MARINES from Plymouth have snatched a man identified as a key Taliban agent and seized a haul of weapons in a night-time swoop on a house in Kabul.

Forty men of 42 Commando's J Company descended on the suspected insurgent's compound in the centre of the Afghan capital, moving into action swiftly to pre-empt any possible resistance.

No marine was injured in the raid, the first J Company has carried out, which resulted in one man being detained, information being collected and weapons confiscated.

J Company is the UK Task Force Commando Patrols Company in the north of Afghanistan.

Speaking exclusively to The Herald later, Operations Warrant Officer Sgt Maj Jamie Miles, who helped co-ordinate the assault, hailed the bravery of the marines, whose Plymouth base is at Bickleigh Barracks.

Within days of the assault, the British base at Camp Souter, which has not been targeted by the Taliban since 2003, came under small arms fire from the insurgents.

Sgt Maj Miles, who comes from Plymstock, described the raid as a significant operation.

"The man we swooped on is a key facilitator and makes things happen on behalf of other people [including the Taliban]," he said.

"These sorts of people are known to be insurgents and organise cars [for suicide bombings] and materials for others.

"The Brits had been watching him for about six months but were not in a position to do anything about it.

"They didn't have enough evidence to grab him. We rocked up and found a suspect vehicle in his compound.

"Our vehicle database suggested the car could be used to house an improvised explosive device (IED).

"Alarm bells started ringing, and that was the excuse for us to go in."

Sgt Maj Miles said the raid was in line with what the British forces were trying to do in Kabul, reassuring the population that insurgency activity would not be tolerated.

"Every patrol that we do is aimed at reassuring the nation that we are here to assist and deter insurgent activity," he said.

"The only way we can ultimately do that is to be seen actively enforcing that. If we have evidence, we will go in with force."

He added: "The lads performed heroically. They're being asked to perform a task which is such a different discipline to the Afghanistan environment.

"The lads are having to react to whatever comes up. It's the ultimate flexibility."

The Plymouth marines of J Company are involved in a variety of operations in Kabul, including protecting the voter registration process in the run-up to next year's national elections and ensuring the smooth transfer of responsibility for internal security to Afghan forces.

Acting Major Al Speedie, aged 29, commanding the UK Task Force Commando Patrols Company, described the performance of his marines as 'second to none.

"Due to the strategic and political importance of operating in the capital of Afghanistan, the actions of the man on the ground are vitally important to the perceptions of UK forces to the local people," he said.

"The performance of the men so far has been second to none and, once again, it demonstrates the professionalism of the Royal Marines."

tnichols@theplymouthherald.co.uk