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Australian Army chief Peter Leahy has moved to reassure infantry troops frustrated that they are not seeing enough combat. The exclusion of Australia's infantry troops from frontline conflicts, including in Iraq, has left many feeling "ashamed of wearing their Australian uniform", Army Major Jim Hammett has written. The infantry, which makes up about a third of the army's combat forces, had not been assigned offensive actions since the Vietnam War and the special forces were seeing all the combat, he wrote. In a separate article cited by Fairfax newspapers, Captain Greg Colton, second in command of the Sydney-based 3rd Battalion...

Australian soldiers have begun a major push into the Taliban heartland of Oruzgan Province in Southern Afghanistan with the intent of pushing out the Taliban, restoring vital infrastructure and creating a safe environment for the Afghan people. Lieutenant Matthew Dirago prepares to move whilst on patrol in the Green Zone near Forward Operating Base (FOB) Worsley, at the entrance to the Baluchi Valley, Afghanistan. The Australian push is being spear-headed by engineers, infantry, cavalry and support troops of the 4th Reconstruction Task Force (RTF 4) who are drawn mainly from the Sydney and Brisbane areas. RTF 4 Commanding Officer, Lieutenant...

NT soldiers bound for frontline REBEKAH CAVANAGH14Mar08 TERRITORY soldiers are to become Australia's first frontline troops since the Vietnam war. A squad of Darwin-based Diggers are being deployed to Afghanistan to fight the Taliban.The 15 artillerymen from 8/12 Medium Regiment at Robertson Barracks will fight alongside British troops.The gunners will be based in the dangerous southern province of Helmand -- the same area where Prince Harry was serving before being sent home last month after his top-secret deployment was revealed by an Australian magazine.It will be the first time Australians have manned a gun line on operations since Vietnam...

Canberra - According to a report in The Australian newspaper, Canberra is preparing to send hundreds of additional troops to Afghanistan's Uruzgan province. At present, there are 970 Australian military personnel in southern Afghanistan, most of them in Kandahar province. The paper says the exact number of reinforcements depends on the number of troops that the Netherlands is planning to withdraw. The Dutch mission is due to end in August 2008. The paper also says Australian ministers held a series of meetings with their Dutch counterparts and NATO over the last few weeks. The Netherlands has 1400 military personnel stationed...

The US Congress' vote to push for the withdrawal of troops from Iraq was wrong and will bring comfort to Al-Qaeda insurgents, Australian Prime Minister John Howard said Friday. The Democrat-dominated US Senate on Thursday passed legislation which set a timeline for the recall of US troops from Iraq, where the US has been engaged in a bloody war since March 2003. US President George W Bush has vowed to veto the law. Howard, a staunch Bush supporter who has also committed troops to Iraq and Afghanistan, said the vote by the US Congress was "probably not helpful to the...

Remains of two diggers found in Vietnam  20th April 2007, 9:45 WST     A group of Australian Vietnam veterans are 99 per cent certain remains they have uncovered in southern Vietnam belong to two diggers missing in action for more than 40 years.Lance Corporal Richard Parker and Private Peter Gillson were killed during battle in the Dong Nai province east of Saigon in 1965, but their bodies were never recovered.The group of veterans, known as Operation Aussies Home, have been searching in Vietnam for the two soldiers and another four still missing in other parts of the country.Group...

ABOUT 350 anti-Iraq war protesters last night formed a hostile welcome committee for US Vice-President Dick Cheney, clashing with police outside Sydney's Town Hall as they ignored calls for peaceful protests. Mounted police officers and members of the riot squad scuffled with protesters in scenes reminiscent of violent anti-globalisation protests at the G20 summit in Melbourne last year. The crowd, led by members of the Stop The War Coalition, marched down George Street - one of Sydney's main streets - without permission from police, who cited traffic concerns for the decision. The clashes occurred when protesters attempted to break through...

"Should Australian troops be withdrawn from Iraq?"

But I freaking LOVE IT. And you will, too. The singer is Aussie star Beccy Cole and the song is in response to some of her (former) fans who have, as moonbats often do, taken extreme exception to her support of the Australian troops who are fighting in the Iraq war. Thanks to the readers who sent along the link, which was first posted at Blackfive.

AUSTRALIAN troops have told how they killed at least five Iraqi insurgents while fighting off an attack aimed at wiping out the 60-strong force of Diggers. In the first action specifically targeting Australian troops in Iraq, the Townsville-based Diggers fought an hour-long battle in the strife-torn city of al-Rumaythah. The insurgents' aim, commanders on the spot said, was brutal: surround and kill the Australian force. At least 30 balaclava-clad insurgents dressed in black, carrying AK-47s and grenade launchers – but shielded at times by civilians – attacked the Australian column as it visited a police barracks in the city on...

