There's no picture of the emblem. Anyway ask any British Paratrooper if they have done the German Jumps Course and if they have seen their collection of WW2 memorabilia and sung with them over a beer or five in their mess The BBC article says a Iron Cross was in the tree, not sure if this was common or a mistake on the authors part. Heh, what kind of memorabilia?
Find more here, I Was Joking About Swastikas on German Tanks… « Doug’s Darkworld Perhaps they thought it would be symbolic?
Funny how we didn't mind the new-style Balkenkreuz on Bundeswehr vehicles and aircraft during the Cold War when we stood side by side with them in Western Germany... Only NOW when there's a PERCEIVED "lazy bastard" issue in Afghanistan do we hear this...
Also italian and US marine had use afrika korps symbol on veicles in Iraq and Afganistan. I find also a patch but also in second war there is a allied palm
Does/did the symbol have any meaning outside of the German army? Did they ever say why those other armies used the symbol (or slight variations of)?
Not that I know, I would dare suggest they are used as a sort of a tongue in cheek allusion. A tribute to Afrika Korps could be cool but what on earth is with all of this backlash? Afrika Korps came out of the war with one of the cleanest records from the war. Or do people just need another thing to claim about in regards to Germany? Isn't Erwin Rommel a pretty celebrated figure in many parts of Europe? My understanding of this thing here called "Earth" has just blown my mind!
Pacifism runs very strong in Germany, there's a lot of hostility against ANY kind of action that evokes the use of a blow-gun.
There is even a campaign underway here in Germany to stop paintball being played. This is all since the school shootings and feelings are running high in certain quarters. Silly season, I personally can see no harm in grown up people having fun with paint ball weapons as long as proper safety goggles etc are used. Perhaps the extreme video games have a lot to do with violence these days-who knows. The Palm tree is a symbol of the desert and the oasis and the adoption by the Afrika Korps was perhaps a natural thing. The symbol became famous together with the Desert Rat of the 8th Army. We cannot change history and I certainly see no reason for criticism of units adopting the Palm Tree when fighting in desert conditions regardless of nationality. Regards Tom
For my part, the well known symbol of the Afrika Korps could well be used, as seen in various examples this thread provided the swastika was taken away. The AK is not as stained as the rest. As for paintball, going a bit off topic, I'm trying to encourage one of my daughters to go that way as I see no harm in kids shooting themselves pink ...
There is even a campaign underway here in Germany to stop paintball being played. This is all since the school shootings and feelings are running high in certain quarters. Silly season, I personally can see no harm in grown up people having fun with paint ball weapons as long as proper safety goggles etc are used. Perhaps the extreme video games have a lot to do with violence these days-who knows. The Palm tree is a symbol of the desert and the oasis and the adoption by the Afrika Korps was perhaps a natural thing. The symbol became famous together with the Desert Rat of the 8th Army. We cannot change history and I certainly see no reason for criticism of units adopting the Palm Tree when fighting in desert conditions regardless of nationality. Regards Tom Did you say video games? YouTube - (Translated) Angry German Kid - Correct Translation Sorry, I couldn't resist! The problem I see with Germany is they are being hounded by so many groups claiming to look out for public interests that they will attempt to nit pick the smallest details if it meant Germany would succumb to their demands. By banning paintball, videogames, etc Germany is simply trying to stay one step ahead of the curb. Could it be overreacting? Maybe. From my interaction with Germans in the past it seems the real loser here are the veterans. I've talked to people in Germany who look back the German war veterans like "scum" for lack of a better term, basically how society in North America perceives German soldiers from the war is how these people were doing so. I don't know how wide spread this is, what generations it spans, what the government does for the veterans, how the schools deal with the war/veterans, etc, maybe some of the German posters here can clarify?
The German army has fired artillery in support of a combat operation for the first time since World War II. The Bundeswehr’s operations command in Potsdam announced over the weekend that Panzerhaubitze 2000 (PzH 2000) 155 mm armored artillery fired five rounds in support of troops dealing with two attacks by improvised explosive devices 12 kilometers west of the German provincial reconstruction team (PRT) in Kunduz, northern Afghanistan. German PzH 2000 Baptism of Fire Kunduz/Afghanistan: Bundeswehr setzte gestern erstmals die Artilleriewaffe Panzerhaubitze 2000 ein (Videos) | Soldatenglück
the PzHbz2000 was ordered to afghanistan after a unit of Fallschirmjäger (.263) was involved in a firefight with hostile forces on easter weekend this year. (according to one of my comrades: a recon unit of Fallschirmjäger near Kundus was forced to stop after the detonation of a hidden explosive device. as they were taking care of the wounded and tried to recover one comrade who was killed, taliban attacked them with mortars, rpg´s and infantry firearms. they soon gained fire superiority and tried to overrun the Fallschirmjäger (presumably) to capture them. the recon unit was only armed with standard infantry weaponary and the MG3´s which are mounted on the Dingos. the only anti tank missle (MILAN) was fired towards entrenched enemys at the beginning of the shootout. they managed to prevent themselves from beeing overrun but 3 comrades were killed and 8 wounded.) the problem is that our government denies us adequate equipment (heavy weapons) in combat because they are afraid the german soldier could be associated with the negative images of the past. there are many reports which proof that better equipment (heavy weapons) could have avoided unnecessary casualtys. and after there was a huge public discussion on the news and every newspaper, the pressure grew and the government had no choice but to do sth. it was pure luck there weren´t much more casualtys then there allready are..... but comrades had to die before the started to think things over and Heavy Weapon Support was allowed. but you can see that the outcome of ww2 still has a huge effect on the way of thinking in my country. (attached pictures of hostile forces near a destroyed "Dingo". the Dingo was damaged at the beginning of the shootout from a hidden explosive device. the Fallschirmjägers blew up the vehicle and left it behind. other pics show requiem for our dead comrades; place were the recon unit was engaged; "Dingo" reccon vehicle; Fallschirmjäger in afghanistan ) somehow I was not able to find anything about it in english. have to post a german link Blut-Ostern in Afghanistan : Textarchiv : Berliner Kurier Archiv
short english documentary about the PzH2000. the place they show is the artillery academie in Idar-Oberstein. the Region where I come from. YouTube - Future Weapons : PzH 2000 English long version
News report on German troops training for Afghanistan. Some of them for a second tour. Report ends with the thought that Germany is now becoming a more normal military power on the world stage. Germany is an economic heavyweight but a military lightweight. That is changing. BBC News - Germany to debate Afghanistan policy
