Today’s Defence news includes reports on Mosul, the Iraq Historic Allegations Team (IHAT) and Ajax tanks.
Mosul
This morning’s news reports carry further updates on military operations in Mosul, as Iraqi forces continue their assault to liberate the city from Daesh. Articles are carried in The Daily Telegraph (p14), The Times (p30), The FT (p8), The Mirror (p16), The Independent App (p22), The Scotsman (p21), Wall Street Journal (p3). It is reported that Iraqi Special Forces advanced to the outskirts of Mosul and began to launch attacks on the suburbs. Articles reference coalition air support to Iraqi forces.
Iraq Historic Allegations Team (IHAT)
There are reports in The Daily Telegraph (p1/2), The Times (p4), The Sun (p8) and Daily Mail (p19) that Hilary Meredith has criticised the MOD's apparent failure to train troops to handle Iraqi captives. Ms Meredith says she has issued notices to the MOD that she is bringing a judicial review for veterans to be given more support during the Inquiry. Reports note that Ms Meredith has written to the Defence Secretary, who now has 21 days to respond before the review could head to the courts.
An MOD spokesperson said:
It is right that our Armed Forces are held to the highest standards but we are taking action to crack down on spurious claims and to increase welfare support. Last month the Defence Secretary announced that legal support will be provided without subsequent recovery of costs for those facing allegations about conduct in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Ajax
The Times (p4) has reported that a £3.5bn programme to build hundreds of Ajax mini-tanks for the Army could be delayed due to issues with a revolutionary weapons system, according to industry sources. The paper writes that three industry sources say they do not believe the timeframe will be met because of a mixture of developmental problems involving the gun and a shortage of funds at the MOD.
An MOD spokesperson said:
The Ajax programme is on time and on budget and will deliver internationally best-in-class standards of scalable protection, reliability, mobility, lethality, and all-weather surveillance. Prototype vehicles are currently being put through a rigorous trials process, with successful live firings taking place in April and more to come. As planned, the Army will take delivery of the first production vehicles in Spring 2017.
The show takes the number of countries in which the Red Arrows have performed to 57 since 1965 the teams opening season.