Essex soldiers have brought food and water to a desperate village in southern Iraq.
Troops from the 16th Air Assault Brigade, based in Colchester, went to survey a disused railway that links the remote village of Engabashir with Umm Qasr
They found about 200 people in urgent need of food and water.
Captain Fiona Steele said that the concern was to get the railway, west of Iraq's southern oil fields, operational again.
"We have made contact to get drivers back to work. The people rely on this railway which is why we are trying to get it up and running," She said.
Published Monday, April 7 , 2003
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