100th British Fatality

[Roger the cabin boy]

It's being reported on the News that another British soldier has been killed in Iraq, taking the total number to 100.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/4665020.stm

Of course every death is as tragic as the others.... let us pray there won't be too many more, although I fear that is a rather hopeless wish.

God Bless them all.

[lasernigel]

RIP to all of them.
How many will we lose in Afghanistan as well??

Bliar's like the Grand old Duke of York,sadly with more troop reductions,low recruitment figures and moral at rock bottom 10,000 might become a reality one day!:*

[WE Branch Fanatic]

Terrible news. RIP. I echo the above sentiments.

[air pig]

Codolences to family, friends and Regiments of the two lads who have died under such tragic circumstances.

[LFFC]

What tragic news! My sincere condolences go to all friends and loved ones.

I have to say though, that I'm very dissappointed by the BBC's response on their news website - I can't find any mention of it on their front page. Whilst Sky News, The Times Online and several other news websites think it's worthy of their headline slot, the BBC seem to think that the Oscar nominations are more important! :mad:

[LFFC]

Ah - I see that the BBC's UK News website has just been updated. I wonder how many others have complained?

[The Helpful Stacker]

Another death resulting from political chest beating on the grandest scale.:mad:

Although understandable I do find the mothers comments a bit strange though. At 22 he is hardly the youngest person to have served in Iraq and although being in harms way is not desirable to parents the chances of it happening is nevertheless part and parcel of being in the Armed Forces.

Sorry if I sound harsh but there seems to be quite a lot of "my little Johnny didn't join the Army/RAF/RN to go to war" in the press at the mo.

[PPRuNeUser0211]

May those who have fallen at last find peace, every one of them has made a difference and we must remember that.

LFFC, in the beeb's defence it has been on tv news sometime today, earlier than the website was updated... guess the web man was on a coffee break.

Correct me if I'm wrong but I heard a report somewhere (can't remember where) say that this was the 67th reported as Killed in Action, with the remainder having died of natural causes? Anyone shed light on this?

[LFFC]

Then why does everyone else still seem to think that it's headline material?

I'm still annoyed at the BBC - their International News Front Page still only has a small link to the item at the bottom of the page under UK News. It doesn't even bother to have the link in their "Other Top Stories" section - or even in their "Also In the News" section! Whilst I think that training Indian police dogs is important, I really do think that the plight of our forces on international deployment is a more important story! Or maybe the BBC have been asked to bury the bad news as much as they can?

[PPRuNeUser0211]

Lffc,

Try the UK edition homepage?

<edit to correct my muppetness>

[LFFC]

pba_target

I think I pointed out that the UK site had been update in my earlier post at 13:05.

[Farmer 1]

"We will remember them," I hope.

Let us also not forget our American comrades, of whom over 1500 have been killed in combat in Iraq since "Mission Accomplished".

[PPRuNeUser0211]

LFFC, my bad... apologies for my goldfish memory...

Anyone any gen on this 67 vs 100 figure?

[Ad astra per aspera]

My codolences to family.

I can't seem to find a link to a transcript of Col. Tim Collins on Sky News this morning, very choice words & a spiel for which I give him two thumbs up for!

Aspera

Edited for link: http://www.sky.com/skynews/video/videoplayer/0,,31200-Iraq_P5265,00.html

[SASless]

Each one of the people lost are just as precious as any other lost. Whether you are the first, 100th, or last matters not. We should mourn each in their own right.




The BBC web site maintains a list with a brief description of the means of loss and usually a photograph of the person.

It appears that about one of three lost are due to accidents or natural causes. Accidental discharges of weapons, non-hostile gunshot wounds and auto accidents seem to be the leading causes of non-combat deaths.

[TacEval Inject]

PBA,

I think 67 is the number of people lost due to enemy action (and the like), with the rest being made up of accidents. I was unfortunate to be out there for one of the latter. That makes 2 repatriation ceremonies I have been present at, and I was in a right 2&8 for both. The cause of death does not make a blindest bit of difference at such occasions.

To all those who have given their lives, RIP.

To all their familes, friends, colleagues, you have my heart-felt sympathies, and I am thinking of you.

To everyone else out there, keep up the good work.

TI

[Brian Abraham]

At the going down of the sun
And in the morning
We will remember them

RIP

[Data-Lynx]

For pba_target and TI, the Times (http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,7374-2017916,00.html) reported the Defence Secretary: We’ve now seen 77 deaths through hostile action in Iraq and 23 (other) deaths, bringing the total to 100 from all causes.
The full list of honour is being maintained here (http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/NewsArticle.aspx?type=topNews&storyID=2006-01-31T103348Z_01_L31776093_RTRUKOT_0_TEXT0.xml&related=true) and, thanks to G-CPTN, some memories are here. (http://www.sky.com/skynews/picture_gallery/picture_gallery/0,,70141-1210848-4,00.html)

[PPRuNeUser0211]

DL,

Thanks, doesn't make them any easier to bear, does it? But just wanted to make sure I wasn't going mad along with the rest of the world...

[November4]

Terrible news again. Condolences to all the familes of all those lost.
The Sky list (http://www.sky.com/skynews/picture_gallery/picture_gallery/0,,70141-1210848-11,00.html)of those killed includes pictures but I wish they could get it right. That page lists Flt Lt David Williams, Tornado nav who was killed when shot down by a Patriot. But the pictures is of Cpl David Williams, killed when the Herc was shot down.

[Tigs2]

This is tragic news but please remember all of those who do not make the news! During the first three months of Op Telic alone there were 1450 casualties brought back to the uk Some of them were severly injured and we never hear about them in the news. I guess by now it is several thousand wounded.

[GeeRam]

This is tragic news but please remember all of those who do not make the news! During the first three months of Op Telic alone there were 1450 casualties brought back to the uk Some of them were severly injured and we never hear about them in the news. I guess by now it is several thousand wounded.
Funny you should say that, there was something on the TV news the other day about the MOD being reluctant to issue offcial numbers of wounded (unlike the USA)
Reid/MOD was cornered about it and came up with an official number being 230 odd, with about 4,000 being the offical number of repariations back to UK for medical treatment.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/4632394.stm

[November4]

Reid/MOD was cornered about it and came up with an official number being 230 odd

That figure seems very low....

Using the US figures (http://icasualties.org/oif/) of 2,243 killed and 16,420 wounded or.... 1 killed for every 7 wounded the British figure would be in the region of 700 wounded.

I know that this is a very crude way of looking at the stats but I find it hard to believe that there is such a difference between the ratios of wounded to killed between the US and UK troops.

[Trumpet_trousers]

Well said, Sir! (Read the last line in the link)

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,7374-2020989,00.html