British troops to train in jungle warfare in Sierra Leone

Armed forces from Britain are to train in jungle warfare alongside Sierra Leonean troops for the first time, Defense Secretary Sir Michael Fallon announced here Saturday.

Nearly 90 soldiers from Britain are being deployed alongside 25 soldiers from Sierra Leone for a jungle exercise to learn the skills to live and fight in that environment.

Fallon said the move underlined the breadth of Britain's contribution across the African continent.

"Britain's focus on military support to Africa is strong, and two-thirds of Britain's entire global short-term training team effort is invested in the continent, which equates to around 18,000 man days of training per year.," said the Ministry of Defense (MOD).

Secretary Fallon said: "Training with Sierra Leonean forces is just the latest example of the UK stepping up globally to tackle international threats that put Britain at risk."

At sea, Britain has sent navy ships to support Operation Sophia in the Mediterranean, focused on tackling human smugglers and arms traffickers who endanger the lives of migrants seeking to travel to Europe, often from northern Africa.

Britain is also playing a role stemming extremism in Africa, supporting security in the countries affected, and in turn making Britain safer, said the MOD.

Britain also provides training to Tunisian forces in border security to prevent illegal movement from Libya.

British troops are continuing to train Nigeria Armed Forces fighting Boko Haram. Britain has also recently provided life-saving medical supplies to equip 5,000 Nigerian troops as they take on the extremist group. Endit