A British soldier is credited with using a spade to decapitate an Islamic State terrorist during an ambush in eastern Afghanistan, according to published reports.

What happened?

During a fierce, six-hour gun battle, the veteran sergeant reportedly cut off the gunman’s head just as a Special Air Service unit ran low on ammunition, according to the Daily Mail. After killing him, the soldier used the jihadi’s own weapon to kill more ISIS members, according to the report. U.S. troops soon moved in to help rescue the SAS soldiers.

The SAS unit was forced to take cover in a farm while under fire from Islamic State gunmen, reports said. They started to run low on bullets and radioed their base for support, but could not tell if their message was received. The soldiers then reportedly agreed to fight to the death rather than face capture. They knew that being captured would mean torture and a filmed execution.

The jihadis starting closing in as the SAS soldiers began running out of ammo, reports said. The SAS soldiers decided to defend themselves by using rifles as clubs and grenades, if necessary. And that’s when one of them killed a jihadi with a spade.

How did U.S. military assist?

Nearly one-half of the SAS unit had run out of ammunition as two U.S. Apache helicopter gunships appeared and forced the insurgents to withdraw, the Daily Star reported. A U.S. Chinook soon followed and rescued them.

The battle between the SAS and former Taliban members happened six weeks ago, according to reports.

Both the Islamic State and the Taliban are gaining ground in Afghanistan. But they see themselves as enemies because of their different ideological views and goals, the Daily Mail reported.

British military expects to double its SAS soldiers in Afghanistan to about 100, reports said.