Soldier's widow attacks poor equipment for troops in Afghanistan

Coalition ministers came under pressure yesterday over the resourcing of troops in Afghanistan, as the widow of a soldier killed by a roadside bomb blamed his death on inadequate equipment.

"I would like to call upon this new government to urgently review the equipment and the budget," said Joanne McAleese, whose husband, Serjeant Paul McAleese, 29, died in a blast in Helmand province while trying to recover the body of a comrade killed by an earlier device. "Our soldiers fight every day in the difficult circumstances. They deserve the very best."

McAleese, whose father led the SAS storming of the Iranian embassy in London in 1980, was killed by an improvised bomb with very little metal content, which made it particularly hard to detect, an inquest into his death at Trowbridge town hall in Wiltshire heard.

Speaking at the end of the hearing yesterday, Mrs McAleese said: "As Mac's wife it's been very hard to hear some of the evidence today. In my opinion the device that killed Mac was impossible to detect with the equipment provided to our soldiers. Many more soldiers have died since Mac's death in a very similar way. How can this be allowed to continue?"

McAleese, of 2nd Battalion The Rifles, was involved in an operation to restrict Taliban movement in Sangin in the south of the country on August 20 last year.

Another soldier, 18-year-old Private Johnathon Young, was among a group of soldiers using metal detectors to clear a path down a route known to be scattered with roadside bombs, when he stood on a device and was instantly killed.

Major Rupert Follett, the officer commanding the company – who said that resources were being directed heavily towards Operation Panther's Claw, an offensive elsewhere in Helmand Province at the same time – told the inquest McAleese tried to remove Young's body , but also stepped on a device, which blew him almost 10 metres away.

Follett said: "The second explosion knocked me off my feet. As the dust was settling I sent a contact report. There was lots of shouting of 'Mac, Mac, where's Mac?"'

The Wiltshire coroner, David Ridley, recorded a verdict of unlawful killing for both soldiers.

The former prime minister, Gordon Brown, faced regular pressure over claims that UK troops in Afghanistan were not given sufficient equipment, particularly helicopters. It was an allegation the Conservatives repeated often during the election, but the party made no specific pledges for increased military spending in its manifesto.

The new defence secretary, Liam Fox, said in a statement: "Our sympathies remain with the families of Serjeant Paul McAleese and Private Johnathon Young at this difficult time.

"Afghanistan is my top priority and it is unacceptable for our troops to ever lack the equipment they require. The new government will ensure that the new and better equipment will be provided for them."

The inquest was told that McAleese was "at the forefront of his generation of soldiers". Follett said: "He was brave, courageous and loyal. His riflemen loved him and he loved his riflemen. He was the best platoon serjeant a man could hope for."
Guardian