Woolwich attack victim Lee Rigby’s family remember ‘man who loved people’ – video
The family of Drummer Lee Rigby pay tribute to the soldier who was killed in Woolwich
Military Resettlement, Business, Training & Recruitment
Military Resettlement, Business, Training & Recruitment
The family of Drummer Lee Rigby pay tribute to the soldier who was killed in Woolwich
Woolwich attack victim who served in Afghanistan during one of worst periods of fighting, dies on London street Lee Rigby was born in Manchester, spent a year in Cyprus, and served for six months in Afghanistan with the military during one of the most violent periods of the 12-year-long conflict. His friends and family could never have imagined that the 25-year-old would lose his life in broad daylight, on a busy London street, at the hands of two men wielding knives and boasting allegiance to a virulent form of Islamist extremism.
Officials have contacted relatives of dead man, who is believed to have served in Afghanistan Scotland Yard has confirmed that the victim of the Woolwich machete attack was a serving soldier. Though he has not yet been formally named, the Guardian understands he had undertaken one six-month tour of Afghanistan and was stationed at the Royal Artillery Barracks in Woolwich
Eyewitnesses in shock as two men hack soldier to death in full public view, then ask for passersby to take photographs of them A meat cleaver is clasped in his blood-smeared left hand; the other – also stained red with human blood – waves manically as he shouts at the camera, ranting his justification for the atrocity on the streets of south-east London. At about the same time, in the nearby Musgrave primary school, the headteacher David Dixon ordered a lockdown after seeing the body of a man – believed to be a young soldier – lying on John Wilson street. If there was any doubt why this young man, who witnesses said was aged in his early 20s and wearing a Help for Heroes T-shirt, had lost his life in such a brutal fashion, that was soon quashed
Government revises earlier plan to leave most army interpreters in Afghanistan after pullout, risking Taliban reprisals About half the Afghan interpreters risking their lives for British troops are to be given settlement rights in the UK under a reworked package prepared by the coalition government.
• Suicide rate of veterans similar to that of general population • Vets more healthy than population as a whole • Health care and protecting soldiers increase cost of conflict • Questions over role of army in future conflicts The claim, often repeated in the media and by veterans’ groups, that more Falklands vets had killed themselves than died fighting in the actual conflict, has been roundly rejected by a study especially commissioned by the Ministry of Defence. For years there have been reports that the suicide toll of Falklands vets exceeded the 255 who were killed in action during the conflict thirty years ago. The MoD statistical study, released on Tuesday, concludes that the risk of dying as a result of suicide for the Falklands vets was no different from the general population of the UK
Report warns of problems with Joint Strike Fighter and exposes costs of MoD U-turns The hi-tech jets that will be flown from the Royal Navy’s two new aircraft carriers cannot land on the ships in “hot, humid and low pressure weather conditions”, a report warns today. The version of the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) that has been bought for the £5.5bn carriers is still in development but currently cannot land vertically – as its predecessor the Harrier jump jet could – in warm climates without jettisoning heavy payloads, the National Audit Office says.
MPs have in the past asked in the Commons whether Geidt – now the Queen’s private secretary – was a member of MI6 When the Queen turned around to reveal herself as James Bond’s spymaster in a skit for the opening ceremony of the London Olympics, jaws dropped in living rooms around the country at the audacity and humour. But for those that know Sir Christopher Geidt, the Queen’s highly trusted private secretary who has been credited with her deft presentation in recent years, it was more a case of eyebrows raised. Geidt, 63, now in his sixth year by the Queen’s side at Buckingham Palace, has a past that includes suggestions of involvement in and around the secret services.
Owner of Aberporth base, where unmanned aerial vehicles take off for tests over land and sea, says public fears are illogical It is an odd little airfield, not far from Aberporth in west Wales, a former fishing village that now survives thanks to tourists with a taste for hill walking, windswept beaches and bracing swims in Cardigan Bay. Few of the visitors venture to the former RAF base close by, and those that do are unlikely to know this small site, which was first established in the early years of the second world war, is pioneering some of the most controversial technologies in modern conflict. The Ministry of Defence uses this privately owned airfield to test its “drones” – unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs)
Survivors of Iraq attacks to seek £7m compensation as judge describes fraud as ‘callous confidence trick’ The survivors of lethal Baghdad truck bombs driven through checkpoints equipped with fake bomb detectors are to lay claim to at least £7m of the assets of the Somerset fraudster who sold them. An Old Bailey judge sentenced Jim McCormick, 57, to 10 years in jail on Thursday for a fraud he described as the worst he could imagine and “a callous confidence trick”. Now a list of around 200 people either injured or related to the 95 killed in a double bombing on the Iraqi ministries of justice and foreign affairs in 2009 will be presented to the UK authorities
James McCormick, who sold more than £55m worth of fake detectors likely to have caused Iraqi deaths, jailed for 10 years A fraudster who sold more than £55m worth of fake bomb detectors to Iraq and other security hot spots has been jailed for 10 years.
