Army dog wins animal Victoria Cross' for Taliban counterattack

摘要

In October 2017 the Guardian reported that a special forces dog that detected explosives and insurgents during an assault on a Taliban position in Afghanistan has been given a prestigious award for gallantry. Mali, a Belgian Malinois, received the Dickin medal for saving the lives of Special Boat Service troops during the 2012 operation. Cpl Daniel Hatley, who trained Mali when the dog was a puppy, said, "I am extremely proud of Mali. The way he conducted himself when it mattered most enabled my colleagues to achieve success in close combat." Mali's special forces handler, who cannot be named for security reasons, was also awarded a gallantry medal for his part in the operation. During his deployment with the Special Boat Service, Mali was credited with giving British forces the upper hand in a near eight-hour operation to dislodge a heavily armed Taliban force from a multi-storey building. He was wounded by three grenade blasts, but still managed to indicate the locations of enemy fighters. That gave the British forces time to react in close-quarters combat. The dog was sent through direct fire twice and was hoisted up the outside of the building several times to provide the assault force with a foothold. The first two explosions that wounded Mali caused injuries to his chest, front and rear legs. Another detonated close to his face, causing the loss of his front tooth and damage to his ear. But Mali continued to push forward and remained close to his handler.