PM’s rallying call after darkest day (From The Northern Echo)

PM’s rallying call after darkest day

7:35am Monday 13th July 2009 in

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PRIME Minister Gordon Brown last night tried to rally faltering public support for the war in Afghanistan after the Army suffered its worst death toll in a single day since the campaign began.

Eight soldiers in Britain’s offensive against the Taliban died in 24 hours.

The Prime Minister described the mission as a patriotic duty to keep the streets of Britain safe from the threat of terrorist attack and said it was “moving forward”.

He paid tribute to the sacrifice of the 15 troops who had died since the start of the month in the bloodiest fighting the Army had seen in recent times and said they had done a magnificent job.

The Ministry of Defence has named six of the dead – including five members of 2nd Battalion The Rifles who were killed on Friday during a foot patrol near the town of Sangin, in central Helmand.

They were Corporal Jonathan Horne, 28, Rifleman Daniel Simpson, 20; and Rifleman William Aldridge, Rifleman James Backhouse and Rifleman Joseph Murphy, all 18.

Also named was Corporal Lee Scott, 26, of the 2nd Royal Tank Regiment who died in an explosion near Nad-e- Ali, in Helmand, on the same day.

Two soldiers killed on Thursday had earlier been named as Rifleman Daniel Hume, 22, of 4th Battalion The Rifles, and Private John Brackpool, 27, of Prince of Wales’ Company, 1st Battalion Welsh Guards.

The deaths of the soldiers came as a severe blow to the training teams at Catterick Garrison, in North Yorkshire, home of the Army’s Infantry Training Centre. Most of the Army’s recruits pass through Catterick at some stage, and several of those killed were among them – including one of the recent high achievers.

Rifleman Hume, from Maidenhead, Berkshire, was named as top student when he passed out of Catterick in April.

His commanding officer, Lieutenant-Colonel Rupert Jones, described him as “an exceptionally gifted young man” and said his colleagues had been robbed of a future leader.

Cpl Horne, from Walsall, West Midlands, trained at Catterick five years ago, while Rifleman Aldridge, from Herefordshire, completed his training there last year after attending the Army Foundation College, in Harrogate.

Rifleman Murphy, from Castle Bromwich, West Midlands, joined his regiment last November after attending the college and then completing the combat infantryman’s course at Catterick.

Rifleman Simpson, from Croydon, London, joined the Army in 2007 and also undertook the combat infantryman’s course at Catterick.

Mr Brown acknowledged in an interview with the British Forces Broadcasting Service that it was proving to be a “difficult summer” for the troops in Afghanistan, but said he had been assured in a briefing by commanders that Operation Panther’s Claw – to drive the Taliban from central Helmand province – was making “considerable progress”.

His comments came as Lord King of Bridgwater, the former Conservative Defence Secretary, became the latest senior figure to criticise the conduct of the campaign, saying “serious political mistakes” had been made by the Government.

There had never been enough troops on the ground, he said, and the force was suffering from a “critical shortage” of helicopters.

Mr Brown acknowledged there was public concern about the campaign, but insisted there was a “clear strategy” to remove the terrorist networks from Afghanistan and Pakistan in order to protect the streets of Britain.

He said: “If we were to allow the Taliban to be back in power in Afghanistan and al Qaida then to have the freedom of manoeuvre it had before 2001, then we would be less safe as a country.

“There is a line of terror – what you might call a chain of terror – that links what’s happening in Afghanistan and Pakistan to the streets of Britain.”

The Prime Minister said the Government had spent more than £1bn acquiring more than 1,000 armoured vehicles since last year. At the same time, he said commanders in Afghanistan had almost twice as much helicopter capability as they did two years ago.

US President Barack Obama said his “heart went out” to the families of the troops who had been killed as he praised the British contribution to the international effort in Afghanistan.

Red Devils’ airborne tribute to the fallen

A SPECTACULAR airborne display took place over the North-East to honour the lives of the region’s fallen soldiers.

Five Red Devils from the Parachute Regiment freefall team sprayed a red smoke screen after jumping from almost 5,000ft.

The were cheered by about 1,500 people after landing at Sunderland’s Ashbrooke Sports Club. The event was in memory of Private Nathan Cuthbertson, of 2nd Battalion, the Parachute Regiment. The 19-year-old died after a suicide bomb attack in Helmand province, Afghanistan, in June last year.

Colin Charlton, 52, from Sunderland, who organised the tribute, said: “I have known Nathan since he was a little lad so when he was killed I wanted to do something to keep his memory alive.”

Pte Cuthbertson’s parents, Tom and Carla, and his brother, Connon, 15, were part of a group of 44 cyclists who took part in a 200-mile round trip of the region to raise money for the Not Forgotten Association.

Mr Charlton said between £5,000 and £8,000 had been raised. He said: “Nathan would have been very proud of everyone who has taken part.”