IRAQ: A young British soldier had been awarded the first Victoria Cross in over two decades for saving 30 colleagues by guiding them through an ambush in Iraq.
Pte Johnson Beharry (25) was struck by a bullet as he guided a Warrior armoured convoy through the flashpoint town of al- Amarah last May.
A month later, he saved more lives in a second ferocious exchange and suffered serious head wounds in a rocket-propelled grenade assault that left him in a coma.
Pte Beharry, who is still recovering from his injuries and bears a scar across his skull, said: "Maybe I was brave, I don't know. I think anyone else could do the same thing . . . At the time I was just doing the job, I didn't have time for other thoughts.
"I want to return to service, but I don't know when that will be and I would go back to Iraq if I had to."
Pte Beharry becomes the first living recipient of a Victoria Cross - the highest award bestowed on British and Commonwealth soldiers for gallantry in the face of the enemy - since 1965.
It is the first Victoria Cross awarded since Lieut Col Herbert (H) Jones and Sgt Ian John McKay received posthumous awards after the Falklands War.
Pte Beharry, who lives in London, joins only 13 other living holders of the prestigious medal.
Born on the Caribbean island of Grenada, the former construction worker came to the UK in August 1999.
He enlisted in 2001, serving tours in Iraq, Kosovo and Northern Ireland.
"I joined the army for a change of life. I've really thought about it, it was a good decision to make," he said.
His wife, Lynthia (23), a civilian worker for the Ministry Of Defence's medical supply department, said she was told at the time of the attack that her husband had only a 50/50 chance of survival.
"This makes me even more proud to be his wife. He deserves everything, he was very brave and courageous and I know he would do it all again if he had to," she said.
Gen Sir Mike Jackson, chief of the general staff, praised his valour and said that given the nature of his injuries, it would be the soldier's decision to return to duty.
"His citation is an extraordinary story of one man's courage, in the way he risked his life for his colleagues not once, but twice."