Military news

• UK politics: Reform UK mayoral candidate apologises for Lammy ‘go home’ tweet – as it happened

  09-01-2026 17:15
  Chris Parry, who is contending for the Hampshire and Solent mayoralty, says his post was intended ‘ironically’Downing Street has defended its decision to single out pubs for special help with the problems created by rising business rate costs.At the No 10 lobby briefing this morning, the PM’s spokesperson confirmed that a package of measures to help pubs will be unveiled in the coming days. But he did not give any further details.We recognise that pubs are at the heart of our c
  
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• Farage accused of ‘parroting Kremlin lines’ after remarks on UK troops in Ukraine

  08-01-2026 12:20
  Pat McFadden says stance on potential peace deployment casts doubt on Reform leader’s commitment to national securityNigel Farage has been accused of “parroting Kremlin lines” after saying that he would vote against any UK government plans to deploy the military in Ukraine.On Tuesday, Britain and France said they would be ready to send troops to Ukraine after a peace deal, but the Reform UK leader said he would vote against any such move to put boots on the ground. Continue rea
  
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• Coalition of the willing must be ‘robust’ to deal with Russia, warns ex-US general

  08-01-2026 06:00
  Ben Hodges says multinational force to aid Ukraine would need thousands of troops to stop Russia breaking ceasefireAn Anglo-French led stabilisation force for Ukraine would have to deploy thousands of combat troops if it is to successfully dissuade Russia from breaking a post-war ceasefire, according to a former commanding general of the US army in Europe.Ben Hodges said the proposed multinational force, discussed this week by the British and French leaders with Ukraine’s president Volodym
  
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• Why has Trump seized a Russian-linked oil tanker? – The Latest

  07-01-2026 19:11
  The US has dramatically seized a Russian-flagged oil tanker between the UK and Iceland, with the support of the UK government. The operation comes after US attacks on Venezuela, the abduction of President Nicolas Maduro, and threats against Greenland. Lucy Hough speaks to Russian affairs correspondent Pjotr Sauer Continue reading...
  
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• UK helped US seize Russian-flagged tanker, defence ministry says

  07-01-2026 17:23
  John Healey confirms RAF provided extra surveillance and navy refuelling while capture under wayEurope live – latest updatesBritain’s Ministry of Defence said it had provided military help to the US forces that seized a Russian-flagged oil tanker north-west of Britain and Ireland, arguing the operation was legitimate because the vessel had breached sanctions on Iran.John Healey, the defence secretary, said the UK had allowed US aircraft to use bases to prepare for and carry out the m
  
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• Man fined for dressing as fake admiral at Remembrance Sunday event

  05-01-2026 14:53
  Jonathan Carley, 65, ordered to pay nearly £800 after pleading guilty to attending ceremony in Royal Navy uniform without permissionA man has been fined after he admitted dressing as an admiral without permission at a Remembrance Sunday event.Jonathan Carley, 65, pleaded guilty to wearing uniform bearing the mark of his majesty’s forces without permission and was fined £500, and ordered to pay £85 costs and a £200 surcharge, at Llandudno magistrates court on Monday.
  
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• British and French aircraft attack underground Islamic State weapons store in Syria

  04-01-2026 00:06
  Guided bombs used to target tunnels at site near to city of Palmyra in raid intended to ‘eliminate dangerous terrorists’British and French aircraft have carried out a joint strike on an underground facility in Syria that had been occupied by Islamic State, the UK Ministry of Defence has said.Guided bombs were used to target access tunnels to the site, in the mountainous region near the ancient city of Palmyra in the centre of the country, on Saturday evening. Continue reading...
  
