ROYAL Marine Alexander Blackman has spoken of his “profound sense of relief” after his sentence for shooting dead an injured Taliban fighter in Afghanistan was reduced.

The commando, who has spent more than three years in jail since being convicted of murdering the insurgent, also paid tribute to his wife for providing support he said “simply sustained me”.

Following an appeal, judges sentenced Blackman to seven years for diminished responsibility manslaughter, meaning that because of time already served he could be freed next month.

He told the Daily Mail he had been “braced for the worst” during the hearing at the Court Martial Appeal Court in London on Tuesday.

He said: “My heart sank when the judge started talking about my current sentence being the equivalent of 16 years, and I thought it was somehow leading to a larger sentence.

“I just felt a profound sense of relief when they said seven.”

Claire Blackman said she was “overjoyed” at the outcome, having tirelessly campaigned for her husband’s release.

She said: “This is the moment that we have all been fighting hard for. It is hard to believe that this day is finally here.”

Read the full story here.