THE Northern Echo is sending a reporting team to join British troops serving in the Gulf.
Reporter Steve Parsley and photographer Stuart Boulton leave for Iraq today and will be filing daily reports from region around Basra.
There are more than 5,000 troops from the North-East in the southern region of the war-torn country at the moment.
The majority serve with regiments which make up 19 Mechanised Brigade, which took over from the Desert Rats once the fighting had ended.
There have been recent reports of rioting in some areas in the city itself where the local population has been venting its frustration over the lack of fuel and power.
A former Gurkha soldier died after he was shot during the weekend's violence, and a soldier died yesterday after an attack in Basra.
One of the main problems for troops is the searing desert heat, which has been as high as 60C.
The first dispatch from the Gulf will be published in The Northern Echo on Monday.
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