AUSTRALIAN special forces troops in Afghanistan have been involved in the heaviest fighting since the Vietnam War, with one battle claiming the lives of 150 Taliban and al-Qa'ida fighters. According to a report in News Limited newspapers today, six Australian soldiers were wounded in the biggest firefight, which lasted nine days in July. Eleven Australian soldiers have been wounded in Afghanistan during the year-long special forces campaign, several seriously. The latest battles were part of Operation Perth, which involves search-and-destroy missions in the Chora district, about 40km northwest of the Australian base in Oruzgan province. More than 100 Diggers from...

A TEENAGER who burnt an Australian flag taken from an RSL club during Sydney's racial unrest will come face to face with club members as part of his punishment. The 17-year-old pleaded guilty to removing the flag from the Brighton-Le-Sands RSL club and burning it in a reprisal attack following the Cronulla riot on December 11 last year. In Bidura Children's Court today, the teenager from Hurstville, who cannot be named, was ordered into youth conferencing with the club. He is expected to meet with diggers to discuss how the crime affected them and what the flag means to war...

CYCLONE Monica has forced the cancellation of Darwin's Anzac Day dawn service and march. The maximum strength, category five cyclone is about 550km east, north-east of Darwin and should reach Arnhem Land's west coast later today. Monica, which has winds of up to 350km/h at its core, is expected to reach Darwin and the Tiwi Islands by tomorrow. The cyclone has prompted the Darwin RSL to announce tomorrow's Anzac Day dawn service will be cancelled along with the 10am (AEST) march through Darwin's main streets. Darwin RSL manager Mussy Shaw today said the decision was made to protect both marchers...

Some descendants of wartime foes can march on Anzac Day, the Victorian RSL has ruled for the first time. But the ruling applies only to descendants of World War I Turkish soldiers, because they were "a very honorable" enemy, according to the Victorian RSL president, Major-General David McLachlan. The endorsement does not extend to families of German, Japanese, Italian or North Vietnamese. "I could never ever see, in Victoria, Japanese veterans of the Second World War marching in an Anzac Day march," Major-General McLachlan said. "They were a dreaded enemy that was despised by the Australian veterans." Much had been...

THE Federal Government today confirmed it would be boosting Australia's troop commitment to Afghanistan. Acting Prime Minister Mark Vaile said Defence Minister Robert Hill would make an announcement about sending two Chinook helicopters and 110 special forces soldiers this morning. "Senator Hill will announce this morning that we're sending two Chinook helicopters and about 110 personnel to Afghanistan, they'll be deployed as part of Australia's continuing commitment to the fight against terrorism," he told Southern Cross Broadcasting. Mr Vaile said the latest deployment would add to the 190 special forces troops already in Afghanistan. In September last year, elite special...

AUSTRALIAN troops dodged celebratory bullets in Baghdad as the New Year arrived in the Middle East today. In the freezing cold, soldiers from the Townsville-based 1st Battalion in the Royal Australian Regiment guarded the Australian Embassy in the Iraqi capital. According to the defence department, many Baghdad residents, in keeping with tradition, fired their weapons into the air to usher in the new year, sending thousands of bullets into the sky above the city. Australian troops took cover in helmets and body armour while the firing ran its course. "Doing surveillance duty in the cold is not the most glamorous...

A TROUPE of Australian entertainers gave up yuletide celebrations at home to provide Christmas cheer for 450 soldiers stationed in southern Iraq. The entertainers sacrificed the traditional family Christmas at home to put on a show for Diggers stationed with the Al Muthanna taskforce at a base near the town of As Samawah. Legendary performer Little Pattie, who entertained Australian and allied troops during the Vietnam War, led the Tour de Force concert. She was joined by country music singer Beccy Cole, Angry Anderson, former Australian Idol contestant Hayley Jensen, Bessie Bardot, Geoff Barker and comedian Lehmo. "I feel I'm...

VIETNAM veterans still suffering from the trauma of their war experiences may have passed on their mental health disorders to their children, research suggests. Psychologist Julie Salter has studied 70 families of Vietnam veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder in south-east Queensland over eight years. She has found the children, aged between 13 and into their 30s, are at significantly greater risk of suicide, anger, low self-esteem, drug and alcohol problems, depression and anxiety than the general population. "My own opinion as to why children are having more problems is the fact that Dad often is unable to form close relationships...

An announcement is expected to be made today to send Australian troops to Afghanistan, Treasurer Peter Costello says. "I expect that an announcement will be made today and full details of what the government has decided will be put forward," he told the Nine Network. Mr Costello refused to comment on the specific cost of sending troops to Afghanistan, but said Australia was able to make the commitment because many other operations involving military personnel were winding down. "I can tell you that over recent budgets there has been a very substantial build up in spending for defence, that's gone...

Is the risk to Australian soliders in Iraq too high?