Fighting for the French Foreign Legion
Page 24
BEIRUT, AUGUST 1982
In August 1982, the REP were sent to the Lebanon and, in particular, Beirut. By 11.30 pm on the 20th, the Regiment had secured the harbour area and established a bridgehead for the arrival of the main UN force.
On the 26th they were given the mission of escorting Yasser Arafat and 4,371 Palestinian soldiers out of the region, which was a major contributory factor to peace being restored in the region.
The Regiment has been involved in many front-line peacekeeping operations, some of which I have covered in this book. Since my departure from the Legion in 1994, nothing has changed. The Regiment has been involved almost non-stop in peacekeeping missions throughout the world, except of course in the 2nd Gulf War where France refused to become involved.
I am more concerned about the innocent victims of today’s conflicts than I am about the politics of the power seekers, but I am confident that Le Deuxième Regiment Etranger de Parachutistes, my Regiment, will continue to help those who are caught up in world conflicts which are not of their own making. It is important that we continue the fight against those who strive to destroy our way of life and the things we believe in.
My story is a real one. I have tried to relate it honestly without glorifying what I have experienced. Others no doubt will have had different experiences in the Legion and their points of view may differ. Of course there are things that happen and ways of doing things within the Legion that are a bit different from what you might experience in some other armies, but that is why it is the Legion. It’s not the Boy Scouts and life can be tough at times, no one ever said it wouldn’t be.
Most of the horror stories about the Legion that make their way into print are told by those who either never tried to join, did not pass selection, failed instruction or could not hack it for one reason or another and deserted. Many of these tales are told to justify their own actions or make themselves out to be something they aren’t and never will be.
It was an honour and a privilege to have served in the French Foreign Legion and to have worked for, and with, some great guys.
I have tried to show that the Legion is made up of exceptional young (and not so young) men who, in many cases, have not only turned their own lives round, but have continued to show others by their example, bravery and determination that no one is ever too old to make a contribution towards making our planet a better and more peaceful place to live in. The life of a Legionnaire is not for everyone, or indeed within the grasp of everyone. I hope that having read my story you will appreciate that today’s Legion plays an important part in the safety of today’s world.
CHAPTER 19
Conclusion
Being a Legionnaire is nothing like you would expect. None of the thoughts you might have about it will come anywhere near the mark. The Legion has always had a reputation for being brutal and full of hard men and criminals. There is no doubt that it offers a hard physical world in which you are confronted with the realities of life at the sharp end. But then that is what being a soldier is all about. It does not matter if you are in the British Army, US Marines or the French Foreign Legion, if you only learn how to be physically dominant but know nothing about what it is like to be on the receiving end, the shock, when it happens to you, is likely to stress you out and cause you to crack up mentally.
We hear a lot these days about Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. So many soldiers are coming back home from war zones like Iraq and Afghanistan with PTSD that we need to be asking the question, why? It comes as no surprise to me that the percentage of legionnaires suffering from PTSD having been to those countries seems to be far lower than in the UK and US forces.
The Legion has been and still is engaged in all of the world’s hot spots. From Africa to the Gulf, the Balkans and Afghanistan, the Legion has been on the front line as much as, if not more than, most of the countries involved in today’s conflicts.
My story is not a recruitment drive for the Legion. If anyone reading this thinks that life in the Legion might be for them, there is nothing that I or anyone else can say, for or against, to help them decide. They will never know until they try it for themselves.
I keep reading on web forums about wannabe legionnaires who are going to join in six months’ time, or next year, or whenever. Do you know something? They never will. The only thing that all future, serving and ex-legionnaires have in common is that they are all men of action. They don’t talk about what they might or might not do at some future date, they just do it.
‘Legis Pastra Nostra’.