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OSM Afghanistan

Two_Domes said:
No wah mate, if you look right at the bottom of the defence internet site, link underneath, it says "A clasp may be awarded with the OSM to signify service in a more dangerous area or period of conflict."

http://www.mod.uk/DefenceInternet/DefenceFor/Veterans/Medals/OsmAfghanistan.htm

Indeed but that means that Afghanistan, wether it be Kabul or Helmand is more dangerous than say Oman, where they actually received the medal in 2002 but without the clasp. You get the clasp afghanistan and rosette for being ANYWHERE in afghanistan for the qualifying period.
 
Two_Domes said:
No wah mate, if you look right at the bottom of the defence internet site, link underneath, it says "A clasp may be awarded with the OSM to signify service in a more dangerous area or period of conflict."


http://www.mod.uk/DefenceInternet/DefenceFor/Veterans/Medals/OsmAfghanistan.htm

Sorry to post again but on the same page that you posted it says this

"Clasp

‘Afghanistan’. Awarded with the Medal for service specifically in Afghanistan. When the ribbon alone is worn, a silver rosette denotes award of the Clasp."
 
Indeed but that means that Afghanistan, wether it be Kabul or Helmand is more dangerous than say Oman,

yep

Returning bods from 7 sigs, that provided comms up in Kabul, didn't receive a clasp for their troubles - just confirmed it with a mate - they only received the medal.

Basically, anyone that serves down south gets the medal, clasp and rosette and anyone that doesn't, doesn't.
 
look, all I know is that the units that have been to theatre within the last 2-3 years have received the medal, clasp and rosette for service within Helmand.

The ones that havent, didn't and this has been confirmed to me by more than one source in more than one capbadge. Whether you agree or not is your own business.

You decide, I'm going to have my tea....
 
Has any more been heard/said about a new clasp. I was reading in soldier magazine (I think), that there was currently discusions ongoing as to the issue of a new clasp for the guys who are/have served in Helmand on Herrick. Can anyone shine any more light on this?

Also found this which hints at it....

The Operational Service Medal (OSM) for Afghanistan
Medal

Silver and circular in shape. The obverse of the medal shows the crowned effigy of Queen Elizabeth. The reverse (shown here) bears the Union Flag, surrounded by the inscription 'For Operational Service' and the four major points of the compass, with four Coronets: Royal (top left), Naval (top right), Mural-Army (bottom left), and Astral-Royal Air Force (bottom right).

Clasp

'Afghanistan'. Awarded with the Medal for service specifically in Afghanistan. When the ribbon alone is worn, a silver rosette denotes award of the Clasp.
Ribbon

A broad central red stripe, flanked each side by a stripe of royal blue and one of light blue, to represent the three services, with an outer stripe of light brown to reflect the landscape of Afghanistan.

Qualifying criteria

Complex criteria govern the award of this medal, with varying lengths of service required depending on the operation and location.

About the OSM

The new Operational Service Medal (OSM) was introduced on 1 January 2000 and at the same time the General Service Medal (GSM) was discontinued, with the exception of the award of the GSM for Northern Ireland.

Since its introduction, three OSMs have been issued: for service in Sierra Leone, Afghanistan and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Although each OSM will look the same, separate ribbons will denote each separate award.

A Clasp may be awarded with the OSM to signify service in a more dangerous area or period of conflict.
 
modwatchdog said:
A Clasp may be awarded with the OSM to signify service in a more dangerous area or period of conflict.

I think this was looked at and knocked on the head a while ago - on the grounds that it was/is possible to have a safe and relatively comfortable tour in a threat-free part of Helmand (as many of us have) and to face rather greater dangers in parts of Kandahar or elsewehere - leading to an inherent unfairness.
 
Hobo-Ken said:
modwatchdog said:
A Clasp may be awarded with the OSM to signify service in a more dangerous area or period of conflict.

I think this was looked at and knocked on the head a while ago - on the grounds that it was/is possible to have a safe and relatively comfortable tour in a threat-free part of Helmand (as many of us have) and to face rather greater dangers in parts of Kandahar or elsewehere - leading to an inherent unfairness.



Ken, I totally agree, I thought this one had been done and dusted too, but yet this article was in a recent soldier? I remember a while ago, they where talking about a different medal altogether, but then the clasp `Afghanistan` made an appearance, and it all seemed sorted. But yet a few years down the time, we find ourselves in the same situation. Time will tell I suppose. But like you say, you can get a cushy one in the most dangerous places. I`m sure there are guys out there who where on Telic 1 who did b*gger all but got a clasp and guys on later tours who were in the thick of it, and didn`t. Only the wearer knows the true story.
 
Found this which I thought might be of interest.....


