Defence in the Media: 23 February 2012

Summary
On BBC Radio 4's Today programme this morning the Foreign Secretary William Hague said that he hopes to agree a wider set of measures and tighter sanctions against the Assad regime at the forthcoming Friends of Syria meeting. | Various media report that representatives of more than 40 countries and international organisations are meeting in London today to discuss how to restore stability to Somalia. | BBC Wales reports that the last RAF aircraft to be repaired by the Ministry of Defence at St Athan is set to fly out, ending 75 years of maintenance at the site. | Various media report that the body of Senior Aircraftman Ryan Tomlin will be repatriated today. Senior Aircraftman Tomlin, from 2 Squadron Royal Air Force Regiment, was shot during an insurgent attack in Afghanistan on 13 February 2012. | Various papers report that seven people died in clashes between Afghan security forces and protesters demonstrating against the burning of Korans at a NATO base near Kabul. | Various media report that an inquest has heard that Royal Marine James Wright was killed by a grenade moments after taking off his helmet following a four-hour patrol in Afghanistan. Marine James Robert Wright was killed in Helmand province on 5 August 2011. | The Express reports that disabled war veterans have been told they must pay for hospital parking while those on benefits can park for free. | The Telegraph reports that Defence chiefs are giving £452m of taxpayers' money to a South Korean company to build Royal Fleet Auxiliary refuelling tankers. | The Express has published an interview with Captain Heloise Goodley, Army Air Corps, on her experiences in the Army and her book 'An Officer And A Gentlewoman'. | The Daily Mail reports that the crew of an Apache helicopter were forced to make an emergency landing after flying the aircraft into power cables. | The Telegraph reports that the opposition Syrian National Council said yesterday it was coming to the conclusion that outside military intervention was the 'only solution' to the crisis in the country. | Amongst wider reporting on Somalia ahead of today's conference, various papers report claims that the MOD has been planning to conduct ground operations in Somalia using HMS Ocean.