http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4772491.stm
Dead British soldiers are named
The soldiers' commanding officer paid tribute to the two men
Two UK soldiers who were killed in a roadside bomb attack outside Basra on Saturday have been named.
The Ministry of Defence named them as Private Joseva Lewaicei, 25, from Fiji, and Pte Adam Morris, 19, both of 2nd Battalion, The Royal Anglian Regiment.
They were identified on the day four soldiers were hurt in a mortar attack on a camp near Amara in southern Iraq.
They were hurt during shelling at Camp Abu Naji, where the Queen's Royal Hussars battle group is based.
The attack at the weekend, which also left a third soldier injured, took place when the men were on routine patrol in a "snatch" Land Rover just outside Basra.
We shall continue to serve the Iraqi people in the way in which we have for as long as they, through their government, want us to be there
Des Browne
Defence Secretary
One was taken to the military hospital at Shaibah, where his condition has been described as stable. Three others were treated for minor injuries at the base.
The latest deaths brought to 111 the number of British military casualties in Iraq since 2003.
Lieutenant Colonel Des O'Driscoll, the commanding officer of both riflemen, paid tribute to their bravery and professionalism.
Lt Col O'Driscoll said Private Morris, who was single and lived with his mother in Leicestershire, was "one of our most promising soldiers" with a "fine career ahead of him".
'Universally popular'
"Adam's loss has touched and saddened all of us who had the honour to know him," he said. Pte Morris, who previously served in Northern Ireland, had been with The Royal Anglian Regiment for two years.
The soldier, whose nickname was "Borris", joined the army at 17 after going to college in the Leicester area.
Maureen Wright, a neighbour of the dead soldier's mother in Coalville, Leicestershire, said the news was "so sad".
"Adam was in the Army cadets, and it was all he ever wanted to do. He was keen to be going to Iraq," she said.
Pte Lewaicei, who was known as Lewi, grew up in Fiji, but joined the British Army and, according to his commanding officer, soon became "universally popular" with his colleagues.
'Exuberant character'
He was a father of one who had served in Afghanistan and Northern Ireland, as well as once being offered a contract to play rugby professionally.
The soldier, who represented his battalion at boxing, was born in Lautoka, Fiji, and his seven-year-old daughter still lives in the country.
Lt Col O'Driscoll paid tribute to the soldier who had been a "fun-loving and exuberant character" who was regarded as the "soul of the platoon".
The 2nd Battalion Royal Anglian Regiment has been based at Ternhill, Shropshire, since 2005.
Its recruits come from Leicestershire, Northamptonshire, Lincolnshire and Bedfordshire.
The bomb exploded as the patrol approached a bridge in their snatch - a vehicle protected by composite fibreglass.
A BBC correspondent said it was detonated by a wire, rather than electronically, making it impossible to counter using radio-jamming techniques.
Defence Secretary Des Browne said his "deepest sympathies and thoughts" were with their families and friends.
Helicopter crash
But he said the attack would not stop progress in helping Iraqis to safely govern their own country without foreign assistance.
"We shall continue to serve the Iraqi people in the way in which we have for as long as they, through their government, want us to be there," he insisted.
Monday's attack, in which a number of mortars fell inside the base in the Maysan province, started at around 0420 local time.
Major Sebastian Muntz, in Basra, said: "The injuries are mostly superficial. We don't normally talk about the injuries in detail.
"There's one chap who's had to be flown down here. It's not a serious injury. Whilst it's a significant attack, there's not been many people badly injured.
Last weekend five UK military personnel were killed in a helicopter crash in Basra, including the first British servicewoman to die in action.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,3-2182076,00.html
Soldier spurned rugby stardom and died in Iraq
By Michael Evans, Defence Editor
PRIVATE Joseva “Lewi” Lewaicei was so strong that those who dared to tackle him in army rugby matches used to bounce off him as he thundered past.
So impressive were his rugby skills that after playing for his regiment, the 2nd Battalion The Royal Anglians, just before being sent to Iraq this year, he was asked by a scout: “Have you ever thought of turning professional?” His friends said yesterday that although he loved the game he had rejected the idea because he wanted to continue serving in the British Army, the reason he left his home in Fiji four years ago.
Now he is dead, killed by a roadside bomb in Basra on Saturday night, two weeks after his 25th birthday.
Private Adam Morris, nicknamed “Borris”, 19, was the other soldier killed in the incident. Both were serving with the 2nd Battalion The Royal Anglians.
Their names were released by the Ministry of Defence after their next of kin had been informed. In Private Lewaicei’s case, it meant breaking the news to his seven-year-old daughter in Fiji.
Private Lewaicei, who had plans to invite his regimental colleagues to Paradise Island, his home in the South Pacific, had an impressive military career. Because of his size and exuberance the tough Fijian soldier was the ideal comrade to stand alongside in the dangerous environments in which his regiment has had to serve in recent years.
He was one of a growing number of Fijians recruited by the Army in recent years, not just for their military skills but for their legendary rugby talents. In the inter-services final at Twickenham this month the Army beat the Royal Navy with six Fijians in the squad.
Private Lewaicei was the second Fijian to be killed in Iraq since March 2003. Private Pita Tukutukuwaqa, of the 1st Battalion The Black Watch, died in 2004 when his armoured vehicle was struck by a roadside bomb. He was 27 and had been married for two months.
The Fijians have a proud record of exemplary service in the British Army dating back more than a century. Joining “The Poachers” in May 2002, Private Lewaicei served as a rifleman in Afghanistan, Northern Ireland, Jordan and Iraq.
Yesterday four soldiers were wounded in a mortar attack on a British military base at al- Amarah, northwest of Basra.
After the naming of Private Lewaicei and Private Morris, who is one of eight teenagers to have died in Iraq out of the fatal casualty toll of 111, Lieutenant-Colonel Des O’Driscoll, their commanding officer, paid tribute to them both. Private Lewaicei, who served with C Company of the 2nd battalion, was, he said, a “fun-loving and exuberant character”. He had represented the battalion in boxing as well as rugby. “He was an exceptional rugby full back,” the colonel said.
Private Lewaicei, who was born in Lautoka in Fiji, decided at an early age that he wanted to join the British Army. He was eligible because of Fiji’s membership of the Commonwealth.
His colleagues said yesterday that he was the “soul of his platoon”. He made them laugh, and was somebody to whom others would turn for help.
Private Morris who was single and lived in Coalville, Leicestershire, with his mother, Linder, had joined the Army at the age of 17. He suffered a leg injury last year but fought his way back to fitness. He was described as “army barmy” and even found a camouflage cover for the cast on his leg.
In November 2004 he carried out ceremonial duties at the funeral of Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester, and was complimented by members of the Royal Family on his turn-out and appearance.
In an entry on the Friends Reunited website, Private Morris wrote in December: “Army and loving it.”