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• ‘Truly humbling’: inside the centre where UK medics are helping Ukrainian amputees

  02-01-2026 06:00
  British military doctors and therapists provide support at base where innovative treatments aid recovery of those who have lost limbsAt a specialist treatment centre in Ukraine, as other amputees play volleyball nearby, Vladislav shows a video on his phone of how he lost his left leg. He found the footage – of a drone closing in rapidly on a buggy, Vladislav standing exposed at its rear – on a Russian military social media channel.The 31-year-old, an arbitration lawyer before Russia
  
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• Blair pressured officials over case of UK soldiers accused of beating Iraqi man to death, files show

  30-12-2025 06:00
  Then PM wrote on note from aide in 2005 that case ‘must not’ be dealt with in civil court, archives revealCabinet Office accused of covering up for royal family after blocking release of Andrew documents‘Too complacent’: how Blair’s advisers misjudged his disastrous WI speechBrown’s allies could wreck Labour’s 2005 election hopes, Mandelson warnedTony Blair put pressure on officials to ensure that British soldiers accused of beating an Iraqi man to death
  
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• Ministry of Defence to offer gap year–style scheme to young people

  27-12-2025 12:00
  Pilot programme for under-25s will offer paid placements aimed at introducing participants to military lifeYoung people in Britain will be offered a gap year-style scheme by the Ministry of Defence, in an effort to introduce citizens to military life early as part of a new “whole of society” approach to defence.After initially announcing plans to implement the scheme earlier this year, the government has now confirmed that about 150 under-25s will be recruited for the pilot programme
  
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• UK politics: Polanski claims Green support surging in London as five Labour councillors defect in Brent – as it happened

  15-12-2025 19:07
  Party leader says Labour ‘has abandoned any sense of progressive politics’In his Q&A, Danny Kruger was also asked whether he was concerned whether the Guardian reports about people at school with Nigel Farage saying they recall him being racist as a pupil, which have been widely followed up, and the party’s response to them, which has alternated between outright denial and suggestions that any comments were banter, or taken out of context, or misremembered, have damaged the
  
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• Who is Al Carns? Former Marine and Labour minister with sights on leadership

  13-12-2025 15:00
  Ex-special forces colonel, who is sounding alarm on Russia, has risen swiftly to role of armed forces ministerA former special forces colonel, government minister Al Carns was this week on manouevres warning that the UK needs to be preparing for war with Russia.“The shadow of war is knocking on Europe’s door once more. That’s the reality. We’ve got to be prepared to deter it,” he said, in comments that go beyond previous warnings by his boss, the defence secretary,
  
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• Donald Trump is pursuing regime change – in Europe | Jonathan Freedland

  12-12-2025 18:36
  The US made it clear this week that it plans to help the parties of the European far right gain power. Keir Starmer and his fellow leaders have to face this new realityWhen are we going to get the message? I joked a few months back that, when it comes to Donald Trump, Europe needs to learn from Sex and the City’s Miranda Hobbes and realise that “He’s just not that into you”. After this past week, it’s clear that understates the problem. Trump’s America is not
  
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• ‘He served with honour’: Starmer pays tribute to British soldier killed in Ukraine

  10-12-2025 18:52
  L/Cpl George Hooley, 28, reportedly died in accident away from frontline while observing test with Ukrainian soldiersThe British soldier who died in Ukraine on Tuesday has been named as L/Cpl George Hooley, 28, of the Parachute regiment.Keir Starmer told the Commons on Wednesday that Hooley had died in a “tragic accident” away from the frontlines while watching a test of “a new defensive capability” with members of the Ukrainian military. Continue reading...
  
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• Member of UK armed forces killed in ‘tragic accident’ in Ukraine, says MoD

  09-12-2025 19:30
  Ministry says Briton, who has not publicly been named, was injured while observing a test, away from the frontlineA member of the UK armed forces died on Tuesday morning after an accident in Ukraine, believed to be the first time a serving member of the British military has been killed in the country since the full-scale Russian invasion.The victim was not immediately named, though the Ministry of Defence said their family had been notified, after an incident that appears to have taken place dur
  
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• Britain’s ‘golden egg’: how IRA agent Freddie Scappaticci was protected to the end

  09-12-2025 18:25
  ‘Agent Stakeknife’, who carried out sadistic killings then was helped to relocate to England, only once saw the inside of a courtroomMI5 impeded inquiry into Stakeknife agent who murdered for IRA, says official report‘I’m not going to hide again’: Stakeknife report met with relief by victims’ familiesWhen Freddie Scappaticci, 77, suffered the stroke on the morning of 16 February 2023 that would kill him, he had not worked for two decades.It was nevertheless in
  
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• British troops accused of human rights violations and sexual abuse in Kenya

