British soldier shot in Iraq

A British soldier has been shot and wounded in the first sniper attack on UK forces occupying the south of Iraq since the end of the war, the British Ministry of Defence confirmed today.

The man is being treated for gun-shot wounds to a leg in a British Army field hospital in Iraq and is said to be in a “stable” condition.

He was taking part in a routine patrol on the outskirts of the southern city of Basra late on Sunday when it came under fire from two gunmen.

The attack comes two weeks after six Royal Military Policemen were killed in a confrontation with an Iraqi mob 100 miles north of Basra in the town of Al Majar Al Kabir.

The gunmen responsible for Sunday’s incident appear to have fled under cover of darkness.

An MoD spokeswoman said that no arrests were made, but five illegally-held weapons were seized.

“A British Army patrol was fired upon by two Iraqi gunmen while on routine operations on the northern outskirts of Basra,” she said.

“One sustained a gunshot wound to the leg and is in a stable condition in a British Army field hospital in Iraq.

“No arrests were made, but the patrol seized five illegally-held AK-47 assault rifles.”

She was unable to give details of the injured man’s identity or regiment.