Last week, a Reaper patrolled over Manbij, where Syrian rebel forces have cleared Islamic State from much of the town.
The Reaper intervened in close combat that developed just to the north of Manbij and successfully used Hellfires to clear two groups of extremists engaged in a fire fight with the Syrian moderates.
Operation Shader is the operational code name given to the British participation in the ongoing military intervention against the Islamic State.
The operation began in Iraq on the 26th of September 2014, following a formal request for assistance by the Iraqi government.
Prior to this, the Royal Air Force had been engaged in a humanitarian relief effort over Mount Sinjar, which involved multiple aid airdrops by transport aircraft and the airlifting of displaced refugees.
By October 2014, the intervention had extended onto Syria with the Royal Air Force only mandated to conduct surveillance flights over the country.
In December 2015, the House of Commons approved British airstrikes against IS in Syria. The UK is one of several countries directly involved in the ongoing Syrian conflict that started in March 2011, utilising Tornado, Typhoon and Reaper aircraft.
By June 2016, the Ministry of Defence had announced that over 1,000 personnel were engaged in theatre and that the Royal Air Force had conducted around 900 airstrikes, flying over 2,200 sorties, killing almost 1,000 Islamic State fighters.
500 cars full of jihads seen leaving Manbij, heading north towards Turkish border. The very worst war criminals have a habit of surviving despite declaring that they are keen on sacrificing themselves. Soon to be moving in next door to you, house paid for by the government, NHS treating any war wounds (although the God fathers usually keep themselves out of harms way) and generally attempting to disintegrate civilised society. “Human rights” lawyers and the guardian newspaper gleefully awaiting their arrival.