This morning’s defence news includes articles about Zephyr, a new high-altitude surveillance ‘drone’, and a Muslim opinion leaders event being held by the MOD today.
ZEPHYR
The Times, Financial Times, Daily Mail and BBC Online all report that the MOD is set to buy a British-designed solar-powered ‘drone’ which can operate ‘at the edge of space’. Articles say that Defence Secretary Michael Fallon was last night set to announce the imminent signature of a £10.6m contract to acquire at least two Zephyr 8 ‘pseudosatellites’ — high-altitude endurance Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) — from Airbus Defence and Space.
Defence Secretary Michael Fallon said:
High altitude aircraft will provide next-generation battlefield intelligence to our Armed Forces. They will be able to fly higher and for longer to gather constant, reliable information over vast geographical areas.
We can invest in cutting edge equipment like this because we’re increasing the Defence budget, with £178 billion to be spent on military equipment over the next ten years.
MUSLIM OPINION LEADERS EVENT
The Independent reports that the Defence Secretary has invited influential Muslim leaders to the Ministry of Defence for a briefing about British military action against Daesh in Syria and Iraq. The article says Mr Fallon has cautioned that Britain’s bombing campaign against Daesh is still seen as a 'clash of civilisations' between Islam and Christianity in some parts of the UK’s Muslim community and that he recognises the difficulties the Government has had in ‘making the case for war’ to British Muslims.
Defence Secretary Michael Fallon said:
“Today’s meeting is a chance to explain why we’ve extended the air campaign against Daesh from Iraq to Syria, as our enemies will do everything in their power to portray our intervention as a clash of civilisations. This categorically isn’t a war against Muslims, or about picking a side between Sunni and Shia, or about targeting innocents. We are part of a coalition made up of many Muslim countries. And we fight to defeat a terrorist group who have killed more Muslims than any others, and who hate everything we stand for.”
DAESH
The Daily Mirror reports the RAF has ‘smashed’ tunnels where Daesh fighters hid from spy planes, while the Times carries an article which says Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond has warned that Russia is strengthening Daesh with its bombing in Syria. You can read our latest strike update here.
ARMED FORCES LEGAL CLAIMS
The Sun and the Times report that the Armed Forces will be protected from human rights claims over actions abroad under the UK bill of rights, according to the Justice Secretary. Articles suggest that Michael Gove has confirmed that the bill would include all the rights of the Human Rights Act 1998, brought in under the previous Labour Government, which it will replace.
Elsewhere, the Daily Star picks up on the case of Serdar Muhammad, a Taliban insurgent who is suing the Ministry of Defence. The piece reports that British soldiers could be forced to free prisoners of war after only 96 hours to avoid breaching their human rights. Our position is as follows:
The cases of Al-Waheed and Serdar Mohammed are of paramount importance to defence.
It is vital that the armed forces have the freedom to detain enemy forces when they are engaged in armed conflict.
IHAT
The Sun reports that more than 1,200 abuse claims against British military personnel have been submitted without any evidence to support them. The article adds that the claims have arrived at the MOD’s Iraq Historical Allegations Team (IHAT) with just a few supporting lines of information. Last week, in a speech at Westminster Hall, Armed Forces Minister Penny Mordaunt set out the case for the IHAT and criticised the “bogus litigation on an industrial scale” that is facing our Armed Forces. You can read a full copy of her speech at the IHAT debate here. The Ministry of Defence also published a blog on to explain the background and work of the IHAT which can be found here.
The MOD’s statement on this issue is as follows:
We are determined to reduce the number of spurious claims brought against our Armed Forces. Every false, distorted or exaggerated claim diverts defence spending from the front line.
IMAGE OF THE DAY
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