceitful and ruthless criminal, purchased bomb components individually. He also used fake names in order to circumvent flagging systems.
Following the explosion, bomb squad officers were present at the scene. A counter-terror officer spokesperson said that several suspicious packages had been discovered after raids by police.
Residents were told to remain indoors, and other residents weren’t allowed to return to their homes. Instead they were directed towards a primary school nearby for shelter.
Al Swealmeen was inside the taxi when it exploded. Forensic testing is still underway. He died last night from injuries sustained in the blast, and the fire that followed.