defence.professionals | defpro.com

defence.professionals | defpro.com: "British Wolfhound armoured vehicles go operational in Afghanistan�

British troops learn how to drive the new Wolfhound vehicle at a training area of Camp Bastion.
15:11 GMT, October 18, 2010 The British Army's newest heavyweight protected vehicle, Wolfhound, is now operational in Afghanistan, giving troops increased protection as they support missions in high-threat areas.

The six-wheeled Wolfhound joins Coyote and Husky as the biggest of the tactical support vehicle family.

Defence Secretary Dr Liam Fox said: 'Wolfhound's deployment on the front line marks a significant milestone for the range of vehicles our troops have at their disposal. Carrying essential combat supplies such as food, water and ammunition, the tactical support vehicle fleet is providing vital support to troops on front line patrols."

News Trends and Headlines | Seek4media - James Blunt glad to leave army

News Trends and Headlines | Seek4media - James Blunt glad to leave army: "James Blunt is 'glad' he isn't in the army any longer.

The British singer/songwriter was an officer in the Life Guards, a Cavalry regiment of the British Army, but left in 2002 to pursue his music career and says he is happy not to be ion service anymore because he doesn't support the British military's current involvement in Afghanistan.

He said: 'I'm glad I'm not in the Army now, as I wouldn't feel any great conviction for the way the war in Afghanistan is being approached by politicians. We need to look after our troops and equip them as best we can.'

Despite not supporting the decision to post troops into the Middle Eastern country, James plans to visit frontline troops in December to show them his support."

Officials ask Channel 4 to drop Prince Harry Afghanistan kidnap drama | Mail Online

Officials ask Channel 4 to drop Prince Harry Afghanistan kidnap drama | Mail Online

Inside Afghanistan: Captain Abi Bradley on patrol

Inside Afghanistan: Captain Abi Bradley on patrol: "By Jane Mingay (camera) and Roland Hancock (edit)
Telegraph.co.uk TV

In the first of an intimate set of portraits, Captain Abi Bradley of the Gurkha Rifles describes the particular challenges facing female soldiers operating in one of the world’s deadliest environments, the Helmand Province. The Telegraph joins Captain Abi Bradley on patrol with the men of the Gurkha Rifles.

To visit the Telegrapgh TV Website direct and watch the video click HERE

Further videos will be released by Telegraph TV through the week. Sergeant Carly Lambert talks about how she copes being away from her daughter in the UK. Lance Corporal Laura Roberts describes what life is like for a single girl surrounded by hundreds of young men while Lance Corporal Sophie Wright recounts how she recreates her home comforts. And Lance Corporal Ashton Mulligan, who joined up at 16, explains why she now has ambivalent feelings towards ‘home’. Each one of these remarkable women casts a different perspective on a long Afghan war.

"

Lieutenant Paddy Rice 'luckiest soldier in Afghanistan' after Taliban sniper shooting - Telegraph

Lieutenant Paddy Rice 'luckiest soldier in Afghanistan' after Taliban sniper shooting - Telegraph

Money talks in Afghanistan, says British army counter-insurgency manual | UK news | guardian.co.uk

Money talks in Afghanistan, says British army counter-insurgency manual | UK news | guardian.co.uk

Brown's Afghanistan Cuts

Former British commander in Afghanistan says Treasury is crippling war

(Heathcliff O'Malley)

Brigadier Ed Butler, who says the Treasury has hampered the British campaign in Afghanistan

Image :1 of 2

Michael Evans, Defence Editor

The British military operation in Afghanistan was crippled by a spending cap imposed by the Treasury, a former senior officer told MPs yesterday. Brigadier Ed Butler, who commanded 16 Air Assault Brigade in Helmand province in 2006, told the Defence Select Committee that the financial constraints meant that the Army could “just about hold the line, but couldn’t sustain a higher tempo” in its campaign against the Taleban.

The brigadier resigned his commission last year, claiming that he wanted to spend more time with his family. But his premature resignation was widely acknowledged to be in protest at the handling of operations.

His brigade suffered high casualties during its six-month tour. Thirty-five members of the Armed Forces died during the brigade’s tour of duty, although 14 of these were killed when an RAF Nimrod caught fire in mid-air and exploded.

Many soldiers who were killed by enemy action died in isolated outposts such as Musa Qala in northern Helmand where the Taleban launched multiple attacks on the district centre, which was being guarded by only a 30-man platoon.

