Dozens at anti-war demonstration

Dozens of demonstrators have taken part in a protest outside an RAF base over Britain's role in Iraq.

At Saturday's rally at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, an effigy of Tony Blair was pulled down, mimicking the toppling of a Saddam Hussein statue in Baghdad.

Organisers claimed about 100 people took part, but police said the number was about 60.

A spokesman for RAF Brize Norton said: "It was a peaceful protest outside the gates that didn't cause any trouble."

Before the demonstration, campaigners met with local people, members of the forces and their families.

Not hostile

Kate Hudson, chair of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND), which organised the protest, said the aim had been to raise awareness of the role of the base in ferrying British troops to Iraq.

She said: "The main focus of the protest at the base was calling to bring the troops home.

"Although it was a protest at the base, it wasn't hostile to the forces. It had a peaceful atmosphere and was very positive because it was actually going out to talk to people, not just sitting at a base complaining."