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Minister barred from heroes' homecoming
Last updated at 00:07am on 13.04.07Grieving relatives of four British soldiers killed last week in Iraq refused to allow ministers to attend the ceremony to mark their return home.
No reason was given why some of the bereaved families declined the offer of government representation, but the decision came amid mounting anger over Defence Secretary Des Browne's failure to stop the freed hostages from selling their stories.
Lieutenant Joanne Dyer, Private Eleanor Dlugosz, Corporal Kris O'Neill and Kingsman Adam Smith were killed by a roadside bomb near Basra, hours before the 15 sailors and Marines held captive in Tehran flew home.
Their coffins arrived back on Thursday to be met by their families at RAF Lyneham in Wiltshire.
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Soldiers carry Private Dlugosz's coffin
Draped in Union Flags, they were lifted one by one out of the vast hold of the Boeing C-17 aircraft by pallbearers.
As a bugle sounded, they were carried past family and friends on the runway. The coffins were then placed in hearses and driven through the nearby town of Wootton Bassett, where locals lined the streets in silence to pay their respects.
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The four servicemen and women killed in Iraq last week. Clockwise from top left: Second Lieutenant Joanna Dyer, Private Eleanor Dlugosz, Corporal Kris O'Neill, Kingsman Adam Smith
Relatives of servicemen and women killed in Iraq are always asked if they want a Defence Minister to attend when the bodies are flown home.
On this occasion the families were split on the issue so, as is the convention in such situations, a minister was not invited.
A Ministry of Defence spokesman said: 'The repatriation ceremony is primarily for the families of the deceased. As normal the families were asked whether they would like ministerial representation and as frequently happens a consensus was not reached so a minister did not attend.'
Quit calls: Defence Secretary Des Browne
The mother of Pte Dlugosz last week condemned the hostage sailors who sold their stories. Sally Veck said her 19-yearold daughter would never have tried to cash in from any ordeal she suffered in the line of duty.
She said members of the military should be expected to serve their country and 'not expect to make money by selling stories.'
Pte Dlugosz died alongside 24-year-old
Joanna Dyer, who trained with Prince William at Sandhurst, becoming a good friend.
The prince has expressed his deep sadness at her death.
Also killed as the Warrior armoured vehicle was devastated by the bomb were Corporal O'Neill, 27, Kingsman Smith,
19, and a Kuwaiti interpreter.
Film of the aftermath of the blast showed local people, including children, dancing with joy and brandishing grisly trophies from the Warrior. They included a helmet from one of the dead soldiers. A fifth British
serviceman was seriously injured in the in the blast, which left a 3ft-deep crater in the road.
The deaths brought the number of UK service personnel who have died in Iraq to 140.
The Ministry of Defence took unusually stringent measures to prevent media covering yesterday's repatriation ceremony.
Sky News, the BBC and ITN are normally allowed to carry live footage, but yesterday the MoD refused to allow the broadcasters to film the arrival of the coffins. Instead it filmed the
event itself and then handed over the footage.
The MoD also barred reporters from the Press Association, the national news agency which is usually allowed to cover repatriation ceremonies on a pooled basis.
Reader views (15)
The sailors should immediately give their money from interviews to an appropriate forces charity if they have any dignity.
- Fred Smith, London
The fees paid for the selling of the stories should be donated outright to the victims fund, british legion or SAFFA. Anywhere but in the pockets of the sailors that sold their stories. As for the defence secretary staying away from the repatriation ceremony. I think it is more than right for the families to wish it. I see their is yet again no comment from Blair (our commander in chief) what a joke the government is!
- Gareth Evans, Chippenham Wiltshire UK
My heartfelt sympathy for the loved ones of the four brave soldiers repatriated today. As the Wife of a serving Soldier who is in Iraq and being ex-forces myself i understand the sacrifice each person makes who has a loved one over there feels. It's not just the soldiers themselves but their families and friends who suffer.
