Britain's Black Watch regiment returned to its base in Basra in southern Iraq on Saturday after a month-long mission standing in for U.S. troops in a more violent part of the country, the Ministry of Defence said. Around 850 troops were sent to a base south of Baghdad to replace U.S. soldiers taking part in the storming of rebel-held Falluja. The regiment came under almost daily bombardment during the mission, suffering five fatalities. "The battle group has completed its 30-day mission," the ministry said in a statement. "The Black Watch's area will now be taken over by two U.S. and one Iraqi battalions."
