Features
THE BATTLE OF BASRA
In March 2003, the tanks of the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards rumbled acro ss the Kuwaiti border toward Basra. The unit’s then commander shares his recollections of war in the cradle of civilisation
MEMBERS OF THE ROYAL SCOTS DRAGOON GUARDS MAKE PLANS FOR OPERATIONS IN BASRA. BRITISH COMMANDERS WERE TRYING TO ESTABLISH THE EXTENT OF THE OPPOSITION IN THE CITY AFTER A BRIEF RELIGIOUS UPRISING AGAINST SADDAM HUSSEIN'S SECURIT Y SERVICES
PA/TOPFOTO
For Lieutenant-Colonel Hugh Blackman, Christmas 2002 was an endless drip-feed of speculation, rumour and hearsay that characterised the days and nights spent at home.
Failing diplomacy with Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein had typified the past year, compounded by a continuous carousel of UN resolutions lobbied against the supposed proprietor of weapons of mass destruction. With Western states scrambling for a casus belli, plans were drafted, scrapped and begun anew.
