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I WATCHED VIDEO CLIP OF 'FRIENDLY FIRE' BLAST THAT KILLED MY AARON

Aaron McClure

Thursday January 24,2008

By Tom Fullerton

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A SCOTTISH mother has watched the last terrible moments in the life of her soldier son killed by “friendly fire” in Afghanistan.

“It was like having my heart ripped out,” said Lorraine McClure, 37, who was “torn apart by grief” as she watched the shocking images which are to be screened in a television documentary.

Private Aaron McClure and two other soldiers from the 1st Battalion Royal Anglian Regiment were killed in the blast from a 500lb bomb dropped by an American warplane last August.

The 19-year-old, who was a veteran of more than 40 engagements with the enemy, had only just returned to Afghanistan from a short leave and was due to return home with his regiment. Mrs McClure, who is from Bridge of Weir, Renfrewshire, but now lives in Ipswich, Suffolk, was contacted by the producers of the documentary who asked for her permission to show the pictures as part of a five-part series which started this week on Sky One.

It was like having my heart ripped out

Lorraine McClure

They also gave Mrs McClure a preview of the first episode, in which her son can be seen in the background of one scene.

Mrs McClure said: “We were shown a clip from a soldier’s headcam of the actual bomb that killed the boys, to see if we were OK with it being aired.”

Fighting back tears, she added: “If we hadn’t known it was that particular blast, it would have been fine, but knowing it was that blast was like my heart was being ripped out. It was just so hard to watch.” Former EastEnders star Ross Kemp joined the battle-hardened unit known as The Vikings on the front line in war-torn Afghanistan for the documentary.

Kemp was not actually in Afghanistan at the time the three soldiers were killed, but he returned to the scene eight days later to find out the grim mood of the troops’ mates.

The episodes following the deaths, to be shown in February, also have an interview with Private Robert Foster’s family about how they are coping after the triple tragedy.

In the final programme, Kemp joins the Royal Anglians as they capture and destroy the compound in which the three men were killed.

There is also footage of the troops’ homecoming and the medal parade in Pirbright, Surrey.

Mrs McClure added: “There was a very small glimpse of Aaron at one point in the first episode, which I was hoping to see.

“To see him there made me really chuffed.

“I remember Aaron talking about Ross Kemp being there during their training session on Salisbury Plain.

“He said he was a really nice guy and very down to earth.

“As much as you hear stories about what goes on in war, you cannot grasp what it is really like.

“I’m pleased this series has been made. People need to know what is going on out there.”

Unofficial figures suggest more than a third of all British troops killed in Iraq and Afghanistan have died as a result of equipment problems and military mistakes.

Of the 254 killed in the war zones, at least 88 lost their lives through equipment failures or shortages, faulty procedures on the battlefield or friendly fire incidents, an analysis based on official figures and military inquests revealed last year.