Thread: Australian troops in Iraq withdrawl

[quote=Disco_owner;756378]
"The Australian battle group is pulling out," the British military spokesman said.

Since handing over security of Dhi Qar province to the Iraqis, the main role of the Australian battle group has been to train and support Iraqi forces.


The British military spokesman said Australian civilians training the police and advising the Iraqi government would also stay behind.




The Brits must know more than the aussies, the group I was with are out and as far as I know, the aussie civilian trainers are all out. While we all wait for the iraqis to decide on there next level of training.
The yanks have most of the training gigs and everything else for that matter.


john

Originally Posted by DirtyDawg

No Australian has died in combat in Iraq.


You have to be in Combat to die in it..Pretty hard to happen when your wrapped up in cotton wool by your Government and in the green zone 99% of the time....
My mates are peed off over there with their hands tied.

Conversly they are loving the Stan...lots of firefights ,lots of kills most field force soldiers love doing the real soldier thing.
Had a BBQ two months ago and some of the stories coming back are awesome, not to many Afghannies killed, mostly Packies down south.

It's probably easy to say that in Australia, but I don't get the impression thats its necessarily quite like that in reality. There is a reason why they all are sleeping in bunkers in their room, that they always have to wear bullet proof vests and that they are being bombed in the compounds and that there were people killed in a car bombing outside of the compounds. I wouldn't call that wrapped in cotton wool. We've already had the "I'm ok phone calls". It's not a game, it's very real despite them all wanting to get into Afghanistan.

[quote=JohnE;756655]

Originally Posted by Disco_owner

"The Australian battle group is pulling out," the British military spokesman said.

Since handing over security of Dhi Qar province to the Iraqis, the main role of the Australian battle group has been to train and support Iraqi forces.


The British military spokesman said Australian civilians training the police and advising the Iraqi government would also stay behind.




The Brits must know more than the aussies, the group I was with are out and as far as I know, the aussie civilian trainers are all out. While we all wait for the iraqis to decide on there next level of training.
The yanks have most of the training gigs and everything else for that matter.


john

The aussies are still in there training the Iraqi forces. Is this what you were questioning?

Originally Posted by Disco_owner

Sydney-based freelance photographer Stephen Dupont, 41, and his colleague, Paul Rafael, were in a car about 20m from the blast which tore through a team in the small town of Khogyani who were preparing to eradicate opium poppy fields in eastern Afghanistan.

It is believed Mr Rafael was airlifted to the air base hospital at Jalalabad after the blast.

Mr Dupont, a winner at last year's Walkley Awards, was not physically injured, but badly shaken by the blast, he told friend and journalist Sophie Berry in Afghanistan.

"Steve called me straight after the bomb went off," Ms Berry said. "He was fine, absolutely fine. He was shaken."

A man claiming to be a Taliban commander for the region named Qari Sajad told an AFP reporter by telephone the suicide bombing was carried out by a Taliban militant.

Afghanistan's interior ministry said 19 people - 12 police and seven civilians - were killed and 41 others were wounded.

Witnesses said the blast left the area covered in flesh and blood.

Australian journalists injured in suicide blast | NEWS.com.au

Paul Rafael shielded Steve in the blast, (it was on his side of the car) he was peppered with shrapnel and still has a few pieces wedged in his brain. They were much closer than 20m.
Steve kept filming and taking pics the whole time, typical journo, even though he was in shock and dazed. It was bloody and graphic, and I'm sure they heavily edited what went to air.
The Taliban used a 12 year old this time.......