SAS Hunt WPC Fletcher Killers
31.08.2011
The Sun has today reported that British special forces are on the hunt for the suspected killers of Woman Police Constable (WPC) Yvonne Joyce Fletcher, who was gunned down outside the Libyan embassy on April 17th 1984. WPC Fletcher was killed by gunfire coming from within the embassy. A gunman fired a 9mm sterling sub machine gun at a crowd of protestors who had gathered in the adjacent St James Square, fatally wounding WPC Fletcher who had been policing the protest.
The embassy official who ordered the attack, Abdulqadir al-Baghdadi, was recently found dead, it emerged yesterday. A small team from the 22nd Special Air Service, along with MI6 operatives, are thought to be on the trail of at least another 2 suspects, including Abdulmagid Salah Ameri, believed to be the gunman.
The shooting of WPC Fletcher in 1984 resulted in armed police surrounding the Libyan embassy, laying siege to the building for 11 days. As diplomatic efforts to obtain the release of the suspected killers to British authorities continued, the SAS special projects team was deployed to a nearby holding area and prepared to intervene.
In the end, the suspects were allowed to return to Libya under the cloak of diplomatic immunity. The Libyan regime eventually accepted responsibility for the embassy shooting.
more info, further reading:
- SAS hunt WPC killer in Libya
(the sun) - Embassy murder suspect found dead
(the guardian)
- Libya: suspect in killing of WPC Yvonne Fletcher found by rebel government
(the telegraph)
