British servicemen held in Iraq

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http://www.sky.com/skynews/article/0...196214,00.html

SERVICEMEN HELD IN IRAQ
Two British servicemen have been arrested in Iraq amid allegations they fired on police in Basra.

A senior Iraqi official said British military sources had told him the men were undercover soldiers in civilian clothes.

The official said: "They were driving a civilian car and were dressed in civilian clothes when a shooting took place between them and Iraqi patrols.

"We are investigating and an Iraqi judge is on the case questioning them."

It is understood the men were detained following clashes between British soldiers and protesters, during which two tanks were set on fire.

Witnesses said demonstrators had thrown stones at the British tanks and troops fired warning shots back.

Soldiers then jumped from the vehicles when they were set on fire and withdrew without any further shots being fired.

A Ministry of Defence spokesman said: "We can confirm that two military personnel were detained by Iraqi authorities earlier today."

The spokesman refused to comment on reports the men were working undercover and said the exact reason for their detention was not yet known.

also a tank was attacked and the video shown on Five news, and im quite angry after watching it, a soldier jumps out of the tank thats almost engulfed in flames and he gets pelted with rocks and kicks off the tank and thats the last thats seen of him, unknown if hes ok or injured

[Sal UK]

Originally posted by BB
http://www.sky.com/skynews/article/0...196214,00.html



also a tank was attacked and the video shown on Five news, and im quite angry after watching it, a soldier jumps out of the tank thats almost engulfed in flames and he gets pelted with rocks and kicks off the tank and thats the last thats seen of him, unknown if hes ok or injured

Here is the story to go with it m8...



Brit soldiers in Basra tank inferno

19/09/2005 16:44

Dramatic pictures have emerged of a British army tank being pelted with petrol bombs in the Iraqi city of Basra.

The tank is seen coming under attack, apparently from petrol bombs. A crowd gathers around as it tries to reverse away from trouble.

The film then shows one soldier climbing out of the tank's hatch and jumping clear of it as the crowd pelt him with stones.

Amazingly, Ministry of Defence sources have said that none of the soldiers in the tanks was seriously injured.

Reports suggest that in fact two Army tanks were set upon after they had been sent to collect two British personnel in Iraqi police custody.

The jailed men - who were in civilian clothes - had been arrested after a shooting incident with local police in which one Iraqi is reported to have died.

Basra has been relatively stable compared to central Iraq, where Sunni Arab insurgents have killed thousands of Iraqi and American forces, officials and civilians with suicide attacks, roadside bombs and shootings.

British forces have suffered far less casualties than their American allies.

Source: NTLWorld

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Originally posted by Sal UK
[B]Here is the story to go with it m8...

video (IE. requiered)

http://skyscape.sky.com/redirect.jsp...8&site=MSITE05

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also today this was put up

http://www.sky.com/skynews/article/0...442083,00.html

UK TROOPS ON HIGH ALERT
British troops in Iraq are on high alert as the crisis over the rescue of two British soldiers, arrested for allegedly shooting at Iraqi police, threatens to escalate further.

The incident led to an outbreak of violence, with crowds of protesters surrounding two British armoured vehicles outside Basra jail and setting them alight with petrol bombs.

British soldiers were pictured escaping from the vehicles, their clothes alight, although they were not badly injured.

Officials in Iraq say the incident was sparked by British soldiers working undercover who were in a civilian car which drove through an Iraqi checkpoint.

Police said the British soldiers opened fire, and Iraqi police responded.

Army commander Brigadier John Lorimer said that afterwards, the soldiers should have been handed over "but that did not happen" despite repeated requests.

"From an early stage, I had good reason to believe that the lives of the two soldiers were at risk and troops were sent to the area of Basra near the police station to help ensure their safety by providing a cordon," he said.

"Later...we received information that they had been handed over to militia elements.

"As a result, I took the difficult decision to order entry to the Jamiat police station. By taking this action we were able to confirm that the soldiers were no longer being held by the ISP (Iraqi police).

The men had been taken from the jail and were eventually freed from a house in Basra.

The country's authorities accused the British military of storming the jail with tanks.

Defence Secretary John Reid told Sky News that only a wall surrounding the jail compound had been damaged, by an armoured personnel carrier.

He said he no information about reports that 150 Iraqi prisoners escaped as a result of the operation.

More than 8,000 British troops are stationed in Basra - many involved in training Iraqi police officers.

The incident comes as there are renewed calls for British forces to withdraw from Iraq.

in the pictures section of the story there is some horrific pictures