RIR soldier given Military Cross

Lieutenant Richard Deane was feared dead for a time

A Royal Irish Regiment soldier wounded twice during fighting in Iraq is to receive the Military Cross.

Lieutenant Richard Deane, 30, from County Londonderry, was recognised for his "courage and gallantry under fire" in southern Iraq.

The fighting occurred during the uprising of Moqtada Sadr's Mahdi army in the spring and summer of 2004.

During one ambush, Lt Deane was knocked unconscious and was hit in the face with shrapnel in another incident.

Lt Deane had volunteered for a temporary attachment with the Princess of Wales Royal Regiment in Iraq.

During six months in the country the battlegroup, of which his platoon was a part, was attacked about 900 times - including more than 100 attacks in one day alone.

The citation for the medal states that the lieutenant was feared dead after one ambush in which he was knocked unconscious and his armoured fighting vehicle disabled.

Leadership

"Lt Deane demonstrated his unquestionable courage and leadership qualities by returning to duty and leading his platoon back into battle the day he was discharged from medical care," the citation reads.

It said that during the other incident in which he was injured, Lt Deane took control of the situation and fired his rifle from the turret of his vehicle "with total disregard for his own safety".

He then led his platoon through the ambush.

Lt Deane said he saw a flash as a rocket propelled grenade hit the front of his Warrior armoured vehicle.

"The impact of the shrapnel hitting my face stunned me for a few seconds but I saw three men standing in an alleyway, one of whom had another RPG on his shoulder," he said.

"I shot at them, preventing the RPG man from firing and then realised I was bleeding badly as I was having difficulty seeing with the blood in my eyes."

The soldier recovered fully from his injuries and returned home to his wife Christine and daughter Hannah, resuming service with the Omagh-based 4th battalion of the RIR.

He will be presented with his medal at St Patrick's Barracks in Ballymena on Friday.