travel around Syria and Iraq with women and children or moving in civilian crowds so laser-guided Hellfire missiles are not fired

Islamic State jihadists in Syria and Iraq are using human shields to stop British RAF pilots killing them with drones operated from nearly 3,000 miles away, it can be revealed.

Barbaric militants are exploiting Western rules of engagement by travelling around the war-torn region with women and children or moving in civilian crowds so laser-guided Hellfire missiles are not fired to wipe them out.

New tactics mean high value targets on a British kill list may be watched by an 'unblinking eye in the sky' at RAF Waddington in Lincolnshire for days on end waiting for an opportunity to strike.

Scroll down for video

New tactics mean high value targets on a British kill list may be watched by an 'unblinking eye in the sky' at RAF Waddington in Lincolnshire (pictured) for days on end waiting for an opportunity to strike

Their role is not just looking for targets to blitz but also spending weeks just watching - and feeding vital intelligence to Coalition forces.

The Daily Mail were given the first access to the control hub of the unmanned Reaper drones since two British jihadists were obliterated by the deadly planes in Syria this summer.

In recent days, security has become so heightened at the base that many details concerning operations have become top secret.

Concerns over the potential threat posed by jihadists mean that pilots, sensor operators and intelligence officers from XIII Squadron can no longer be identified and only their fully-clothed arms and hands could be photographed on the newspaper's visit to the high-security base.

Air Commodore Jeff Portlock, the force commander of RAF intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance, said those operating the drones 'feel like they are on the frontline' -

The Daily Mail were given the first access to the control hub of the unmanned Reaper drones since two British jihadists were obliterated by the deadly planes in Syria this summer (pictured: Inside the unit that controls the new Reaper Remotely Piloted Air System)

The pilot's view in the high security Aircraft Hangar at RAF Waddington in Lincolnshire where they are seated behind banks of screens in an air-conditioned cabin as they use satellite links to control unmanned 'Reaper' drone aircraft which are flying nearly constant armed reconnaissance missions over Iraq and Syria

The commander - who was the only person who could be named because he was not directly involved in the fight against IS - said: 'It isn't in anyway... people running scared.'

Instead, he said it was only 'fair', given the 'barbaric threat that we've seen', that they should be given anonymity.

A defence source said: 'These guys are very aware of the importance of their work in gathering intelligence and degrading ISIL and are very proud of what they do in helping keep Britain safe.'

High security fencing and armed police surround three steel cabins containing the cockpits.

Signs across the base provided a constant reminder to personnel that the terror threat level to the UK has been heightened.

Last week, RAF personnel seated behind screens from the comfort of a high-security hangar in either Lincolnshire or Nevada in the US took part in a US-led top secret mission to wipe out Jihadi John.

In recent days, security has become so heightened at RAF Waddington that many details concerning operations have become top secret

Although they did not fire the missiles that killed him - as they came from a US drone - they helped watch him for months until an opportunity came to strike him without injuring any civilians.

He was nearly killed twice before but on one opportunity he entered a crowded street and on the second he was deemed too close to women and children.

A defence source said: 'It is fairly obvious that the West prides itself on its strict adherence to international law and that is clear to anyone with common sense.

'It doesn't take rocket science for those who are medieval enough to exploit that and use women and children as human shields.'

In scenes reminiscent of the hit-TV drama Homeland, a Reaper pilot said: 'Forces on the ground my identify targets for us to follow. We can follow them on their motorbike and can wait for them to be clear of collateral until we strike.

'We can track them to where they are hiding and we wait for them to come out. It is all about having the time to follow people.'

Located in this metal crate in an RAF hangar is the control pod for the Reaper Remotely Piloted Air System

Britain's entire fleet of 10 Reapers has now been transferred to the Middle East, where they have flown thousands of hours of spying and strike missions over Iraq and Syria.

Prime Minister David Cameron has announced he will double the number of drones the UK has in the coming years, investing in new high-tech Protector drones and also invest an extra £2billion in beefing up Special Forces.

Whilst full details of Britain's covert missions remain unclear, the country's elite troops have been deployed to IS-held territory to help direct drones to human targets.

Describing how Reaper crews co-operate with Iraqi Government and Kurdish forces, one pilot said: 'A guy on the ground will confirm he (the target) is there. It is a crew decision on how we shoot and when we shoot.

'If we are tracking a vehicle down the road, we could ask for another feed (from another drone), scanning ahead of the car which may be headed to a village.'

The control pods for the Reaper drones are situated behind a fenced area in the hangar at RAF Waddington

An intelligence analyst who also sits in the cockpit scanning real-time images for targets, said: 'We are looking for specific things, like Mad Max style vehicles.

'This is real-time analysis and we will be reporting what we see to others, talking to the guys on the ground and trying to get their intelligence requirements.

'The task can be as vague as, see if you can find an enemy combatant. We are looking for people with guns, shooting at other people.'

The three man teams work six days on and three days off, in shifts lasting eight to 10 hours. Each drone itself can stay in the sky for up to 16 hours before being replaced by another.

Air Cdre Portlock said drones were a 'persistent staring eye in the sky, and that's often unblinking'.

He said: 'It is unblinking because we can replace one with the other. That is really quite a significant operational advantage.'

Britain's entire fleet of 10 Reapers has now been transferred to the Middle East, where they have flown thousands of hours of spying and strike missions over Iraq and Syria

He said it gave the UK a 'huge military advantage' that 'you wouldn't get, or you'd need significant manpower for to give that sort of coverage.'

'They know streets, they know what cars move on a Tuesday morning, at times... that ability to just recognise your surroundings, even though they are not there, is more than you get off a six month tour', he added.

Images provided by the drones are so clear that RAF personnel in Lincolnshire can make out whether a person on the ground is male or female, and what colour clothes they are wearing.

But despite the clarity, since Russian forces joined in the war on the ground as well as the air over Syria several weeks ago, the fight has become even more complex.

'We have got to make sure we have got the enemy and not friendlies. There are now so many different elements at play that we don't want to kill the wrong people', said one officer.

The officer stressed how important it was that Britain was allowed to fly spying missions over Syria - even without parliamentary approval to conduct air strikes - because IS has 'no borders'.

He said: 'Islamic State do not have a border between Syria and Iraq and we need to watch how they are able to resupply themselves in Iraq by taking supplies from Raqqa.'

Air Cdre Portlock also suggested Britain was preparing to fight its own wars using drones in the future as was currently reliant on working alongside the US.

He said the UK was 'getting very close to being able to operate on our own as a sovereign nation'.

He said: 'We are interchangeable and interlinked with the US capability and our future capabilities will move us into similar interchangeability but complete sovereign ability to do what we want with our own fleet in the future.