BY VARIOUS CONTRIBUTORS Just as some optimists began to believe that there may have been a form of principle, albeit misguided, behind the current government’s determination to repeal the 2023 Northern Ireland Legacy Act — and the protections it afforded to soldiers and police officers who risked all to fight the terrorists to a standstill — we see some truly scandalous measures included in the … Continue reading A Sordid Backstairs Deal
BY ROGER WATSON I have written previously in these pages about military matters: about my old regiment, the national memorial, and military accommodation. With the British Government having just announced a £9 billion package for the refurbishment of military housing, I want to return to that last topic. First, the scale of the refurbishment. By any standard, £9 billion is a huge amount of money, … Continue reading A Tale of Two Barracks
BY FRANCIS CARR How the SAS Ended One More IRA Attack and the Future Threat of Russian Hybrid Warfare in Britain On the night of 16 February 1992, at approximately 10:40 PM, a Provisional IRA unit launched an assault on the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) police station in Coalisland, County Tyrone. Armed with Eastern Bloc AK-47s and a Soviet-designed DShK heavy machine gun mounted on … Continue reading The Clonoe Ambush: Behind the Scenes
BY GEORGE SIMM DCM The Unseen Struggle: Soldiers, Sovereignty, and Human Rights in the Fight Against Extremism Unlike police officers, who benefit from representative bodies, soldiers have no such representation or protection. This disparity carries significant consequences. Late last year, the Metropolitan Police’s armed officers effectively withdrew their services in response to the legal handling of the Chris Kaba case. The result was a severe … Continue reading Who Defends the Defenders?
BY GEORGE SIMM DCM Unveiling the Impact of Repealing the 2023 NI Legacy Act: A Catastrophic Blunder In examining the socialist government’s latest political disaster—its repeal of the 2023 Northern Ireland (NI) Legacy Act, as highlighted in the Policy Exchange paper released yesterday—I initially considered describing this move as foolish or ill-advised. However, such adjectives fall woefully short of capturing the deliberate undermining of the … Continue reading The Shame of Human Rights Jihadis
BY ROGER WATSON My children used to ask me, and sometimes my grandchildren still ask, whether I killed anyone in “the war.” The war they refer to is the First Gulf War, and they’re reminded of it by my medal case and commissioning scroll, signed by HM Queen Elizabeth II, both of which hang in my office. My usual response to their question is “only … Continue reading RAMC
BY NICK PEARCE The Status of Refugees and Asylum Seekers in the UK: Implications of a Potential Conflict As discussions about national security and defence strategies rise in public discourse, the status of refugees and asylum seekers in the UK comes into sharp focus. With changing geopolitical dynamics, such as the heightened threat perceived from Russia, concerns about how the government may respond to these … Continue reading Will You Take up Arms for Us?
BY GEORGE SIMM DCM I am the former Regimental Sergeant Major (RSM) of the 22 Special Air Service (SAS). I was built for purpose, and that purpose was to ensure that the operating standards and morale of the SAS were the best they could be in all circumstances. The role of RSM is unique in the military and carries a huge responsibility to wield enormous … Continue reading Former SAS Regimental Sergeant Major Speaks Out
BY DAVID EYLES Yesterday’s Times and Sun carried the grim warning that “Top SAS veterans have warned the elite regiment is under attack from European human rights laws — and could cease to exist as we know it.” This is a copy of the veterans’ letter to the Times: Their letter is a characteristic understatement of the problem, but is no less powerful for all … Continue reading SAS Facing Extinction?
BY PAUL T HORGAN I do not have a TV Licence so I did not see the newscaster at the BBC gently reminding viewers that the M4 motorway up which Wagner commander Yevgeny Prigozhin was advancing with 25,000 battle-hardened veterans was in fact the road from Rostov to Moscow, and not the one that runs from Cardiff to London. Prigozhin made good distance along the … Continue reading An Armchair General Writes …
BY ROGER WATSON Anyone with military connections will understand the term ‘patch’ which is a military colloquialism for accommodation where serving members of the armed forces live with their families. This is distinct from barracks and messes which are usually within the confines of a military camp. Living ‘on the patch’ therefore means living in military housing in the area immediately surrounding a military camp. … Continue reading The Patch
