The body of Guardsman Anthony Wakefield, who was killed by a roadside bomb in Iraq, is to be returned to Britain tomorrow, the Ministry of Defence said today.

His body will be returned to RAF Brize Norton in a private ceremony attended by senior military officers including Major General Graeme Lamb, the General Officer Commanding of 3rd Division, and Colonel Anthony Biggs of the Coldstream Guards. Guardsman Wakefield, 24, from Newcastle, was with the 1st Battalion The Coldstream Guards, and was the 87th British serviceman to be killed in Iraq.

He died on Monday from injuries sustained when a bomb exploded while he was on patrol near the southern town of Al Amarah.