T he officer who led the SAS operation in which three IRA men were killed in Co Tyrone has revealed intricate details of how the ambush unfolded — as the daughter of the unarmed driver involved presses a fresh legal challenge over his death 35 years ago.

The former SAS major, responsible for planning one of the most controversial lethal clashes of the Troubles, describes how his men had less than two seconds to decide whether to open fire on an IRA unit preparing an assassination.

Three members of the IRA’s East Tyrone Brigade — Michael Ryan, Lawrence McNally and 22-year-old Tony Doris — were killed by British soldiers in the village of Coagh on June 3, 1991.

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Now, more than three decades later, the case is heading towards Britain’s highest court after Doris’s daughter, Roisin Nugent, lodged an application for permission to appeal to the Supreme Court.…