Sergeant Danny Nightingale pleaded not guilty to charges after having conviction quashed by appeal court judges An SAS sniper faces a retrial over illegally possessing a pistol and ammunition – despite a last-minute claim prosecutors acted improperly by consulting on the case. Sergeant Danny Nightingale on Wednesday pleaded not guilty to illegally possessing a Glock 9mm pistol and more than 300 rounds of ammunition.
A former bomb disposal operator says he is surprised at the deaths of three British soldiers in Afghanistan, as they were in a heavily-armoured vehicle
The Mastiff is one of a number of protected patrol vehicles used by the British in Afghanistan that have helped to reduce the number of troops killed and injured by roadside improvised explosive devices
Heavily armoured vehicle has previously been praised by soldiers for its resilience in bomb attacks The Ministry of Defence has said that three soldiers who were killed in Helmand province after a roadside bomb attack were travelling in the latest Mastiff 3 armoured vehicle. The US-made Mastiff has previously been praised by soldiers for its resilience in bomb attacks
David Cameron pays tribute to soldiers after explosion that also injured another six UK service personnel Three British soldiers have been killed and several others injured after the heavily armoured vehicle they were travelling in was hit by a large roadside bomb while they were on a routine patrol in Afghanistan. The Ministry of Defence said on Wednesday the men had been killed on Tuesday in the Nahr-e Saraj district of Helmand province, on the border of Kandahar just north of the provincial capital Lashkar Gah. It is understood six other Britons were injured in the explosion, which happened while the soldiers were inside a Mastiff troop carrier – a 15-tonne vehicle which is regarded as one of the safest operated by the British military
Announcement expected to say that everyday management of Defence Equipment & Support will be handed to private sector Ministers are poised to announce the next stage of controversial reforms that will give private firms a chance to run the organisation that buys and supplies billions of pounds’ worth of defence equipment to the British military. The Treasury has given the green light to proposals that will open up the possibility of part-privatising Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S) , the body within the Ministry of Defence in charge of procuring everything from new warships to lightbulbs
Charities have accused the Ministry of Defence of recruiting child soldiers, but it argues that military life offers a wide range of benefit to under-18s In the UK, 16-year-olds cannot vote, drive a car or drink alcohol. But they can join the army, and this week two charities, Child Soldiers International and ForcesWatch, accused the Ministry of Defence of perpetuating the ” outdated ” practice of recruiting children into the forces.The charities argued that the government was wasting taxpayers’ money – as much as £94m a year – recruiting 16-year-olds into the army
Remains of John Pritchard and Christopher Elphick buried with full military honours at the HAC Cemetery near Arras The remains of two first world war soldiers have been finally laid to rest, almost a century after they were killed in action.
Thomas de Maizière says David Cameron seems not to have recognised profound defence implications of move Britain’s standing as a leading military power with the ability to influence events beyond its own borders will be jeopardised if the country leaves the European Union, the German minister of defence has warned. In an interview with the Guardian , Thomas de Maizière insisted the defence implications for Britain, Europe and Nato would be profound, and said this was an aspect of the argument David Cameron did not appear to have recognised.
Nick Harvey says Ministry of Defence cannot afford new Trident fleet and everything else needed by armed forces Plans to spend billions of pounds on a like-for-like replacement of Britain’s Trident nuclear submarine fleet are based on “outdated and ludicrous” ideas about deterrence, a former armed forces minister has warned.
David Cameron expected to make decision on Tuesday affecting up to 1,100 Afghans who risked lives working with UK forces Hundreds of Afghan interpreters who have risked their lives working with UK forces in Helmand province could be offered relocation to Britain this week when David Cameron reviews the issue at a meeting of the National Security Council. The prime minister has been given three broad options and is expected to make a decision on Tuesday that could affect up to 1,100 Afghan nationals – including more than 600 interpreters, who could be in grave danger from reprisals once Nato forces have left Afghanistan in 2014
The first great funeral for a commoner was for an actor, David Garrick, in 1779.
Margaret Thatcher’s funeral will cost around £10m, although we won’t know the exact figure – and how much of it is being spent by the state – until afterwards. What else can £10m pay for? Here are some ideas … •
A full military dress rehearsal for the ceremonial funeral procession for the late former prime minister Margaret Thatcher took place early on Monday in London
UN report reveals rapid growth of poppy farming as western troops get ready to withdraw, which reflects badly on Britain Twelve years after the fall of the Taliban, Afghanistan is heading for a near-record opium crop as instability pushes up the amount of land planted with illegal but lucrative poppies, according to a bleak UN report. The rapid growth of poppy farming as western troops head home reflects particularly badly on Britain, which was designated “lead nation” for counter-narcotics work over a decade ago
Annual Afghan casualty figures have fallen for the first time since the invasion. How many people have died? • British dead and wounded in Afghanistan, month by month • Get the Afghan civilian casualties data A NATO airstrike on Monday left 11 Afghan civilians (10 of whom were children) dead