To the 15 Royal Naval and Royal Marine personnel should stop and think for a moment about what they are doing. They are alive and well, they are alive to see their children grow up. Please give some thought to the 140 soldiers who have lost their chance to see their children grow up to even have children themselves and to their families.
Your selfishness and money making antics are an immense insult to the 140 brave Armed Forces personnel who have lost their lives and to the families of these personnel who will never see them again. Any money made from selling your story to the tabloid press should be donated to The Armed Forces Memorial Appeal. So that brave soldiers names can be etched in stone and remembered forever.
Who will remember the names of the brave people who have died? Only their loved ones. Who will remember the names of the said 15? Anyone who picks up a tabloid newspaper or watches the news.
Remember the dead and do something in their memory. It may make up for bringing the Armed Forces into disrepute!
- Sharon, Catterick Garrison, United Kingdom
They may have sold, but lots of people have bought.
- Elaine, London, UK
It would have been possible "to counteract the propaganda the Iranians had put out" by simply giving interviews, without tainting the whole sorry affair with requests for large financial rewards.
If Mr Batchelor and (maybe) Ms Turney are truly sorry, surely all they have to do is donate their fee to charity? It would be a test of the true moral fibre we all think - hope - they have? It wouldn't do Britain any harm either...
- Marianne, SW France
I would simply like to express my gratitude to these young servicemen and women who gave thier lives in the name of our country.
Regardless of whether the campagain is right or wrong, these people made the ultimate sacrifice so that we may enjoy our freedom and hopefully one day the people of Iraq might be able to have the same open debates that we are able to have on a forum such as this.
- Jonathan, London, United Kingdom
I bet Bush and Blair will be allowed to sell their stories.
- Dan, Manchester
Another blunder from Gordon and Toni etc.
- Georgie, London
For those service men that sold their story, why not? This was an incident involving Iran and Britian. Had this involved Iran and USA. Bush would have gone in tallyhoe sparking another war!
- Raminder Bhalla, Norhtolt
They have shamed the poor soldiers, sailors and airmen who have died or been maimed for us. The personnel themselves are clearly too young/naive to have understood at the time what they were doing. They were used as the pawns by the Iranians, Blair and Brown for their own purposes.
So this is what 10 years of Blair has come to? Britain being utterly humiliated around the world while Blair creams it on taxpayers money.
- Melly, Woodbridge, Suffolk
This Prime Minister is showing contempt for the British public. Are we really to believe that with such a high profile international incident as this, which had come periously close to open conflict with Iran, that when the military personnel were returning to the UK, he suddenly dropped out of the loop and knew nothing of the decisions being made from then on? Really?!
- Steve R, London, UK
On the religious right radio in the states they trotted out an Iranian ex-patriot by the name of Bridgitte who condemns the Brit servicemen not only for selling their stories but for "not acting like or faking that they had been tortured." I am sure she has words of deep praise for Mr. Brown and Mr. Blair.
- John Vollbrecht, Fullerton, California, USA
It's a disgrace these marines have sold their stories for doing their job - when you sign-up, surely there will always be a risk of something like this happening? What about our service men and women who have been maimed, brought back to our filthy hospitals in the UK where some have then caught whatever bug is going around at the time and have been left by the wayside by our Armed Forces - what about compo for them and their families!! Also, what about compo for the families of the service men and women who have been killed?
- Jane, Sunbury, Middlesex
So we now have a clear insight into the moral compass of the Prime Minister. Whilst ofcourse he wasn't involved himself (the honest truth, cross my heart hope to die!) those that were (not him, remember) were acting "completely in good faith and honourably". The man clearly has no idea of the meaning of the words. If he would like to find out the basics of what is involved in behaving in this way, he should apply for enlistment in Her Majesty's Forces. However, I doubt that he would pass the initial screening interview - lack of moral fibre.
- Sherlock, OZ
I pray that God and man will be gracious to their families after the hero's sacrifice they have made.
- David, Middletown, Ohio
