Next Iraq deployment due

A second deployment of Army engineers to Iraq is expected to be announced by the Government next month, extending the commitment to a year.

About 60 are understood to be training at Linton and will replace those who left at the end of September on a six-month mission.

Government sources said an assessment of security in the area where the New Zealanders are working would be done before an announcement was made next month.

When Defence Minister Mark Burton announced the first deployment in August, he said there was an option for another six months of reconstruction work.

The engineers are based in the Basra region of southeast Iraq, working alongside British forces.

The region has been less prone to attack than other areas of Iraq, but the engineers are armed to protect themselves.

At Linton the replacements are undergoing pre-deployment training which includes language and local knowledge courses.

Prime Minister Helen Clark visited the engineers in Iraq in November and said they were unlikely to be pulled out despite the risks.

The Government has consistently said the engineers are not part of the occupation force in Iraq and are there to carry out humanitarian and reconstruction work.

- NZPA

Herald Feature: Iraq