Free Republic

Around 250 Commandos arrived home to an emotional welcome after weeks of fierce fighting in Iraq. The troops of 29 Commando Regiment Royal Artillery, who flew into RAF Brize Norton in the early hours, were greeted by their families at the Citadel barracks on Plymouth Hoe, Devon, with banners, union flags, balloons and air horns. But the joy of their return was tempered with the memory of the loss of three of their colleagues in a helicopter crash in the early days of the conflict. Commanding officer Lt Col Simon Wolsey said his men performed "magnificently," adding: "It was the...

Killed commando's widow ordered to repay salary The widow of a Royal Navy commando killed in Iraq has been asked to repay 10 days' salary which was paid after his death. Mechanic Ian Seymour, 28, died in a helicopter crash in Kuwait at the beginning of the war. Because he was not identified for 10 days, the Ministry of Defence continued to pay his salary into his bank account. It has now asked his wife Lianne to repay the money and move out of the Defence house in Dorset she shared with him and their three-year-old son Beck. "I just...

The widow of a Royal Marine killed in Iraq says she was told to pay back some of his wages and move out of the family home. Ian Seymour, 28, an operator mechanic (communications) second class, was killed in a helicopter crash in Kuwait at the beginning of the conflict. His wife Lianne, 27, from Poole, Dorset, was devastated when the Ministry of Defence (MoD) asked her to pay back his salary for the rest of the month and to move out. But, when told about her plight, Prime Minister Tony Blair said she will not be expected to pay...

Names of the four US Marines who died in yesterday's helicopter crash: Maj. Jay Thomas Aubin, 36, of Waterville, Maine Capt. Ryan Anthony Beaupre, 30, of Bloomington, Ill. Cpl. Brian Matthew Kennedy, 25, of Houston, Texas Staff Sgt. Kendall Damon Watersbey, 29, of Baltimore, Md. The Pentagon has just released the names of two more US Marines who were killed in Iraq. I'll post as soon as I find that.