'Tours Are Reason We Joined Army' ; Around 500 Members of the 3rd Battalion the Mercian Regiment (Staffords) Will Soon Be Posted to Afghanistan, in Their First Deployment to the Troubled Country. Reporter Phil Corrigan Spoke to a Number of Staffords As They Prepared for Their Tour of Duty

Sentinel, The; Stoke-on-Trent (UK) › January 31, 2011

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Summary

Troops will focus on training Afghan forces and improving lives of nation's citizens THE Staffords will be going to Afghanistan as part of Task Force Helmand. Operation Herrick 14, as the deployment is known, will involve 7,000 troops from all three services, led by Headquarters 3 Commando Brigade Royal Marines, supported by the 7th Armoured Brigade.

With the British presence in Afghanistan due to end in 2014, the task force's main role will involve training and mentoring the Afghan Army and police forces, so they will be in a fit state to take over responsibility for the security of their country. The British troops will work alongside Afghan forces in the central Helmand region, establishing protected communities and winning the hearts and minds of the local people.

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'Tours Are Reason We Joined Army' ; Around 500 Members of the 3rd Battalion the Mercian Regiment (Staffords) Will Soon Be Posted to Afghanistan, in Their First Deployment to the Troubled Country. Reporter Phil Corrigan Spoke to a Number of Staffords As They Prepared for Their Tour of Duty

Brigadier Ed Davis, left, who will command the task force, said: "The reason why we are in Afghanistan is clear and hasn't changed since late 2001.

"We are going there to make sure the Taliban does not regain contr...

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