Media Room | Reports and Publications | Careers and Recruiting | Industry and Contracts | Other Defence Links

More Defence news: 09 June - 15 June 2008

British soldiers buried beside diggers in Fromelles | Private Lauren Maude - working closely with Afghan women | State of Origin | Never too far away for an Aussie BBQ | Weapons surrendered by rebels in Dili | Ships head off for foreign waters for Exercise RIMPAC | Little steps result in big gains | Rising Sun collar badge uncovered in Fromelles
British soldiers buried beside diggers in Fromelles

13 June - The discovery of two British General Service buttons at a group burial site in Fromelles, confirms that fallen British First World War soldiers have lain beside their Australian diggers for the last 92 years.

The discovery provides physical confirmation of the findings from earlier research, both the historical and non-invasive research, conducted earlier in the investigative process.

Following the unearthing of the Australian Rising Sun collar badges earlier this week, the artifacts together make the site very significant site for both Australian and British soldiers.
Private Lauren Maude - working closely with Afghan women

Secret girls business. Private Lauren Maude sits with a group of Afghan girls during her time on the front line with the Reconstruction Task Force in Afghanistan.
13 June - Private Lauren Maude, an Orderly Room Clerk with the Reconstruction Task Force in Afghanistan, sits with a group of local Afghan girls during her time on the front line in Oruzgan Province.

Private Maude is working with her colleagues manning checkpoints and deploying on operations, due to the need for female soldiers to conduct potentially sensitive tasks such as searching women and girls.

“It’s great!  I really enjoy the interaction with the locals, especially the kids. The culture is so different and the whole experience is amazing. Some of the women are scared of me at first but we manage to overcome that.”

“I’ll probably never experience this again so I need to make the most of it. It really opens your eyes; you can see what we are doing, rather than just being told. You can really see that we are making a difference.”

More: Imagery
State of Origin

Private Steven Ronayne (centre) is outnumbered by his Queesnland mates from Security Detachment Baghdad. For a short time Wednesday afternoon in Baghdad, it was mate against mate as Queensland and New South Wales supporters barracked for their teams.
12 June – Any members of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) not on duty in Iraq crowded around every available television on Wednesday afternoon (local time) to watch the second State of Origin rugby league match between Queensland and New South Wales.

In the field of Australian sport, State of Origin football games are famous for pitching mate against mate and state against state. That rivalry extended even to Baghdad where Origin fever ignited friendly but keen sporting rivalry among soldiers, sailors and airmen serving at the Australian Middle East Headquarters and at Security Detachment Baghdad.

More: Imagery
Never too far away for an Aussie BBQ

Soldiers wind down after a long day at work for an Aussie barbeque in the desert. It doesn’t matter how far away from home you are, if there’s an Aussie around a good barbeque can never be too far away.
11 June – Soldiers wind down after a long day at work for an Aussie barbeque in the desert. It doesn’t matter how far away from home you are, if there’s an Aussie around a good barbeque can never be too far away.

At the moment soldiers from Reconstruction Task Force 4 are constructing a series of new patrol bases north of Tarin Kowt in Afghanistan. The bases are for use of the International Security Assistance Force and Afghan National Police and Army, who regularly operate north of Tarin Kowt as the area is of strategic significance to Taliban Extremists in Oruzgan Province.
Weapons surrendered by rebels in Dili
Guns surrendered by rebels were on show at a Memorial Hall in Dili. Representatives from the International Stabilisation Force Military Police, National Police and Timorese Army were invited to view the weapons that were handed in to the Timor-Leste Government by a rebel group. The weapons handed back included automatic rifles stolen from the Timorese military in 2006, several illegal homemade weapons and a machine gun seized from security guards during the attempted assassination of President José Ramos-Horta.
11 June – Guns surrendered by rebels were on show at a Memorial Hall in Dili. Representatives from the International Stabilisation Force Military Police, National Police and Timorese Army were invited to view the weapons that were handed in to the Timor-Leste Government by a rebel group. The weapons handed back included automatic rifles stolen from the Timorese military in 2006, several illegal homemade weapons and a machine gun seized from security guards during the attempted assassination of President José Ramos-Horta.
Ships head off for foreign waters for Exercise RIMPAC

10 June – Royal Australian Navy (RAN) Ships HMAS Anzac HMAS Success, HMAS Tobruk, HMAS Waller and RAN Clearance Divers are heading off for foreign waters to be part of Exercise Rim of the Pacific 2009 (RIMPAC), one of the largest maritime exercises in the world.

Australian assets will join nine other nations for the month long exercise which comprises 35 surface ships, six submarines, more than 100 aircraft and approximately 20,000 personnel combine forces to improver interoperability across the spectrum of war-fighting activities in a maritime environment.

More: Media release | Media release
Little steps result in big gains

The future is in their hands. Major Andrew Dahl meets with local Afghan leaders to talk about the future of the area around a new patrol base in Oruzgan Province.
10 June - Reconstruction Task Force (RTF 4) has held their first public Shura with local tribal leaders in Afghanistan.

A Shura- or meeting of elders- was held in a former insurgent stronghold in Oruzgan Province.

The meeting highlights the success of the RTF in helping to drive out the insurgents.

It also shows that the local leaders support the role of Australian troops and are prepared to work with them to ensure that the insurgents do not come back.

Lieutenant Colonel Stuart Yeaman, Commanding Officer RTF 4 said, “All of our operations here are designed to push the insurgents out of these communities for good, and we are putting a lot of effort into developing our contact with the leaders here.”

More: Imagery
Rising Sun collar badge uncovered in Fromelles

9 June – The archaeology team in Fromelles has unearthed a Rising Sun badge in Pit 4, proving that the remains of Australian soldiers are buried at the site.

The significance of the discovery makes the field at Pheasant Wood nationally significant to all Australians.

The team is continuing to excavate the site to establish the condition and estimate the number of human remains at the site.

Human remains uncovered are of skeletal nature and are reported to be in good condition.

Future excavation of the site or testing of the human remains will require agreement from the British and French Governments as well as the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.

More: Imagery | media release