Related Links

• Taliban will ‘never be defeated’

• Blast kills soldier, 19, in Afghanistan

• British soldier dies as Taleban chief killed

Brigadier Butler told the committee that in 2006 the Treasury had “capped” resources available for the operation, limiting funding to £1.3 billion for a “three-year campaign”. The Government has always denied imposing a cap on resources for the mission. “There was a Treasury-imposed cap on the number of troops we could have in Afghanistan,” he said.

With the troops available to him — 3,300 — “we could just about hold the line but we couldn’t sustain a higher tempo”. Brigadier Butler said he was visited by numerous ministers during his tour of command but not once by a Treasury minister.

The financial constraints resulted in a severe shortage of helicopters in the field and seriously hampered the ability of British forces to cover the ground, Brigadier Butler said.

He pointed out that in Northern Ireland there were 70 helicopters for 10,000 to 15,000 troops but in Afghanistan, with casualties rising steeply in the fiercest fighting since the Korean War, there were far fewer.

He said that the Taleban “forced us off the road” when they turned to “asymmetric warfare”, targeting the troops with roadside bombs. But there were not enough helicopters to move soldiers around Helmand province.

Brigadier Butler’s devastating exposé of the restrictions he had to deal with as he commanded his brigade appeared to contradict the public pledge made by Tony Blair when he was Prime Minister that the troops in Afghanistan could have whatever they wanted. Gordon Brown was Chancellor at the time.

Brigadier Butler was also highly critical of the overall government strategy towards Afghanistan. In 2006, he said, the main fighting was in the north of Helmand and efforts should have been made to start development and reconstruction programmes in the other areas. But nothing was done. “Whitehall was of the view that the whole of Helmand was burning, but actually it was about 6 per cent of the province where the real battles were going on,” he said.

The Government should have implemented development programmes in the first 100 days of the campaign, he said.

He told the MPs: “No one knew what type of campaign we were involved in. It came as a considerable shock when it was discovered what we were engaged in.”

The “tribal tapestry” in Whitehall was as complex as it was in Afghanistan, he said. In December 2005 he and other senior commanders and officials had gathered in Kandahar to work out what needed to be done in Helmand, but their recommendations “were not taken forward”.

He said that the officials working in Helmand from the Department for International Development were the most “risk-averse” of the civilians involved in the campaign, followed by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the security services.

Brigadier Butler was giving evidence about the so-called comprehensive strategy in Afghanistan under which all government departments are supposed to co-ordinate their work.

He said that a strong secretary of state was needed to ensure that everyone co-operated, and praised John Reid, who was Defence Secretary in 2006, for “knocking heads together”. “It needs someone with clout back home. . . if you want to go into these places [Afghanistan], you must go deep and go long or go home. . . and it must be properly resourced,” he said.

Fears of 'medal inflation' in the armed forces

Winston Churchill noted that: "A medal glitters but it also casts a shadow". He was of course referring to the envy that the award of military honour can arouse in those who miss out.

View Original Article

£50m to improve forces' housing is welcome but does not solve the problem of under-funding

DEFENCE Housing for the armed forces and their families is to be improved under a £50million modernisation plan. The money, brought forward from the budgets for the next two years, is part of a commitment to spend £3.1billion on forces’ accommodation over the next decade. But Commander John Muxworthy, of the UK National Defence Association, said the Chancellor had failed to increase overall defence spending despite expensive deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan. He said: “The money for housing is welcome but it is a ridiculous sop. There is already a £2billion black hole in the Defence budget. The offer does not address the issue and the Armed Forces are going to be even worse off.” Click here for full report.

Taliban publicly executes eloping young couple in Afghanistan’ Nimroz province

Ani

April 14th, 2009

KABUL - The Taliban has publicly executed a young unmarried couple in the southwestern province of Nimroz.

Confirming the incident, provincial governor Ghulam Dastageer Azad said couple was shot dead by extremists in front of a mosque after they were caught eloping.

“An unmarried young boy and an unmarried girl who loved each other and wanted to get married eloped because their families would not approve the marriage,” The News quoted Azad, as saying.

Terming the brutal incident an ‘insult to Islam’ he said local religious leaders had ordered a death sentence for the couple.

The incident once again brings to light the brutalities Afghan women are being subjected to in the country.

It is not only the extremists who treat women in the country as mere objects, but the government too seems to be backing the notion, as was evident from President Hamid Karzai’s controversial ‘rape law’.

The law, brought by President Karzai allowed Shiite men to demand sex from their wives every four days and keep them indoors indefinitely.

The law, which was leaked by an UN agency, stated that a Shiite woman must seek her husband’s permission to go outside which clearly subjugates the rights of women.

Facing severe international criticism over the issue, Karzai later ordered a review of the law saying he would send the bill back to parliament if it was found that women rights were being violated. (ANI)