Posted on 09/08/2007 11:46:19 AM PDT by uksupport1
The Basra battlegroup that has fought through some of the most intense urban battles since the Second World War has been nominated for an "unusually high" number of bravery awards, The Daily Telegraph has learned....
The fighting and casualty levels have matched those of frontline units in Afghanistan over the last 14 weeks with the 4Bn The Rifles battlegroup suffering 11 dead and 62 wounded in action.
But the battles have also witnessed some astonishing acts of heroism by young soldiers, such as the rifleman who physically covered the body of his wounded comrade as he lay in the street under intense fire.
In another incident, a Warrior driver who had been thrown clear of his armoured vehicle by a roadside bomb still managed to fire his handgun at the enemy despite suffering a broken leg and severe burns to his hands and face.
Another Warrior driver whose driving compartment was on fire with ammunition rounds "cooking off" managed to cock his pistol with his foot because his arm was broken.
Lt Col Patrick Sanders, the commanding officer of 4 Rifles, said that, at times, soldiers "fought for their lives" in four-hour battles while sweltering in tank turrets where the temperatures reached an astonishing 74C.
"This generation are as good as their fathers and grandfathers," he said yesterday. "They are tough, they are resilient, they are ferocious fighters - and they absolutely love it."....
(Excerpt) Read more at telegraph.co.uk ...
More good news in this article seems to be the stability of Basra.
Watching the news on TV last week, Lt Col Patrick Sanders seems to be a great, straight-talking commander. When a BBC journalist put it to him that his men had been defeated, he simply replied 'Does this look like a defeated army to you?' as his men cheerfully maintained their vehicles behind him 'thats complete b****cks'.
Its a hell of a comment, coming from a man whose troops has fought hard and not given ground.
We will know in a couple of months more about the capabilities of the iraqi army, and the subsequent role that the UK will have.
56 views and two replies, both from Brits on an article about brave soldiers fighting the WOT tells you a lot about the average freeper and how they feel about their ‘allies’. :(
It’s because the topics are seldomly browsed. Here’s a BUMP for y’all.
LOL - God bless them!
Nonsense - it tells you that the 'average freeper' is off doing other things besides reading FR on a weekend evening. The volume of threads and replies always dips during the weekend. Please don't take it personally.
If this thread had been an anti-British one it would be buzzing with replies :-)
On a different note, things are so far looking OK in Basra. None of the violence predicted by some has been apparent. I hope it continues.
I'm going to have to try to learn to do that.
L
Indeed. What many of those press reports neglected is that the British have kept sufficient forces in the area to re-enter Basra if security deterioates.
Provinces handed over to the Iraqis by the British already appear to have remained peaceful. None of the mayhem predicted in Basra by some press reports has materialised yet (I hope it stays that way)! Apparently Basra has 50% the murder rate of Washington DC!
Indeed. What many of those press reports neglected is that the British have kept sufficient forces in the area to re-enter Basra if security deteriorates.
Provinces handed over to the Iraqis by the British already appear to have remained peaceful. None of the mayhem predicted in Basra by some press reports has materialised yet (I hope it stays that way)! Apparently Basra has 50% the murder rate of Washington DC!
Indeed. What many of those press reports neglected is that the British have kept sufficient forces in the area to re-enter Basra if security deteriorates.
Provinces handed over to the Iraqis by the British already appear to have remained peaceful. None of the mayhem predicted in Basra by some press reports has materialised yet (I hope it stays that way)! Apparently Basra has 50% the murder rate of Washington DC!
Sorry about the repeating posting. My PC went a bit crazy for a few moments :-)
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.