HMS Iron Duke completes final patrol of Iraq's oil terminals

HMS Iron Duke has completed its final patrol of Iraq's oil terminals, heralding the end of the Royal Navy's eight-year involvement in their protection.

Since the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime in 2003, Britain's frigate fleet has been committed to almost round-the-clock patrols of the waters around the Khawr Al Amaya and Al Basrah Oil Terminals - known throughout the fleet as KAAOT and ABOT.

The two platforms deliver millions of barrels of oil to waiting tankers each day - generating around 80 per cent of the country's income in the process.

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