Today’s broadcast news continues to feature the first repatriation of the first bodies of some of those British tourists who were killed by a gunman on a beach in Tunisia. It is reported that the C-17 RAF aircraft that is bringing back the bodies left RAF Brize Norton early this morning.
Tunisia
All outlets report that the first bodies of Britons killed in the Tunisian beach massacre will be repatriated today via an RAF C-17, which is due to arrive at Brize Norton this afternoon. Articles reflect Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond’s comments yesterday in which he confirmed that 22 British victims have now been identified and that the RAF have already brought home four seriously injured Britons. Images of RAF personnel attending to those injured while transporting them home on Monday were used extensively by broadcasters yesterday and in a number of today’s articles.
Exercise Strong Tower
The Daily Mail, Daily Star, Daily Express and Daily Mirror are among the outlets that feature stories on yesterday’s Exercise Strong Tower in London, reporting that police and military personnel had staged the largest terror attack exercise to test Britain’s response to a deadly atrocity. Articles highlight the details of the exercise and the various scenarios, and how it prepares for an attack similar to that carried out in Tunisia. In a speech at RUSI's Land Warfare Conference this morning, the Defence Secretary Michael Fallon said:
This week our Army is showing its flexibility by practising its response to a potential Mumbai-style attack in multiple locations on London's streets. Four hundred personnel will be taking part in this exercise that began yesterday.
Troop numbers
The Financial Times and Daily Telegraph feature stories focusing on comments made by a senior US general in which he suggested that Army chiefs are "deluded" if they believe they can keep cutting the number of soldiers while relying on new forms of technology to make up for lost capability. Lieutenant General Herbert McMaster is reported to have told an audience at London’s RUSI conference yesterday that officials were in danger of undervaluing ground troops in favour of new capabilities such as cyber warfare. Reports said British defence chiefs have been furiously lobbying the Government to commit to spending 2 per cent of GDP on defence to safeguard Britain’s military capability and status as a global power.
As previously stated by the Defence Secretary, the UK has one of the largest defence budgets in the world and we are committed to spending 2% of GDP on defence this year and next, with decisions on future spending to be determined in the spending review later this year. Future Force 2020 means that are Armed Forces are now more flexible and more able to adapt to evolving threats and Prime Minister David Cameron has made clear that he does not want to see the Regular personnel reduced below the level that they are now.
Social media
The Daily Telegraph writes that General Sir Richard Barrons, Commander of Joint Forces Command, has said that the Armed Forces must be prepared to use Facebook and Twitter to spread 'lies' to help fight Isil. The article goes on to suggest that General Barrons has said that the West is lagging behind Isil, which is tweeting in 23 languages and that social media must be used to help strategic objectives in Iraq.
In combating extremism online more broadly, the Government has taken down more than 90,000 pieces of extremist material on the internet and has improved the process for public reporting of extremism content online. At the RUSI conference, Mr Fallon spoke about the work of 77 Brigade, adding:
Just as the Army adapted to the Taliban's low-fi war it must accommodate itself to the high-tech wars of the future. [77 Brigade] are the Army’s advance guard. Part of their job involves striving to be masters of the narrative; debunking the dangerous myths and misinformation spread by our adversaries and harnessing the power of social media and the internet to deliver what I call a faster truth. These Army pioneers understand you can’t win the war without winning the battle of hearts and minds.
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