Special Forces made a series of night jumps on the outskirts of Baghdad in a campaign against insurgent leaders and bomb-making factories, The Daily Telegraph has learnt.

The operations - which can only now be disclosed - played a significant role in removing "high value targets'' and reducing the ability of insurgents to make roadside bombs.

On at least a dozen occasions, SAS soldiers using highly-manoeuvrable parachutes jumped from the back of a Hercules aircraft at medium altitude. After steering for several miles, they landed close to insurgent strongholds.