Soldier killed after getting engaged

A British soldier killed by the Taliban on New Year's Day was a part-time soldier who got engaged on the day he left the UK to go to Afghanistan.

Territorial Army sergeant Christopher John Reed, 25, who was serving with 6th Battalion The Rifles, was on a routine patrol in Helmand province when his vehicle was hit by an explosion. He died at the scene.

The Ministry of Defence said Sgt Reed and his fiancée, Heather, had planned to marry when he returned. His commanding officer, Lieutenant Colonel Tom Mereweather, paid tribute to the "talented, committed" soldier and said his death was a "hammer blow" to the battalion. Speaking from the unit's headquarters at Wyvern Barracks in Exeter, Devon, he said: "He was undoubtedly one of my very best section commanders. Calm, modest, easy-going but with a sense of purpose and obvious steel."

Sgt Reed, from Plymouth, worked for Babcock Marine at Devonport Dockyard, where he built yachts. In a statement, his family said he believed he was making a difference. "He touched the hearts of all he came into contact with. Christopher will be sadly missed. We are very proud of what he achieved and what he was trying to achieve," they said.

A spokesman for the MoD highlighted Sgt Reed's role in evacuating casualties during one firefight. "His team commander and three Afghan National Army soldiers were injured by shrapnel from a rocket-propelled grenade blast," the spokesman recalled. "Without pause, Chris took control of the situation, overseeing the evacuation of the casualties and then continuing with his patrol."