  03-12-2025 20:00
  Kenyan parliament says UK army training unit ‘dismissed most complaints as false, without publishing its findings’A report by the Kenyan parliament into the conduct of troops stationed at a British military base close to the town of Nanyuki in Kenya has alleged human rights violations, environmental destruction and sexual abuse by British soldiers.The inquiry into the British Army Training Unit in Kenya (Batuk) was carried out by Kenya’s departmental committee on defencе,
  
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• Special forces chief tried to cover up concerns about SAS conduct in Afghanistan, inquiry told

  01-12-2025 01:01
  Whistleblower says chain of command failed to stop extrajudicial shootings, including of children, after alarm was raisedThe former director of UK special forces and other senior military officers tried to cover up concerns that SAS units were carrying out unlawful killings in Afghanistan, an inquiry has heard.A senior special forces whistleblower said the chain of command failed to stop extrajudicial shootings, including of two small children, after the alarm was first raised in early 2011. Tha
  
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• Taliban used discarded UK kit to track down Afghans who worked with west, inquiry hears

  28-11-2025 18:33
  Whistleblower tells Afghan leak inquiry those affected were told to move and change phone numbers to protect themselves The UK left behind sensitive technology allowing the Taliban to track down Afghans who worked with western forces, a whistleblower has told the Afghan leak inquiry.The woman, known as Person A, said Afghans affected by the data leak were told to move homes and change their phone numbers to protect themselves from the Taliban because it had the resources to track them down. Cont
  
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• British army halts Ajax vehicle training as noise and vibrations make soldiers ill

  26-11-2025 16:06
  Deployment paused after about 30 troops became sick while training to use heavily delayed £10m vehiclesThe British army has paused the use of its Ajax armoured vehicles after troops became unwell from noise and vibration.About 30 soldiers had become ill when training to use the vehicle over the weekend and the deployment had been halted for two weeks for an investigation, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) said. Continue reading...
  
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• Uk politics: Streeting defends asylum policy, but says he’s not ‘comfortable’ with forced removal of children – as it happened

  19-11-2025 18:31
  Health secretary still maintains that forced removals are ‘right thing to do for the country’Healey is now taking questions.Q: How close are are we to war?It is Labour that is the party of defence. Continue reading...
  
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• 'We are ready': Russian spy ship in British waters, says UK defence secretary – video

  19-11-2025 15:32
  A Russian spy ship has entered British waters and shone lasers at military pilots, the defence secretary, John Healey, has said. He said it was the second time the Yantar, designed to gather intelligence and map underwater cables, had been deployed to UK waters this year. Healey said a Royal Navy frigate and RAF P-8 planes had been deployed to track the vessel and continued: 'So my message to Russia and to Putin is this: we see you, we know what you’re doing, but if the Yantar travels sout
  
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• Russian spy ship enters British waters and shines lasers at military pilots

  19-11-2025 14:12
  Defence secretary reveals details of recent incursions as he warns UK is facing ‘new era of threat’ from hostile countries A Russian spy ship has entered British waters and shone lasers at military pilots, the defence secretary has said, as he warned the UK was facing a “new era of threat” from hostile countries.John Healey told reporters on Wednesday the “deeply dangerous” move was being taken “extremely seriously” by the government, adding the UK
  
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• UK lacks plan to defend itself from attack, warn MPs

  19-11-2025 09:15
  Public should be told nature of threat posed since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, says defence committee chairThe UK lacks a plan to defend itself from a military attack, MPs have warned as the government promised to boost readiness with new arms factories.The challenges facing the government and defence industry were laid bare in a stark report from the Commons defence committee about the UK’s ability to fight a war and meet its Nato obligations in light of Russia’s war in Ukra
  
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• UK downplays reports it has stopped sharing intelligence with US regarding narco-traffickers

  17-11-2025 16:35
  Yvette Cooper makes first public comments by minister over issue linked to bombing campaign in CaribbeanUK politics live – latest updatesUS politics live – latest updatesBritain’s foreign secretary has downplayed reports that the UK had stopped sharing intelligence with the US that could be used by the Americans to conduct deadly attacks against alleged narco-traffickers in the Caribbean.Yvette Cooper, speaking on a ministerial trip to Naples, said “longstanding intellige
  
