British soldier gives birth in Afghanistan
A British servicewoman has given birth whilst serving in Afghanistan, the Ministry of Defence said today.
The woman, who it is believed was unaware of her pregnancy, give birth to a boy at Camp Bastion – the military base where Prince Harry is stationed, yesterday. An MoD spokesman confirmed the birth and said that both mother and baby are in a stable condition.
“It is not military policy to allow service women to deploy on operations if they are pregnant,” the spokesman said. “In this instance the MoD was unaware of her pregnancy.
“As with all medical cases, when the need arises, individuals are returned to the UK for appropriate treatment/care.”
A medical team from the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford had been flown to the Helmand province base to provide specialist care. A special Paediatric Retrieval Team is being prepared to provide care for the mother on her flight back to the UK, which will take place in the next few days.
Insurgent attacks
Camp Bastion is a highly-fortified base in southern Afghanistan and the main base for the US and UK operations in the country. It is home to around 30,000 troops.
On Saturday 15 September, insurgents attacked the base killing two US marines and wounding several more soldiers. Shortly afterwards the Taliban said the attack had been targeted against Prince Harry.