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20 Jan 15. Sierra Leone: OP GRITROCK. The number of new cases of Ebola and the rate of infection are both now decreasing in Sierra Leone. (Oral Answers, 20 Jan 15.)
The Chief Medical Officer has advised that the overall risk from the Ebola virus in the UK remains low. Screening arrangements are in place at the UK’s main ports of entry for people travelling from the affected regions. (Written Answers (WA), 20 Jan 15.)
The protection of military personnel [from Ebola] is the MoD’s “highest priority”. (WA, 20 Jan 15.)
Personnel from RFA Argus have raised thousands of pounds and delivered gifts to orphans at a school in Sierra Leone. The UK military deployment to Sierra Leone continues and is part of a wider humanitarian aid programme led by the Department for International Development. (RN, 22 Jan 15.)
The UK is supporting the training and management of over 100 burial teams in Sierra Leone. (WA, 23 Jan 15.)
The six UK-constructed Ebola Treatment Centres had admitted 620 patients (331 female and 289 male) as at 21 Jan 15. (WA, 23 Jan 15.)
Comment: The UN Secretary-General noted (20 Jan 15) that one year had passed since Ebola started to spread in West Africa, with the Western part of Sierra Leone still suffering from high incidences of transmission. A meeting has been convened jointly by the European Union and the UN on 3 Mar 15 in Brussels, where the “current state of the response and recovery” to Ebola is to be considered. (Source: DNA DEFENCE NEWS ANALYSIS, Issue 15/05, 26 Jan 15)
19 Jan 15. Iraq: OP SHADER. Reapers continued to provide support to the Iraqi Army on 18 Jan 15. Tornado GR4s were also active in the early hours of 19 Jan 15, flying armed reconnaissance in Western Iraq. British Army advisers continue to provide training and mentoring to the Iraqi Security Forces, particularly the Kurdish Peshmerga in Northern Iraq. (MoD, 19 Jan 15.)
On 21 Jan 15 a pair of Tornado GR4s flew in support of Kurdish troops, with a Brimstone missile striking an ISIL truck and a Paveway IV guided bomb targeting an observation post. A Reaper provided further surveillance for the Peshmerga and attacked a number of vehicles with Hellfire. On 22 Jan 15, a Reaper provided air support for Iraqi soldiers engaged in a firefight.
Comment: House of Commons time and Ministerial effort continues to be wasted by RAF personnel grumbling about the catering arrangements at RAF Akrotiri. The latest example of this nonsense can be read in Hansard for 23 Jan 15. (Source: DNA DEFENCE NEWS ANALYSIS, Issue 15/05, 26 Jan 15)
20 Jan 15. Afghanistan: OP TORAL. The Armed Forces’ Minister confirmed (20 Jan 15) that a monument has been commissioned for those who served in Afghanistan and Iraq, with fundraising led by The Sun newspaper. It is hoped that the monument will be unveiled in 2016. (WA, 20 Jan 15.)
The UK has taken the lead at the Afghan National Army Officer Academy. The UK is also providing advisers to the Afghan Security Ministries and has committed £70m per year until at least 2017 to support Security Forces’ development. (WA, 22 Jan 15.)
Comment: The Army website recorded (19 Jan 15) a parade by 16 Air Assault Brigade in Colchester, to mark the end of the Brigade’s involvement in Afghanistan. The memory of the 58 soldiers who were killed while under the Brigade’s command was honoured. (Source: DNA DEFENCE NEWS ANALYSIS, Issue 15/05, 26 Jan 15)
19 Jan 15. Ireland: Defence Agreement. The Defence Secretary and his Irish counterpart signed a Memorandum of Understanding (19 Jan 15) between the UK and the Republic of Ireland to ensure greater Defence collaboration in the future. The Memorandum provides the UK and Ireland with guidance “for developing and furthering their alre