This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/england/merseyside/6227139.stm
The article has changed 4 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Soldier's body flown back to UK | Soldier's body flown back to UK |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| The body of the latest British soldier to be killed on duty in Iraq is being flown back to the UK. | The body of the latest British soldier to be killed on duty in Iraq is being flown back to the UK. |
| Sgt Graham Hesketh, 35, of the 2nd Battalion, The Duke of Lancaster's Regiment, was killed by a roadside bomb while on patrol in Basra city. | Sgt Graham Hesketh, 35, of the 2nd Battalion, The Duke of Lancaster's Regiment, was killed by a roadside bomb while on patrol in Basra city. |
| Sgt Hesketh, who was born in Liverpool and grew up in Runcorn, was described as a "great asset to the Army". | Sgt Hesketh, who was born in Liverpool and grew up in Runcorn, was described as a "great asset to the Army". |
| His fiancee Rebecca Barnes, 25, from Fairburn, North Yorkshire, is expected to meet his body at RAF Brize Norton. | His fiancee Rebecca Barnes, 25, from Fairburn, North Yorkshire, is expected to meet his body at RAF Brize Norton. |
| Miss Barnes, who serves in the same regiment based at Catterick Garrison in North Yorkshire,, has been sent back to the UK on compassionate leave from her duty in Iraq. | |
| She told the Daily Mirror that Sgt Hesketh had written to her just two days before he was killed. | She told the Daily Mirror that Sgt Hesketh had written to her just two days before he was killed. |
| Sgt Hesketh was described as an asset to the Army | Sgt Hesketh was described as an asset to the Army |
| And she revealed that the pair had both met Tony Blair during his recent visit to Iraq on 17 December. | And she revealed that the pair had both met Tony Blair during his recent visit to Iraq on 17 December. |
| Sgt Hesketh became the 127th British soldier to die in Iraq on 28 December when the armoured vehicle he was commanding was targeted. | Sgt Hesketh became the 127th British soldier to die in Iraq on 28 December when the armoured vehicle he was commanding was targeted. |
| The patrol was heading towards a British Army base in the centre of Basra. There were no other casualties. | The patrol was heading towards a British Army base in the centre of Basra. There were no other casualties. |
| Sgt Hesketh was airlifted to a field hospital but died as a result of his injuries. | Sgt Hesketh was airlifted to a field hospital but died as a result of his injuries. |
| The MoD said he had a seven-year-old daughter and a three-year-old son. | The MoD said he had a seven-year-old daughter and a three-year-old son. |
| His body was being flown back on an Army plane to the RAF base in Oxfordshire on Thursday. | His body was being flown back on an Army plane to the RAF base in Oxfordshire on Thursday. |