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• How Britain replaced the US as Russia’s villain of choice

  16-11-2025 07:00
  London and Moscow’s rivalry stretches back to the imperial era, but the Ukraine war has brought relations to a new lowIn recent years, Britain has become the villain of choice in Moscow’s eyes. It has been accused of plotting drone strikes on Russian airfields, blowing up the Nord Stream pipeline, directing “terrorist” raids inside Russia, and even abetting last year’s gruesome Islamic State concert attack in Moscow.This week, a new charge was added to the pile: Rus
  
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• Two-thirds of women in UK military sexually harassed in past year, survey finds

  13-11-2025 16:41
  MoD survey also finds nearly one in 10 have been subject to non-consensual sexual activity and a third have been groped or touchedNearly one in 10 women serving in the British military have been subjected to an assault or other non-consensual sexual activity in the past year, according to the first official survey of sexual harassment across the armed forces.A third said they had been groped or touched in a way that made them feel uncomfortable, according to the Ministry of Defence, and two-thir
  
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• UK pauses intelligence-sharing with US on suspected drug vessels in Caribbean

  11-11-2025 20:42
  Rare rupture between military allies comes as concerns grow over Trump administration’s lethal sinking of boatsBritain has suspended the sharing of intelligence with the US on suspected drug trafficking vessels in the Caribbean amid concerns information supplied may be used to engage in lethal military strikes by American forces.Such a decision – a rare rupture between the normally close military allies – would indicate that the UK does not believe the Trump administration&rsqu
  
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• Second world war veterans applauded as king leads Remembrance Sunday tributes

  09-11-2025 14:40
  Royals joined by senior politicians at Cenotaph in London and events are held across UK to honour those who have died in conflictsVeterans of the second world war were applauded as they arrived at the Remembrance Sunday service at the Cenotaph in Whitehall, before being joined by royals and senior politicians to honour those who have died in conflict.King Charles laid the first wreath in recognition of those killed in wars and conflicts dating back to the first world war. He was followed by his
  
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• Britain sends RAF specialists to help Belgium combat disruptive drones

  09-11-2025 13:31
  Incursions halted flights at Brussels and Liège airports last week with Russia said to be the most likely culpritBritain is deploying Royal Air Force specialists to help Belgium counter drone threats to the country’s airports after disruptive sightings last week that some politicians blamed on Russia.Sir Richard Knighton, the head of the UK’s armed forces, said the British military would provide “our people, our equipment” to help Belgium, though he was careful to
  
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• British Asian families urged to share stories of ‘greatest generation’ who fought for Britain

  09-11-2025 08:00
  Half of UK public unaware of contribution made by 2.5m British Asian members of armed forces who served in second world warBritish Asian families are being urged to record the experiences of relatives who fought for Britain for “future generations” as data reveals half the British public don’t know that Indian members of the armed forces served in the second world war.The My Family Legacy project, backed by the Royal British Legion, is building an online archive of Asian vetera
  
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• UK troops treated for hearing problems in final tests of Ajax armoured vehicle

  07-11-2025 17:00
  The £5.5bn model was classified as fit for army deployment in September but soldiers continue to raise health fearsSoldiers had to be given medical treatment for hearing problems this summer during final testing of the British army’s new Ajax armoured vehicle, whose introduction has been delayed for several years amid concerns about deafness.The model, which costs £5.5bn for 589 vehicles, was nevertheless classified as fit for deployment in September. An investigation concluded
  
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• British military announces first delivery of Ajax armoured vehicles – eight years late

  06-11-2025 01:01
  First 50 vehicles, costing nearly £10m each, finally ready to deploy to Nato’s eastern flank, where drones now dominateBritain’s military has announced the first delivery of Ajax armoured vehicles, eight years behind schedule and amid questions about their relevance as cheap drones dominate the battlefields of Ukraine.The junior defence minister Luke Pollard said the first 50 vehicles, costing nearly £10m each, were ready to deploy on Nato’s eastern flank, though he
  
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• Andrew allowed to keep Falklands medal despite losing royal and military titles

