Started checking on the Brit aircraft carriers. Ark Royal is already in the Mediterranean -- "on exercise." When I read this stuff the hair on my arms stands up, literally. My gut tells me this is for real.
>>UK Troops Get Ready For Iraq
Britain is stepping up its preparations for a possible war with Iraq by placing more troops on standby.
Soldiers who had been earmarked to provide cover for a possible fire fighters' strike have now been re- deployed.
The troops involved would form part of the Joint Rapid Reaction force, highly trained and in a high state of readiness, and likely to be among the first on the ground in the event of hostilities in Iraq.
Eighteen units make up the force. Among them are the 1st Battalion the Black Watch, the Scots Dragoon Guards and the 1st Battalion Irish Guards. Engineers, transport, supply and signals are also involved.
Exercises
Other units will replace them on fire-watch duties.
The Defence Ministry says it is just a precaution, but it will be seen as one more rung up the ladder towards military intervention.
It also comes as the US carries out what the Pentagon describes as routine military exercises in the Middle East.
Some 30,000 American troops are already in the region, and British special forces are also currently on exercise there.
Meanwhile, the flagship aircraft carrier the Ark Royal is also due to arrive in the Mediterranean in the next ten days - also on exercise.
Last Updated: 10:11 UK, Thursday September 26, 2002<<
sky.com
HMS Illustrious and HMS Invincible, the other two Brit carriers, are both undergoing repairs. |
