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Allied forces must be better prepared for `friendly` fire: UK
London, July 08: The Iraq war showed that coalition forces must be better prepared to avoid `friendly fire` and to switch quickly from fighting to peacekeeping roles, the British government has said.
London, July 08: The Iraq war showed that coalition forces must be better prepared to avoid "friendly fire" and to switch quickly from fighting to peacekeeping roles, the British government has said.
In its first analysis of the war, the Ministry of Defence said yesterday the conflict showed how successful militaries can be when they are prepared for the rapid deployment of highly coordinated air, ground and naval forces.
During the war, Britain's 46,000 personnel won important victories in southern cities such as Basra that helped US ground forces bypass the region in their rapid march toward Baghdad, the Iraqi capital. The British forces also cleared mines from Umm Qasr Port in the south to open it to humanitarian aid for Iraqis, and used helicopters, warplanes, missiles and special forces to play key roles in an operation overwhelmingly US-shaped and led," the report said.
But the study - entitled "Operation in Iraq: First Reflections" - also acknowledged that British and US forces weren't adequately equipped or trained to avoid "friendly fire" clashes.
During the fighting leading up to the fall of Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, "friendly fire" and other accidents accounted for 22 of the 32 deaths in the British military. "The ability confidently and quickly to distinguish between friendly and enemy troops is a vital but complex part of modern warfare, not least when operating in a coalition," the study said.
Bureau Report
During the war, Britain's 46,000 personnel won important victories in southern cities such as Basra that helped US ground forces bypass the region in their rapid march toward Baghdad, the Iraqi capital. The British forces also cleared mines from Umm Qasr Port in the south to open it to humanitarian aid for Iraqis, and used helicopters, warplanes, missiles and special forces to play key roles in an operation overwhelmingly US-shaped and led," the report said.
But the study - entitled "Operation in Iraq: First Reflections" - also acknowledged that British and US forces weren't adequately equipped or trained to avoid "friendly fire" clashes.
During the fighting leading up to the fall of Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, "friendly fire" and other accidents accounted for 22 of the 32 deaths in the British military. "The ability confidently and quickly to distinguish between friendly and enemy troops is a vital but complex part of modern warfare, not least when operating in a coalition," the study said.
Bureau Report