Dozens of crack SAS soldiers are quitting the elite secret regiment - to take up private security posts in Iraq. As many as 60 members of the special forces unit, which is based in Hereford, are said to have applied to leave early because they can earn a fortune in the war-torn Middle East. The shocking news means the cream of Britains fighting force could belostata criticaltimeinthe war against terrorism. And the reason is a huge salary packagewhich couldseeasoldiers wagerocket byanastonishing700 per cent. Amemberofthe SASisthoughtto earn a basic wage of around £25,000 a year. But an ex-SAS serviceman could command an annual fee of £208,000 for protecting wealthy senior businessmen or officials in lawless Baghdad. That means soldiers would get up to£4,000a WEEKtosafeguardthe Iraqi elite from potential attacks or kidnap attempts. Now top Army officials fear a flood of departures which could severely weaken the worlds most feared military unit. One Army insider said: The money is just too tempting. If youre ex-SAS and you speak Arabic, as many of them do, you can earn up to £4,000 a week in Iraq right now. It is not surprising a lot of guys are applying to get out. Last night security experts claimed that offers for private work in Iraq were at an unprecedented level. Multinational companies have recently won hugely lucrative contracts to rebuild the country and are willing to stump up huge amounts to protect staff. Diplomats and charities are also thought to be willing to pay out for expert protection. Noel Philip, chief operating officer of British security firm Armor-Group, said: There are some significantly higher rates than we have ever experienced before in other high-risk areas like Colombia. These guys are on constant duty at the moment, which puts strains ontheirdomestic life,sotheprivate sector can prove attractive. A spokesman for another British firm, Control Risks, which has 500 staff in Iraq, added: We have ex-military people and some of those are ex-Special Forces. They are involved in assessing and monitoring risk. Where necessary we canprovide armedsecurityorclose protection units. Opposition politicians last night voiced their concern at what could be a potential tidal wave of soldiers using the SAS as a route to more lucrative posts. Nicholas Soames, the Shadow Defence Secretary, said: We cannot afford to lose such experienced and excellent people. I hope the Ministry of Defence will examine all its retention programmes to see what might be done to stop this outflow. An Ministry of Defence spokesman added: In general terms, the level of personnel leaving the regiment is no higher than expected. | 
