Basra: What really happenedBy Terri Judd
Published: 14 January 2006
The young soldiers in flames jumping from their Warrior vehicles into a seething crowd provided some of the defining images of British troops' tour of duty in Iraq.
More than any other moment since the official start of "peacekeeping", it brought home the reality faced by troops in an increasingly turbulent nation.
The Defence Secretary, John Reid, was quick to play down the severity of the clashes last September. It was merely a "limited", controlled event against a small crowd, the Ministry of Defence said. The minister offered reassurances that none of the soldiers was seriously injured and would be back on duty soon.
But an investigation by The Independent has revealed that the violence was much more widespread and one of the youngest soldiers in the Warriors that day is still in hospital four months later, suffering from terrible burns. Nineteen-year-old Pte Karl Hinett is still undergoing treatment for 37 per cent burns.
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http://news.independent.co.uk/world/middle_east/article338500.ece