If this jet was damaged in a rocket attack, I suspect that BDA won't have been too big a problem for Al Qaeda, while numerous local employees, UN civilians, etc will have witnessed exactly how much effort goes into rectification of any damage. The only people being kept in the dark by a press clampdown would therefore be the British people, unless you think that Al Q will be anxiously waiting for the London Times for BDA.
There may be a theoretical Opsec dimension here (and Pontius's point about the need for secrecy until force levels are restored is entirely legitimate), but on balance, I think that the taxpayer has a right to know the kind of costs being imposed by this operation, and feel sure that knowledge of this incident will help ensure that the politicians don't penny-pinch when it comes to airfield defence and to protecting you chaps in the future. If this were to be covered up, there'd always be the temptation to cut corners.
I thought that the majority of PPRuNers had a more realistic appreciation of what drives whether or not the 'Gurning Ape' spends money on defence....
and looking good/bad heads the list.