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British Soldier wins VC for Iraq bravery
A British soldier serving in Iraq who saved 30 members of his unit from an ambush has been awarded the first Victoria Cross for more than 20 years. Private Johnson Beharry, 25, was struck by enemy fire as he guided a convoy of Warrior fighting vehicles through the town of Al Amarah last May. A month later he saved more lives in an attack which left him in a coma. Mr Beharry is one of 140 servicemen and women honoured for Iraq, Afghanistan, the former Yugoslavia and Africa. Defence Secretary Geoff Hoon said: "These honours and awards recognise the outstanding achievements of these extraordinary men and women and their acts of great courage, bravery and determination." Mr Beharry, still recovering from his injuries, said he was "speechless" when told he was winning the VC. The award is the first of the medals to be awarded since posthumous VC given to Lieutenant Colonel Herbert Jones and Sergeant Ian John McKay during the Falklands conflict. It makes him the first living recipient of the VC - the highest award in the British and Commonwealth military - since 1965. The medals are made from the remains of a Russian cannon captured in the 1850s Crimean War. "When I was told yesterday I thought it was great to have received the award. I was speechless," said Mr Beharry, from London. The soldier was at the head of a five-vehicle convoy when it came under attack on 1 May 2004, and guided the column through a mile of enemy ground to drop off wounded comrades at great risk to his own safety, his citation said. Weeks later, his vehicle was hit by an RPG round. Despite a head wound, he managed to reverse his Warrior to safety. "Maybe I was brave, I don't know. I think anyone else could do the same thing," he said. Mr Beharry, who was born on the Caribbean island of Grenada, is one of only 13 recipients of the award still alive. "At the time I was just doing the job, I didn't have time for other thoughts," he said of his actions. "I want to return to service, but I don't know when that will be and I would go back to Iraq if I had to." The former construction worker, who came to the UK in 1999 and joined the army in 2000, has also served tours in Northern Ireland and in Kosovo. "I joined the Army for a change of life. I've really thought about it, it was a good decision to make," he said. Mr Beharry has had brain surgery for wounds he received in the second enemy action. Chief of Defence staff Sir Mike Jackson praised his bravery, and said that it would have to be Mr Beharry's decision to return to duty because of the severity of his wounds. "His citation is an extraordinary story of one man's courage, in the way he risked his life for his colleagues not once, but twice." Royal Marines reservist Colonel Paul Anthony Jobbins, 56, of Chipping Sodbury, Gloucestershire, won the George Medal for peacekeeping work in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The retired police fingerprint officer was responsible for control of UN forces in the town of Bukavu, which fell to rebels in June 2004. The unarmed officer held negotiations with warring factions amid a wave of violence which killed hundreds. "At great personal risk, Jobbins continuously demonstrated remarkable gallantry," his citation read. Seven other awards have been made for distinguished service during the Boscastle floods last August, when helicopters were used to rescue 150 people. Troops of the Black Watch also received citations for their Iraq tour of duty. Posted by: Steve 2005-03-18 |
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