UK Paratroopers on secret Afghan missions
The British army has assigned paratroopers to missions in Afghanistan, for the first time in more than 50 years, it has been revealed.
Paratroopers from the first Battalion the Parachute Regiment dropped from RAF Hercules planes onto areas in and around the southern province of Helmand to take on unsuspecting Taliban insurgents, British media reported.
The troops used low-level parachutes, allowing them to jump from just 250 feet.
“These are small operations with no more than a company group. They go out the door to secure ground and attack the enemy,” a source said.
Paratroopers have not jumped into action since the Suez crisis in 1956. All three Parachute Regiment battalions are in southern Afghanistan.
More than 100 troopers have taken part in secret missions in the war-wracked country over recent months.
The war there has claimed 102 British troops' lives so far this year.
The British military's death toll in Afghanistan has topped 347 since the 2001 US-led invasion of the country.
Britain has deployed almost 10,000 troops in Afghanistan.
The troops used low-level parachutes, allowing them to jump from just 250 feet.
“These are small operations with no more than a company group. They go out the door to secure ground and attack the enemy,” a source said.
Paratroopers have not jumped into action since the Suez crisis in 1956. All three Parachute Regiment battalions are in southern Afghanistan.
More than 100 troopers have taken part in secret missions in the war-wracked country over recent months.
The war there has claimed 102 British troops' lives so far this year.
The British military's death toll in Afghanistan has topped 347 since the 2001 US-led invasion of the country.
Britain has deployed almost 10,000 troops in Afghanistan.
MOL/TG/ HE
No comments:
Post a Comment