This year, I will be attending Remembrance Sunday
services at Hayle and Illogan.
Last week, Syrian troops retook Daesh’s last
remaining city. Daesh/Isis is a barbaric group that has terrorised the region.
Whilst many problems remain, particularly in Syria, intervention by British
forces has helped.
This has led to the news that RAF jets may be able
to begin withdrawing. Air Commodore Johnny Stringer, commander of UK operations
in Iraq and Syria, said that the UK could being withdrawing RAF jets from the
campaign as early as next year.
There is no doubt in my mind that the difficult
operations in recent years have made the public far more conscious of
sacrifices made by our armed forces. We owe those who have given up so much at
such a young age all the support they need to help them build their lives back,
especially those who suffered life changing injuries during those terrible
conflicts. Charities such as Help for Heroes, the Army Benevolent Fund and the
Royal British Legion do just that, helping people recover not just from the
physical but also mental difficulties that come from being exposed to war.
2017 marks the centenary of the Battle of
Ypres/Passchendaele, Britain’s main Western Front offensive of 1917. The battle
ended in November 1917, with the capture of the village of Passchendaele by
Canadian troops.
The French Government has been
awarding the Légion d’honneur to D-Day veterans from many different countries
as a way of honouring and thanking those who fought and risked their lives to
secure France’s liberation during the Second World War. The Légion
d’honneur was established in 1802 by Napoléon Bonaparte and is France’s highest
distinction and is awarded in recognition of both military and civilian merit.
Second World War veterans from across Cornwall have been presented with the
Légion d’honneur, and as of June 2017 the French Embassy said that there were
just 100 more to be given out.
Remembrance Sunday is always
supported by the various Cadet groups, Scouts
and Brownies. It is great to see these movements going from strength to
strength.