  05-11-2025 19:50
  King Charles has agreed to his brother retaining South Atlantic medal for navy service during 1982 conflictHe has lost his princehood, dukedom, Order of the Garter knighthood and military titles, but the former Duke of York, now Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, can at least keep his campaign medal awarded for active service during the 1982 Falklands conflict.The defence secretary, John Healey, had already confirmed Mountbatten Windsor would be stripped of his last remaining title, the honorary rank o
  
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• UK politics: MPs spar over response to Cambridgeshire train attack – as it happened

  03-11-2025 18:54
  Lib Dem spokesperson says Reform ‘trying to exploit incident for political gain’ and shadow home secretary’s remarks are ‘beneath contempt’Farage is speaking now. He says another “depressing budget hoves into view”. It will be a budget that “doesn’t have the guts to cut public spending”.He says Britain has been living under an illusion.I think for some years we’ve actually been living under an illusion. We’ve not been prepar
  
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• Andrew to be stripped of naval title, says UK defence secretary

  02-11-2025 11:49
  Former Duke of York to lose honorary rank of vice-admiral a week after having royal title of prince removedThe former Duke of York will lose his naval title, the defence secretary has said, as King Charles looks to draw a line under the scandal over his brother’s relationship with the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.Andrew Mountbatten Windsor will be stripped of his honorary rank of vice-admiral, which he was given in 2015 and has retained even after giving up other military positio
  
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• Ex-army sergeant major sentenced to six months for sexually assaulting soldier who went on to kill herself

  31-10-2025 15:43
  Michael Webber admitted attack on Jaysley Beck, then 19, which was not investigated properly by senior officersA former British army sergeant major has been sentenced to six months in prison for sexually assaulting Jaysley Beck, a teenage soldier who killed herself after senior officers failed to investigate the attack properly.Michael Webber, who has left the army, assaulted Gunner Beck during a training exercise in Hampshire in July 2021, when she was 19, the court martial centre in Bulford, W
  
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• ‘This doesn’t feel like justice’: mother of Jaysley Beck accuses army of empty promises

  31-10-2025 14:31
  Leighann McCready says promised changes to help victims of sexual assault have not happened quickly enough and the family had to push for progress at every stage of inquestAt the end of Gunner Jaysley Beck’s inquest, the British army promised that the teenager’s suicide after a sexual assault by a senior colleague would lead to lasting and effective change.Eight months on, as her abuser was finally sentenced for the attack, Beck’s mother, Leighann McCready, accused the army of
  
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• Hundreds of women allege sexual abuse at UK army medicals over five decades

  28-10-2025 20:17
  Wiltshire police leading investigation into allegations about enlistment examinations between the 1970s and 2016Hundreds of women have come forward to allege sexual abuse took place during British army medical examinations over five decades.Police are investigating claims of abuse at various army locations in the UK, and officers believe multiple alleged perpetrators may be involved. Continue reading...
  
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• Blue Lights is more than great TV. It might be the best chance Britons have of reckoning with the Troubles | Jonathan Freedland

  24-10-2025 17:17
  The reaction to the Bloody Sunday trial makes it clear: those of us outside Northern Ireland just don’t understand the painful legacy of this brutal conflictForgive me if I’ve mentioned him before, but at moments like this I remember a news editor I worked for as a young reporter at the BBC. When it came to the interests of our audience, he said, there was a key fact to bear in mind: “The two most boring words in the English language are ‘Northern Ireland’.”It
  
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• Soldier F case should serve as a caution for future Troubles prosecutions

  23-10-2025 20:51
  In finding F not guilty of murder on Bloody Sunday, judge said evidence fell well short of the standard requiredIt is undisputed that members of the Parachute regiment shot dead 13 unarmed civil rights protesters in Derry on Bloody Sunday. But, more than 53 years later, it is not surprising that Soldier F, the only man put on trial for murder, was found not guilty.Though four of the Paras who entered Glenfada Park North had “lost all sense of military discipline”, according to Mr Jus
  
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• British army veteran known as Soldier F not guilty of Bloody Sunday murders

  23-10-2025 15:24
  Families say justice denied as only soldier ever tried in relation to 1972 Parachute regiment shootingsacquitted The only British army veteran ever charged in relation to Bloody Sunday has been found not guilty of murder and attempted murder.Belfast crown court on Thursday acquitted Soldier F of all charges in relation to the day the Parachute regiment shot dead 13 civil rights protesters in Derry in 1972, a seminal event in Northern Ireland’s Troubles. Continue reading...
  
