French Para Veteran of Afghanistan Killed in Action in Mali

26-year-old French Paratroop Corporal Cédric Charenton was killed in action during operations in Mali on 2nd March 2013. Cpl. Charenton had previously served in Afghanistan. He is the third French soldier to die in Mali during the current operation.

The incident happened as French and Chadian troops assaulted enemy positions in the Ametettai Valley - about 50 miles from Tessalit. During the assault, 12 insurgents were killed, several vehicles destroyed and three large caches of weapons and explosives were discovered and seized by French Forces.

Cpl. Charenton, who served with the elite Airborne Infantry 1st Regiment, was hit by small-arms fire. He had previously served in New Caledonia and Gabon, as well as Afghanistan.

Kyle Marshall of 2 PARA killed in Afghanistan

L-Cpl. Kyle Marshall

Tributes have been paid to an "irreplaceable" soldier killed in an explosion in Afghanistan.

Lance Corporal Kyle Cleet Marshall, of 2nd Battalion The Parachute Regiment, died in the blast in the Nahr-e Saraj district on Monday 14th February 2011.

In a statement released today, L-Cpl Marshall's family said: "Kyle was a very lively, outgoing, loving and much-loved son.

"He will be sadly missed by all his family and friends. He was due to be married in July to his fiancee, Hayley.

"We take comfort in the fact that he is now with his granddad who died some years ago."

His commanding officer Lieutenant Colonel Andrew Harrison described him as "irreplaceable".

British Para - Private Lewis Hendry

Pvt. Lewis Hendry

British Para, Private Lewis Hendry, of 3rd Battalion The Parachute Regiment was killed on 9th February after being shot by a Taliban sniper in Nad 'Ali district of Helmand.

Private Hendry received medical attention at the scene before being evacuated by helicopter. Sadly, he died from his wounds.

He was born in Norwich on 12 February 1990 and educated at Northgate High School, Dereham. 

He joined the Army in May 2008, conducting his training at the Infantry Training Centre Catterick.

British Para - Private Conrad Lewis

Pvt. Conrad Lewis

British Para, Private Conrad Lewis, of 4th Battalion The Parachute Regiment was killed on 9th February 2011 after being shot during a gun battle with insurgents in Nad 'Ali district of Helmand.

Private Lewis received medical attention at the scene before being evacuated by helicopter. Sadly, he died from his wounds.

Private Lewis was born in Bournemouth on 21 October 1988.

British Para killed by IED - WO2 Colin Beckett

WO2 Colin Beckett

The British Para killed in action on Saturday 5th February has been named.

Warrant Officer Class 2 (Company Sergeant Major) Colin Beckett of 3rd Battalion The Parachute Regiment was killed in an explosion. He was attempting to secure an area in Shaheed, a village on the Nahr-e-Bughra canal, when he was caught in the blast from a roadside bomb.

Company Sergeant Major Beckett, known as Tom, was described by his colleagues as an inspirational and iconic leader.

The 36-year-old, from Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, joined the army more than 20 years ago and has a "tremendous amount of operational experience", a MOD spokesman said.

His wife Rachel, who is expecting their first child later this month - a little girl already named Freya, said: "Anyone who ever met or knew Colin 'Tom' would have been touched by him in a big way and he will never be forgotten.

British Para, Martin Bell, dies helping injured colleague

Pvt. Martin Bell

A soldier who became Britain's 350th military fatality in Afghanistan died after disobeying a direct order and running to help an injured colleague, his Commanding Officer has disclosed.

Private Martin Bell, 24, of 2nd Battalion The Parachute Regiment, was fatally wounded as attempted to reach a comrade who had been injured in an explosion.

He was killed in a separate blast from an improvised explosive device (IED) as he tried to help his stricken colleague to the south of Nahr-e-Saraj in Helmand province on Tuesday.

Officers said he was a hero whose selfless act cost him his life.

British Para, Corporal Steven Dunn

Cpl. Steven Dunn

Corporal Steven Thomas Dunn from 216 (Parachute) Signal Squadron, attached to 2nd Battalion The Parachute Regiment Battle Group, was killed in Afghanistan on Tuesday 21 December 2010.

Corporal Dunn deployed to Afghanistan on 19 September 2010 as part of 2nd Battalion The Parachute Regiment (2 PARA) Battle Group. He was based at Patrol Base 2 in the Nahr-e Saraj district of Helmand province.

On 21 December 2010 he was working with 2 PARA Patrols Platoon on a deliberate operation to interdict insurgents in the Bowri desert. He was travelling in a Jackal vehicle which hit an improvised explosive device at 1722 hours local time.

British Para, Private John Howard

Pvt. John Howard

Private John Howard, from 3rd Battalion The Parachute Regiment, was killed in Afghanistan on Sunday 5 December 2010.

Private Howard was serving with 16 Air Assault Brigade's Reconnaissance Force on a patrol ten kilometres south west of the provincial capital of Helmand province, Lashkar Gah, when he was fatally wounded during an action conducted against insurgents operating in that area.

French Para, Nicolas Gregoire, killed in gun battle with Taliban

Nicolas Gregoire was one of ten French soldiers killed in a Taliban ambush 50 kilometers east of Kabul, with a further 21 suffering wounds. Nicolas was born in Hauts de Seine on November 3, 1982. He grew up in Saint-Gaudens attending primary and high school. 

Nicolas Gregoire

From an early age Nicolas had decided to wear the uniform of a soldier. His grandfather loved the Army, so joined at the age of 17 joining the 8e Régiment Parachutiste d Infanterie de Marine (8th Marine Parachute Infantry), based in Castres, in 2001.

Afghanistan was his sixth deployment, having served in Kosovo, Gabon, New Caledonia and the Ivory Coast. Nicolas knew of the dangers but believed it was his job to defend his country. He is survived by his parents and two sisters.

British patrol attacked, two soldiers dead

Two British military personnel killed in Afghanistan on 27 June 2006 have been named as Captain David Patton and Sergeant Paul Bartlett.

During an operation in the Sangin valley, northern Helmand province, in the early morning of 27 June 2006, a UK patrol came under attack. One further soldier was seriously wounded. His injuries are not thought to be life threatening. Next of kin have been informed.

Captain David Patton of the Parachute Regiment was born on 12 September 1967. Sergeant Paul Bartlett Royal Marines was born on 3 March 1971. 

 

Capt. David Patton

Sgt Paul Bartlett, RM