Hundreds of British paratroopers have been banned from a NATO deployment after videos emerged of an orgy with a civilian woman at a military barracks, according to reports.
The deployment of the Parachute Regiment’s 3rd battalion (3 Para) to Kosovo and Bosnia and Herzegovina has been canceled as Gen. Patrick Sanders, the newly assigned head of the British army, had “temporarily lost trust” in them, the BBC reported.
Eight paratroopers from the U.K.’s 16 Air Assault Brigade, of which 3 Para is a part, were placed under police investigation after they were filmed having a consensual orgy with a civilian woman at Merville barracks in Colchester, Essex, The Times of London reported on June 7.
While the army’s Royal Military Police established that no crime had been committed, Sanders was not willing to “risk the mission or the reputation of the British army” by sending the paratroopers overseas.
“[Their behavior was] unacceptable, corrosive and detrimental to the Army’s reputation [and] could also be construed to denigrate women,” said Sanders, who became the chief of the general staff on June 13.
Soldiers of the 3rd battalion will lose out on a medal and extra pay as a result of their deployment’s cancellation, according to the Times.
“They will reflect on and, where required, adjust behaviors and culture that undermines the reputation and operational effectiveness of an exceptional battalion,” Lt. Gen. Andrew Harrison, the colonel commandant of the Parachute Regiment, wrote in a letter.
“I know that the battalion will respond quickly and restore the reputation that they deserve,” he added.
Additionally, the soldiers directly involved in the sex tape will also be removed from 3 Para’s next Air Manoeuvre Battlegroup, which is held to prepare for global crisis responses.
Britain’s annual deployment to the Balkans is for a 10-day exercise with NATO allies. Around 300 members of 3 Para were set to be deployed to the region this September.
NATO is currently deploying a multi-national peacekeeping force in Kosovo known as the Kosovo Force (KFOR) “to maintain a safe and secure environment, freedom of movement of itself, the international civil presence, and other international organizations.”
The U.K. will continue to contribute to the United Nations-mandated force until at least 2023, the country’s Ministry of Defence said in a statement published Wednesday.
British soldiers serving in a NATO-led international peacekeeping mission in Kosovo salute as they take part in a ceremony in Pristina
BBC
