A NORTH YORKSHIRE soldier who spent more than three months in Iraq is to head a unit training to become the Army's rapid reaction jungle force.

Sergeant Major Steve Hall, from Rillington, near Malton, volunteered for service in the Gulf and was attached to 3 Commando Brigade.

He was part of the UK Civil Affairs Group, which worked alongside the fighting troops to assess the civilian infrastructure of Iraq.

During his time there he worked with local leaders assessing residents' needs, and worked to assess water, electricity and other essential utilities.

"We went into Umm Qasr with the US Marines to assess how much infrastructure was damaged, and mercifully it was not a large amount," he explained.

"We did quite a major task assessing whether there was much food left in warehouses and so on, and basically there was very little.

"We were going into offices and looking through paperwork for names of people such as port workers, managers, religious leaders, teachers and the police force commander - the movers and shakers.

"One of the main things for us was to try and get the water treatment works back up and running.

"It wasn't just about supplying aid, but about getting things back to normal as quickly as possible."

The Green Howards soldier, who takes up his new post as Regimental Sergeant Major (RSM) with the 1st Battalion next month, said many of the Iraqi people they dealt with were grateful for their help.

He said: "The vast majority of people were very pleased to see us - we got mobbed by everyone, they were shouting 'Down with Saddam'."

But when they travelled to Basra, RSM Hall said they encountered more hostility.

"We moved up to Abu al Khasib in the south east area of the city where we were attacked twice in two nights," he said.

"It's part of your job, and if that involves fighting then that's what you've been trained to do.

"I was not fazed at all by it."

The unit was also allowed to buy £10,000 worth of school equipment such as books, pencils and footballs to distribute to children in Basra.

Steve, a qualified jungle warfare instructor, will work with the battalion as it retrains for jungle warfare.

As the Army's rapid reaction jungle force, the Green Howards will be on standby to be sent anywhere in the world.

Updated: 09:58 Thursday, July 10, 2003