War veteran meets 'dead' comrade

Harry Finlayson and Gerry Solomon were separated in north Africa

Two World War II comrades have met 67 years after one of them was presumed dead while fighting together in the desert in north Africa.

Harry Finlayson, 93, who lives near Bridgwater, Somerset, was thought to have been buried in Libya.

He met fellow veteran Gerry Solomon from Holbrook, Suffolk, at a reunion in Colchester, Essex, on Wednesday.

The first words from the pair, who were presented with a veterans medal, were, "I hardly recognised you".

Mr Finlayson's daughter wrote to Tank magazine to contact his old comrades and received a reply from Mr Solomon's daughter.

Mr Solomon said he was "stunned" to hear his friend was alive.

They met for a private reunion on Wednesday. They are being presented with HM Armed Forces Veterans' Badges in Colchester on Thursday evening.

When my daughter said she had made contact with Gerry Solomon I said there was no one better that I'd like to meet Harry Finlayson

Mr Solomon said they served together in the 5th Battalion the Tank Regiment in the western desert in north Africa.

"We carried out a raid on an airfield late in one day and set planes on fire but it was getting towards dusk and retreated. That was the last I saw of my pal."

Mr Finlayson said: "I was in a valley and my radio mast was broken so I did not hear the order to retire.

"I was caught up in the German lines and a tank blew out my engine but the crew got out. We were surrounded by Germans and one of them put a gun into my chest and said 'for you the war is over'.

"We were put on a ship bound for Italy but were torpedoed and 600 out of the 1,000 on board perished.

"When my daughter said she had made contact with Gerry Solomon I said there was no one better that I'd like to meet."

Mr Solomon said: "We were great pals in the desert and it was wonderful to meet after all this time as I'm 92 and Gerry is 93."