The "Afghanistan" Clasp is awarded for service specifically in Afghanistan. Rosette on ribbon denotes clasp when no medal is worn. There are two types of 'Afghanistan' clasps to date, the first initial issue from 2002-2004 the clasp had a smooth background behind the writing and from Op Herrick onwards (2005 to present) the clasp has a 'dappled' effect behind the writing, just like the 'Northern Ireland' clasp on the 1962-2007 General Service Medal. The medal is issued without the clasp for service outside Afghanistan in support of ongoing operations, i.e Pakistan and Oman.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OSM_for_Afghanistan
 
Think this should wrap this one up....

Troops denied special Afghan medal
Last Updated: 10:10AM BST 19 Apr 2008

The Ministry of Defence was facing severe criticism last night for refusing to award a special honour to soldiers fighting the Taliban in Afghanistan.

British troops serving in Helmand province are being denied a dedicated medal to recognise the intensity of the conflict, campaigners said.

War veterans, MPs and families of those who have lost loved ones in the fighting - the heaviest British forces have experienced since the Second World War - have urged the MoD to make a special award for the thousands of soldiers and marines who have put their lives at risk on a daily basis fighting insurgents.

Their calls came as Britain faced up to another grim milestone in the fight against the Taliban - the death of its 70th soldier since the operation began in November 2001, and the seventh fatality since July 7.

Despite the ferocity of the campaign, those who have fought in Helmand still receive exactly the same medal as those who undertook relatively safe peace-keeping duties in the Afghan capital, Kabul, immediately after the Taliban were deposed.

Critics say the situation is now "completely different" and believe the MoD is missing out on an easy way to boost morale at a critical time.

Yesterday, a spokesman for the ministry insisted that the medal which has been awarded to troops who have served in the country for the last six years - and those given for specific acts of bravery - are sufficient to recognise their efforts.

Figures revealed yesterday show how Britain's front-line troops in Afghanistan now have a one in 36 chance of dying in a six-month tour of the country, compared to a one in 100 chance during a tour of Iraq. In addition, hundreds have been severely injured. MoD figures also show that, up until July 15, 699 troops have needed hospital treatment due to battle wounds or disease since 2001.

Tony Philippson, whose son, Capt James Philippson, was the first British serviceman to die in Helmand province after the deployment last year, said the MoD was reluctant to issue a new medal because it would mean effectively admitting that troops were now engaged in a new war.

Mr Philippson said: "The more they award medals, the more they have to recognise it's a nasty, dirty war.

"They have been sent into a cauldron and they are under-resourced. Issuing medals recognises the fact we're in a real war."

Derek Eida, whose son, Capt Alex Eida, was killed in Afghanistan last August, said: "It sounds ridiculous that they won't award a different medal, this is a completely different deployment and 2002 was a hell of a long time ago.

"It seems totally petty to me, I just can't understand their logic. It could be bad for morale when people are putting their lives on the line but not being recognised."


But the MoD said it had no plans to create a new campaign medal for Afghanistan.

Nicholas Soames, the former Conservative defence minister, said: "This is typical Ministry of Defence bureaucracy and thoughtlessness.

"Clearly those who were on an earlier policing operation should get medals which reflect that, but those in the combat operation should get a medal of their own. They are separate deployments and this is not a general service operation."

Patrick Mercer, the Conservative MP for Newark, who is a former infantry commander, said: "I think the ferocity of the current operation in Helmand needs special recognition, and it could be in the form of a medal or a bar or a clasp, something that shows how serious the fighting has been.

"There's nothing more important to troops than a medal - they are incredibly emotive and they mean the world to soldiers. To have a chest full of medals and to be in a prestigious fighting unit is the business."

He said during Victorian times a special award known as the Kabul to Kandahar Star was issued just to British troops who had taken part in one particular part of the Second Afghan War.

A horizontal metal bar or clasp, usually attached to the ribbon of a medal, is often awarded to indicate that the wearer has been involved in a particular operation.

The Government has endured criticism for the apparent lack of planning that went into the operation to take on the Taliban in Helmand, which was launched in spring last year.

John Reid, the then defence secretary, famously declared: "We would be perfectly happy to leave in three years' time without firing one shot."

However, millions of rounds have since been fired and, while more than a thousand Taliban fighters have been killed, the cost to British troops has been severe.

Maj Gen Patrick Cordingley, the commander of the Desert Rats in the first Gulf War, said: "The situation has changed dramatically and perhaps a bar on the Afghan medal would be more reasonable."

Air Vice-Marshal Tony Mason, another veteran of the first Gulf War, added that there was "a horrendous difference between 2002 and 2007".
 
Ok here is one for the pot...I went out there in 2005-6 and got the NATO medal but did not qualify for the OSM as I was not under UK command (took the winge to the CDS and was fcuked of at the high port) next month of again to Afghanistan but with UN Peace keepers and will pick up the UN Special Service medal ......so what does a boy do with that lot ?
 
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