A YOUNG soldier based in the region has been awarded a Conspicuous Gallantry Cross for bravery under fire in Iraq.

Corporal Shaun Jardine, 21, was among members of the King's Own Scottish Borderers sent to the Gulf when the North Yorkshire-based 19 Mechanised Brigade was deployed on Operation Telic 2 last summer.

On patrol in the Al Uzayr area of Maysan province north of Basra on August 9, Cpl Jardine's unit came under fire.

He single-handedly stormed two enemy positions, killing two gunmen and capturing their weapons.

The 1st Battalion, King's Own Scottish Borderers, were based at Catterick Garrison's Somme Barracks until January, when the unit was posted to Northern Ireland.

A Territorial Army reservist on his first operational tour of duty has been awarded the Military Cross for rescuing an officer under fire, only days after his regiment arrived in Iraq.

Michael Davison, who joined the 1st Battalion, The King's Regiment - based at Catterick Garrison's Bourlon Barracks - dragged the officer to safety after he was hit in the foot during a fire fight in Basra on July 4 last year.

Other military honours confirmed in the Queen's birthday list include Military Crosses for Cpl Anthony Currie, 29, also of the King's Own Scottish Borderers; Major James Hollister, 33, of the King's Regiment, and Company Sergeant Major WO2 Darren Leigh of the 1st Battalion, The Queen's Lancashire Regiment, which left Catterick Garrison for Cyprus in January.

Commander of 19 Mechanised Brigade, Brigadier Bill Moore, has been awarded the CBE, and the commanding officer of the Queen's Lancashire Regiment, Lieutenant Colonel Jorge Mendona, receives the Distinguished Service Order.

Lieutenant Colonel Ciaran Griffin, of The King's Regiment, and Lieutenant Colonel Mark Castle, of the King's Own Scottish Borderers, are awarded OBEs, while an MBE goes to Major Mark Robinson, 32, who worked at brigade headquarters in Basra on security and intelligence matters.

Mentions in Dispatches are given to Lieutenant Glen Espie, Private David Frame, Corporal James Haslam, Corporal Darren Kimber, Lance Corporal Mark Lawrie and Corporal Eammon Muirhead, of the King's Own Scottish Borderers; Lieutenant Michael Peel and Lance Corporal Adrian Redfearn, of the Queen's Lancashire Regiment; and Major Andrew Pullan and Kingsman Paul Vanden, of The King's Regiment.

The Queen's Commendation for Valuable Service is awarded to Major Mark Kenyon and Captain Jo McMahon, of the Queen's Lancashire Regiment, and Major Peter Woods, of 40 Regiment, Royal Artillery, based at Alanbrooke Barracks, near Topcliffe, North Yorkshire.