200 British soldiers in ‘tribal’ bar brawl
Taunts between regiments explode into violence in Kenya
MORE than 200 British soldiers were involved in a ‘tribal’ drink-fuelled bar brawl during a break from military exercises in Kenya.
Troops needed hospital treatment after a drinking session descended into shameful violence following taunts about bad driving and football rivalry.
Drunken soldiers hurled chairs, bottles and glasses across the hotel bar during the 20-minute skirmish – and it was reported that one squaddie was thrown through a window.
Revellers fled the Sportsman’s Arms nightspot in Nanyuki, 90 miles north of Nairobi, near where UK forces train before being deployed to Afghanistan.
An Army officer said the fight between the Irish Guards and infantrymen from the Royal Regiment of Scotland last Friday was ‘tribal’.
Major James Clark, the Army chief of staff, said: ‘It was a scenario similar to one in Kenya where people from different tribes disagree when drunk. The fight was quickly contained but it has hurt the image of the British Army in Kenya.’
The soldiers were at the hotel after doing several weeks of combat training on the plains of Kenya in the district of Laikipia.
The so- called Exercise Grand Prix prepares service personnel in environments similar to the badlands of Afghanistan. An argument is said to have flared when troops from one regiment began mocking the other over bad driving. Earlier in the day a British Army vehicle was involved in a road accident in the town.
But insiders suggested trouble might have broken out after supporters of Celtic Football Club in the Irish Guards taunted Rangers fans in the Royal Regiment of Scotland about their beloved team going into administration.
Shadrack Juma, of the Kenyan police, said: ‘ They pushed each other through windows and whoever fell would find a group waiting for him at the ground floor.’
A separate Army unit brought the brawl under control. The two regiments paid the bar owner for the damage and the disgraced soldiers were ordered to march back to their camp.
A Ministry of Defence spokesman said: ‘ We can confirm that an incident involving British military personnel, in a secure location in Nanyuki, resulted in some injuries.
‘The British Army is sorry for this incident. Military police have already started an investigation.’
The MOD said two servicemen were discharged from the Aga Khan University Hospital, in Nairobi.
The spokesman added: ‘All those who are found to fall short of the Army’s high standards are dealt with administratively – up to and including discharge.’