More soldiers killed in Afghanistan

Jul 27 2009

Two British soldiers were killed in separate explosions in Afghanistan on Monday morning, the Ministry of Defence has announced.

The news came after the latest soldier to be killed in Afghanistan was named as Bombardier Craig Hopson of 40th Regiment Royal Artillery.

Bombardier Hopson, 24, from Castleford, West Yorkshire, was killed on Saturday when the Jackal vehicle in which he was travelling was struck by a roadside bomb, said the Ministry of Defence.

The two latest casualties were a soldier from the Light Dragoons, who died while on a vehicle patrol as part of Operation Panther's Claw in Lashkar Gah district, central Helmand Province. In a separate incident, a soldier from 5th Regiment Royal Artillery was killed while on a foot patrol in Sangin district, Helmand Province. This was not part of the operation. Next of kin have been informed.

Bombardier Hopson was the 20th British serviceman to die in Afghanistan this month and the 189th British soldier to have died in the country since the start of operations in 2001.

A tribute from his family said: "Craig was the light in so very many lives. The light has now gone out. His family and many, many friends will love him and miss him forever. Craig the legend. Our Craig has left a hole in our lives that no one else can ever fill. He was loved so much."

Bombardier Hopson, known as "Hoppo" to his colleagues, leaves behind his mother Lynn, partner Eleanor and their three-month-old daughter Amelia.

He was taking part in Operation Panchai Palang and had been part of a patrol in the Babaji area of Helmand province tasked to "recce" a suitable area for a polling station in the forthcoming Afghan presidential elections. The MoD said Bombardier Hopson, who joined 40th Regiment Royal Artillery (the Lowland Gunners) in 2002, was a "larger than life character" who was always at the centre of the action. He was also a talented sportsman who represented the Army at rugby league.

Lieutenant Colonel Owen Adams, commanding officer of 40th Regiment Royal Artillery said: "Bombardier Hopson was part of the fabric of my regiment, known to everyone as a man with an enormous personality and a huge heart. He had that rare quality of being able to inject his own brand of gruff northern humour into any situation, always at ear-splitting volume, generally at the expense of his superiors in the regiment, but always in good spirit. Our thoughts and prayers are with his mother Lynn, partner Eleanor and daughter Amelia at this unimaginably distressing time."

Meanwhile, the funeral took place of 18-year-old Rifleman James Backhouse, also of Castleford, West Yorkshire, of the 2nd Battalion The Rifles, who died in an explosion near Sangin in Helmand province on July 10.