Exercice Jebel Tarik 2016

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Moroccan troops land in Gib bound for Exercise Jebel Tarik

February 12, 2016
Brian Reyes

A Moroccan military C27J transport plane is pictured above at RAF Gibraltar on Friday.

A spokesman for the Ministry of Defence said the plane was transporting a group of Moroccan paratroopers who will join soldiers from the Royal Gibraltar Regiment on the annual Jebel Tarik exercise in the UK.
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The local regiment has strong links with the Moroccan Deuxieme Brigade d’Infanterie Parachutiste.

The two train jointly in Morocco every year as part of Exercise Jebel Sahara

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[size=36]Local soldiers train alongside Moroccan troops[/size]

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[size=37]The Royal Gibraltar Regiment [RG] completed a month-long operational training in Sennybridge, South Wales, alongside Moroccan paratroopers.[/size]
[size=37]The RG continued its ‘close relationship’ with the Moroccan Armed Forces at Exercise Jebel Tarik, and invited members of the Forces Armées Royale [FAR] to join. A week before deployment to Sennybridge, 20 FAR personnel arrived in Gibraltar and underwent pre-deployment training.[/size]
[size=37]Governor Lieutenant General Edward Davis alongside Commander British Forces, Commodore Ian McGhie visited the troops on exercise, and were joined by Colonel Major Azzendine Badr and Lieutenant Colonel Moad Raoundi from the FAR.[/size]
[size=37]“It is good to work with foreign troops, particularly the Moroccans, given the fact we have been working with them for over 15 years now,” said Chief Instructor Sgt Joshua Whitaker.[/size]
[size=37]“These opportunities allow us to share ideas on best practices and enable the RG to continue developing its special relationship that has been in place for such a long time. The FAR troops were highly motivated and competent soldiers that engaged with us instantly and became fully integrated with the company from the outset.”[/size]
[size=37]At Sennybridge the RG completed an annual weapons assessment which allowed them to continue to provide armed guarding. Live Firing Marksmanship Training provided the RG with an understanding of common firing principles and aims to instil confidence when firing in combat.[/size]
[size=37]The RG Reserves, B Company, was also deployed for the last two weeks of the exercise. The deployment to Sennybridge was due to the ‘challenging terrain’ which cannot be replicated in Gibraltar.[/size]
[size=37]“The training conducted on this exercise is designed to be testing and is an ideal opportunity for my men to work in a challenging environment where they can hone their combat skills and be pushed to their limits,” said Major Timothy Cumming, Officer Commanding I Company (I COY).[/size]
[size=37]“Apart from completing mandated training requirements, it gives me an opportunity to identify upcoming commanders and confirm that my soldiers are current and competent in their infantry Tactics Techniques and Procedures. It also gives me the opportunity to test my Company in what we call Land Tactical Actions, which is basically manoeuvring and fighting in various offensive and defensive ways.”[/size]

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RG Return from Exercise JEBEL TARIK 2016
The Royal Gibraltar Regiment (RG) has recently returned from Exercise JEBEL TARIK 2016, a months long deployment to the United Kingdom, where they conducted an intense live firing tactical training and conventional war-fighting exercise in Sennybridge training area, south Wales. The terrain in this area already makes for an extremely challenging environment, but this time, the elements definitely added to this challenge. Experiencing lows between -10 to -5 and average highs of just above freezing during the better part of the deployment, meant that the soldier’s needed to adapt to this climatic extreme very rapidly if they were to remain combat effective. Intense rain and bitterly cold strong winds became the new normal towards the latter stages of the deployment.
Gibraltar’s geography does not allow for effective sub-unit and unit manoeuvre that can be effectively tested, hence the deployment on training exercises such as JEBEL TARIK 2016. Major Timothy Cumming, Officer Commanding I Company (I COY), stated that “the training conducted on this exercise is designed to be testing and is an ideal opportunity for my men to work in an challenging environment where they can hone their combat skills and be pushed to their limits. Apart from completing mandated training requirements, It gives me an opportunity to identify upcoming commanders and confirm that my soldiers are current and competent in their infantry Tactics Techniques and Procedures. Its also gives me the opportunity to test my Company in what we call Land Tactical Actions, which is basically manoeuvring and fighting in various offensive and defensive ways.”
The Reserve element of the RG, B Company, also had members deploy for a two week period towards the end of the exercise. They conducted LFTT and dry training which also culminated in a Final Training Exercise that tested their conventional tactics in a land environment.
As part of the ongoing and close relationship between the RG and the Moroccan Armed Forces, , 20 members of the Forces Armées Royale (FAR) wereinvited to take part in this exercise. They arrived in Gibraltar a week prior to our deployment to the UK where a small training team from I COY took charge of the contingent to commence their Pre-Deployment training. The chief instructor, Sgt Joshua Whitaker, commented that “ its good to work with foreign troops, particularly the Moroccans, given the fact we have been working with them for over 15 years now. These opportunities allow us to share ideas on best practices and enables the RG to continue developing its special relationship that has been in place for such a long time. The FAR troops were highly motivated and competent soldiers that engaged with us instantly and became fully integrated with the company from the outset.” After going through all the initial live and dry training requirements, the FAR troops formed part of I COY during the Final Training Exercise, where all elements were tested in a conventional war-fighting scenario that included a demanding urban operations phase.
His Excellency the Governor and Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Gibraltar Regiment, Lieutenant General Edward Davis CB CBE, took time off his busy schedule to visit the troops on exercise. His Excellency was accompanied by Commander British Forces, Commodore Ian McGhie MA RN when they visited one of the live firing attacks. The Regiment also hosted Colonel Major Azzendine Badr,Commandant 2° BIP and Lt Col Moad Raoundi from the FAR who visited the exercise at a similar time where they also had the opportunity to speak to their soldiers. The Units’ link to the FAR has definitely strengthened, showing the RG’s commitment to pursue extant MoD initiatives to persistently support Defence Engagement. All in all, an extremely challenging exercise that saw the RG soldiers work exceptionally hard in all aspects of the deployment.

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Getting ready to launch onto a Platoon live fire attack

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Waiting to be launched into the attack

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A member of the FAR contingent observing his arcs after their final house clearance

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Final moments after their third house clearance of the day

Royal Gibraltar Regiment RG a écrit:

FAR troops watching their arcs

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Ammo resupply during the final stages of a house clearance

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Getting ready to engage during a counterattack

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RG soldiers engaging opposing forces from the first floor of their ALPHA

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Frosty days being the new normal for most of the deployment!

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Stag on!

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It's always good to have a smile on stag

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Despite a moment or two of rare sunshine, there was no escaping the stream for this live attack!

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Getting ready to move for a live section attack

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Observing the trench position before commencing their live grenade stalk

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Final brief before their live ranges are due to commence

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Making ready prior to a pairs live grenade stalk

I'm seeing only british soldiers.