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• Renewable energy investment should come from defence budgets, say retired military leaders

  23-10-2025 12:00
  Former European officers say spending on low-carbon power would make nations more resilient to threats from potential aggressorsInvestment in renewable energy should be counted under defence expenditure, says a group of retired senior military personnel, because the climate crisis represents a threat to national security.They have called for increased spending on low-carbon power as a way of making the UK and other European countries more resilient to threats from Russia and other potential aggr
  
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• Britain sends small number of troops to monitor Gaza ceasefire

  21-10-2025 22:37
  Defence secretary says UK will play ‘anchor role’ in US-led civil military coordination centreBritish troops have been sent to Israel to help monitor the ceasefire in Gaza after a request from the US.The defence secretary, John Healey, announced the deployment of a small number of planning officers, including a senior commander, at an event on Monday night. He said the UK would play an “anchor role”. Ten days ago the foreign secretary, Yvette Cooper, said the UK had &ldqu
  
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• London museum identifies black Waterloo veteran in rare 1821 painting

  21-10-2025 06:00
  ‘Honourable’ bandsman Thomas James will feature in display at National Army Museum highlighting service of black soldiers in Napoleonic warsHe fought in the Napoleonic wars and is one of only nine Black soldiers known to have received the Waterloo Medal, the first British medal awarded to soldiers regardless of their rank.Yet the story of Pte Thomas James has been overlooked for centuries. Continue reading...
  
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• UK peace force for Ukraine would cost ‘well over £100m’, says defence secretary

  20-10-2025 23:35
  John Healey says he has already brought forward millions in spending for swift deployment if ceasefire agreedThe cost of Britain’s contribution to a post-ceasefire stabilisation force for Ukraine would be “well over £100m”, the defence secretary, John Healey, has said after a speech in the City of London.Healey said he had already brought forward millions in spending so that a “multinational force Ukraine” led by the UK and France could be ready to deploy quic
  
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• British troops to get powers to shoot down drones near military bases

  20-10-2025 10:58
  Defence secretary will announce measures to combat threat of unmanned aircraft after incursions in EuropeSoldiers are to be given new powers to shoot down unidentified drones believed to be threatening UK military bases in response to a recent spate of incursions and sightings in Europe.John Healey, the defence secretary, will announce the measure at a speech in the City of London on Monday, in which he will also warn of an increased level of Russian drone attacks into Ukraine and eastern Europe
  
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• Launch of veteran card will be used to test UK government’s digital ID scheme

  17-10-2025 01:01
  Ministers hope scheme for 1.8 million people will show how technology works and ease privacy and security concernsFormer military personnel will be used to test and refine the government’s divisive digital ID scheme from Friday, when ministers make a smartphone-based veteran card available to 1.8 million people.The proof of service, which in its current physical version gives access to charities, retail discounts and certain public services, will be the first of a series of official creden
  
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• Agnes Wanjiru’s niece urges Labour to extradite ex-soldier while still in power

  16-10-2025 06:00
  Esther Njoki says family has seen ‘big change’ under Labour, after long fight for justice over aunt’s 2012 death in KenyaThe niece of Agnes Wanjiru, who was killed in Kenya, said she hopes the former British soldier charged with her aunt’s murder will be extradited while the Labour government is still in power.On her first trip outside Kenya, Esther Njoki travelled to London, where she was invited to parliament to meet the defence secretary, John Healey, whom she urged no
  
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• Muriel Manning obituary

  13-10-2025 18:16
  My mother, Muriel Manning, who has died aged 100, was a wireless operator during the second world war at the Chicksands RAF base in Bedfordshire. There she listened in to morse code messages from Germany’s Enigma machines that were then sent to code breakers at Bletchley Park in Buckinghamshire.She joined the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF) – where, as a Welsh woman, she was inevitably nicknamed “Taff” – in early 1944 at the age of 19. She took to the work
  
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