Military Resettlement, Business, Training & Recruitment
Commissioner says complaints system in armed forces is too bureaucratic and should be simplified The way complaints by men and women in the armed forces about bullying, harassment, and discrimination are handled is ineffective, unfair and unacceptable, a report says. Dr Susan Atkins, the service complaints commissioner , castigates the way the system deals with cases concerning armed forces personnel
The photojournalist’s book about former soldiers – which coincides with the 10th anniversary of the invasion – shows the consequences of laying down your weapons and speaking out “After I made my public testimony about the atrocities I had experienced, my brother publicly disowned me on Facebook for everyone to see.
• failure to speak truth to power • mistakes repeated in Afghanistan Ten years ago today, thousands of British troops joined the US and invaded Iraq. They were unprepared and ill-equipped because their political masters did not want to alert parliament or the public in advance that Britain was about to embark on an unpopular and – as the most senior government lawyers warned, illegal – war. Thousands of words have been written and spoken to mark the tenth anniversary of the invasion.
Pakistan the main customer as Beijing exceeds Britain’s share of weapons market while remaining far behind US and Russia China has become the world’s fifth-largest arms exporter, according to a Swedish-based thinktank. It is China’s highest ranking since the cold war, with Pakistan the main recipient. China’s volume of weapons exports between 2008 and 2012 rose 162% compared with the previous five-year period, with its share of the global arms trade rising from 2% to 5%, said the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (Sipri).
It’s ten years since Iraq was invaded. What kind of country has been left behind – how many people died and what was the effect on the US and UK military
Court of appeal orders retrial after sergeant’s lawyers argue he was put under pressure to plead guilty An SAS sniper has had his convictions for illegally possessing a pistol and ammunition quashed by the court of appeal. Danny Nightingale, 38, of Crewe, Cheshire, had been sentenced to 18 months’ military detention by a judge sitting in a military court in November 2012 after admitting he should not have stored a Glock 9mm pistol and more than 300 rounds of ammunition at his army lodgings.
With army reservists set to fill gaps left by military cuts, it is time to seriously address their mental health needs The government plans to reduce the number of regulars in the British army to 82,000 by 2018 and increase the role played by reservists, bringing their numbers up to 30,000.
Authorities focus on alleged safety breaches after ranger was shot while resting in “secure area” in west Wales live-fire range A British soldier who died when he was hit by a machine-gun bullet at a live-firing range in west Wales was unlawfully killed, an inquest jury has ruled. Ranger Michael Maguire, 20, was shot in the head as he relaxed after removing his armour and helmet at the range in Pembrokeshire
Northern Ireland secretary rules out deployment of troops to back up police despite upsurge in violence The Northern Ireland secretary, Theresa Villiers, says the British army will not be returning to the Northern Ireland’s streets. The secretary of state ruled out deploying any soldiers to back up the Police Service of Northern Ireland to counter the continued threat from dissident republicans as well as the recent upsurge in loyalist street disorder linked to the union flag protests. Asked if troops might be needed to support the PSNI, Villiers told the BBC Politics Show on Sunday that there was “no prospect” of a military presence on the streets
Al-Sweady inquiry into allegations against British troops hears captured Iraqis were played recordings of screams to scare them Iraqis captured by British troops were told they had been taken to the notorious Abu Ghraib prison, used by Saddam Hussein and after the invasion by US forces, and said recordings of screams as though someone was being tortured were played to scare them, a public inquiry into allegations of murder and abuse of unarmed prisoners by UK forces heard on Wednesday. The prisoners alleged they were abused and humiliated after they were taken from a camp north of Basra to a British detention centre at Shaibah further south, Jonathan Acton Davis QC, counsel to the al-Sweady inquiry, said.
Al-Sweady inquiry into accusations against British troops opens with evidence of alleged signs of torture on prisoners A public inquiry into allegations that British troops murdered up to 20 unarmed prisoners and tortured five others following a fierce battle with Iraqi insurgents has opened in London with evidence that some of their death certificates recorded what were described as signs of severe mutilation. Several of the deceased were said to bear signs of torture after their corpses were handed back to their families by British personnel at Camp Abu Naji, while the Iraqi death certificates recorded that one man’s penis had been removed and two bodies were missing eyes, the inquiry was told on Monday. But there is a “stark dispute” between the relatives of the dead men and the Ministry of Defence over the way in which the deaths occurred, said Jonathan Acton Davis QC, counsel to the inquiry.
Predicted reductions in MoD budget could lead to drastic measures such as axing another 15,000 jobs, report says The armed forces may need to find up to £17bn of savings over the next decade unless ministers ring-fence the defence budget from further cuts – a target that would require drastic measures such as axing another 15,000 frontline jobs, according to a report published on Wednesday.
Defence select committee review urges appointment of Armed Forces Ombudsman to oversee cases of victimisation Military personnel have been deterred from making complaints about bullying and victimisation within the armed forces because of fears they will be put in the frontline for redundancy, a report warns today. The problem is another reason why the system for investigating harassment and other abuses should be overhauled and scrutinised by a new Armed Forces Ombudsman working outside the military chain of command, say MPs on the defence select committee.
Lord Richard Dannatt defends David Cameron’s hint that some of Britain’s £10bn aid budget could be used to fund military operations
WWI centenary likely to stir old controversies as Andrew Murrison says ‘Great War will be woven into everything’ The commemorations for the first world war will involve sombre reflection, proper consideration for the millions who died, and opportunities for a new generation to explore what happened and why. But focusing the world’s attention on a conflict that was supposed to have ended all wars is unlikely to pass off without controversy, as new generations question the decisions that led to millions being slaughtered. It will also stir emotions in the countries of the former British empire