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British special forces in Iraq have been ordered to carry chemical protection suits amid fears Islamic State terrorists could be plotting to launch horror gas attacks.

Crack troops are in the north of the country training Kurdish Peshmerga fighters and ­identifying RAF bombing targets as part of ­Operation Shader.

And spies warn IS fighters have stolen poison gas from Syrian forces.

This could be unleashed on British troops in the wake of air strikes on the Islamic extremists in Iraq.

The soldiers now carry nuclear and biological warfare protection and respirators. All vehicles are being fitted with gas detectors and an RAF Regiment trained in chemical warfare is on standby to fly to the region.

The move comes as Britain was warned the battle to crush IS in the region could last up to a decade. And Barack Obama admitted the US “underestimated” the murderous group’s emergence in Syria. The Mirror understands there are many more UK troops in Iraq than admitted by the Government.

(Image: Getty)

As well as the special forces there are also soldiers from 1 Para, RAF air support experts and signals intelligence troops, bringing the number of personnel to 350.

Syria last year agreed to destroy its chemical weapons but US spies suspect ­president Bashar al-Assad shifted some to secret locations. IS are thought to have stolen sarin and chlorine when they captured a Syrian air force base two months ago. As RAF Tornados yesterday returned to Cyrpus from their fifth sortie over IS targets – without firing their weapons – former Army commander Major General Julian Thompson warned the fight could be a long one. Mr Thompson, who led forces in the Falklands conflict, said: “The problem is that we always want an answer by tomorrow. That’s not the real world.

“This is not about force, it’s about changing the perceptions of people who live in these areas.”

And he said Britain’s war on IS could move into Syria. Mr Thompson added: “We are silly to say we are not going to get involved in bombing in Syria. ISIS operates on both sides of the border.”