Fallen British soldier named
Corporal John Rigby died on his 24th birthday
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Sunday, 24, Jun 2007 09:57
The UK soldier killed in southern Iraq on Friday has been named as Corporal John Rigby by the Ministry of Defence.
Cpl Rigby, who was due to be promoted to sergeant in September, died after a roadside bomb struck his patrol vehicle in Basra City.
The Rye-born soldier died at a military hospital with his twin brother Will by his bedside on the day of their 24th birthdays.
Lieutenant Colonel Patrick Sanders of the Fourth Battalion the Rifles said Cpl Rigby's death had left the entire battalion "heartbroken".
"But we are also unbowed, tough and determined: John would have it no other way," he said.
Lt Col Sanders added that the 24-year-old was an "exceptional man in every respect" and "universally admired".
"Although as a section commander in B company he commanded only eight riflemen, his influence and fame extended the depth and breadth of the 700 men in Four Rifles," the lieutenant colonel continued.
"We have lost a true friend and exemplary fellow rifleman: the most talented corporal of his generation, and a warm, mature, dignified and almost unnaturally gifted man.
"But hard as it is for us, our pain is as nothing to that of his family whose suffering will be inconsolable. His parents and two sisters have lost a wonderfully warm, lively and loving son and brother; his twin brother Will, also serving as a corporal here in Four Rifles, has lost his lifetime companion and his soul mate."
A statement from the corporal's family said: "John was a cherished and devoted son and brother; a talented hardworking and successful soldier, popular with his peers and across all ranks alike.
"He will be accompanied back to England by his twin brother William who is also serving in Iraq with the Rifles, and who was with him at his bedside at Basra military hospital when he died.
"The army have been tremendously helpful and supportive to us at this difficult time, but we are understandably devastated at his loss and ask, please, to be left alone to grieve in peace."
Cpl Rigby is the 153rd British soldier to die in Iraq since the US-led conflict began in 2003.