Title:BASRA BANK ROBBERS MEET THE IRISH GUARDS [Allocated Title]
Film Number:MGH 6546
Other titles:
Summary: Soldiers of the Royal Irish Guards, British Army detain Iraqi civilians attempting to rob the Iraq Central Bank building in Basra on 19 April 2003.
Description: Dopesheet
Basra bank robbers meet the Irish Guards
Date shot: April 19, 2003
Location: Central Basra, Iraq
Shot by: Arthur Kent
Usage: As per Imperial War Museum (please credit cameraman).
As British forces try to consolidate their hold on Iraq's second city, local businesses are plagued by burglars and thieves known as "Ali Babas". At 10 a.m. April 19th, a huge explosion attracts the attention of No. 2 Company, the Irish Guards. The soldiers rush to the location of the blast, Basra's Central Bank, just a few hundred meters from the Irish Guard's makeshift HQ on the Shaat al Arab. They apprehend 57 would-be Ali Babas, who are caught red-handed trying to get at the approximately half-million dollars' worth of Iraqi dinars stored in the vault. The culprits are held at gunpoint in an assembly area behind the bank until they can be moved, a few men at a time, back to the British base.
Footage shows:
10:00:00 Basra street scene before the explosion nearby
10:00:27 after British troops arrive to secure the area, a local man tries to explain what has happened
10:01:11 one of the soldiers invites the cameraman to enter the scene from another point on the perimeter
10:01:15 various views of troops keeping crowds back
10:03:01 Sgt Terry Watling, No. 2 Company, The Irish Guards, leads cameraman into the bank compound and explains what happened
10:03:40 various shots of troops guarding prisoners
10:06:20 Sgt. Brendon Campbell, No. 2 Company, The Irish Guards, explains background to the foiled bank robbery
10:07:30 Sgt. Terry (sic) Watling explains further while local people look on from their apartment balconies
10:09:50 shots of rear drive and basement door of the Central Bank (vault beyond)
10:10:30 prisoners and soldiers guarding them
10:12:30 Maj. Ben Farrell, Irish Guards, explains duties in relation to the incident
10:13:38 crowds of Basra residents watching from the corniche along the Shaat
10:14:23 ENDS
Alternative Title:
Colour:Colour
Digitised:No
Object_Number:MGH 6546
Sound:Sound
Access Conditions:NON-IWM
Featured Period:
Production Date:2003-04-19
Production Country: GB
Production Details: Kent, Arthur (Production individual)
