Senior British Military Representative (Iraq)
Lieutenant General J C McColl CBE DSO

Lieutenant General John McColl was commissioned into the 1st Battalion of the Royal Anglian Regiment in 1973.

His early career included the usual Regimental appointments with service in Cyprus, Norway and Northern Ireland. After two and a half years as Adjutant with the 1st Battalion which included a tour of duty in Fermanagh, and a 6-month tour in Belize, he attended the Army Staff Course in 1984 at Camberley.

On completing the staff course he served as a staff officer in Germany. He joined the 2nd Battalion as a rifle company commander in 1987 and served with them in Colchester and Celle. In 1989 he was posted to the 3rd Royal Tank Regiment to command a Challenger squadron as part of the Armour/Infantry Exchange Scheme. In January 1990 he returned to the Staff College as a member of the Directing Staff.

In 1992 he assumed command of the 2nd Battalion, a Warrior battalion based in Germany. He deployed with the Battalion for a six month operational tour in East Tyrone and then served with the Battalion in Canada at BATUS and in 1994 with the UN on Operation GRAPPLE 4 in Bosnia. He was promoted to Colonel and assumed the appointment of Chief of Staff 1st (UK) Armoured Division in January 1995 returning to Bosnia as part of NATO's Peace Implementation Force (IFOR), for a further 6-month tour in 1996. From January 1997 - January 1999, John McColl, now a Brigadier, commanded the 1st Mechanized Brigade based in Tidworth. Between January 1999 and October 2000 his appointment was ACOS Ops/Int/Sy at Headquarters Land Command. Promoted to Major General, he assumed the appointment of General Officer Commanding 3rd (United Kingdom) Division in November 2000.

As the commander of 3 (UK) Division, he was in charge of the British-led deployment of the International Security Assistance Force to Kabul in January 2002. He commanded ISAF until the UK handed over the leadership role to Turkey in July of that year, and was subsequently awarded the Distinguished Service Order. On completion of his command of 3 (UK) Division, Lieutenant General McColl took up the post of commandant of the Joint Services Combined Staff College.

Lt Gen McColl completed his time as Commandant JSCSC in early March 2004 before taking up his appointment as Senior British Military Representative (Iraq) (SBMR(I)) on 14 March.

General Officer Commanding Multi-National Division (South-East)
Major General A R E de C Stewart CBE

Major General Andrew Stewart was commissioned into the 13th/18th Royal Hussars (Queen Mary’s Own) in 1972, following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather. He served in Chieftain tanks in Warminster and Hohne until his Regiment re-roled to armoured reconnaissance in 1976, and moved to Northern Ireland. For the 18 month tour he was the Intelligence Officer in County Fermanagh. Following two years at HQ 11th Armoured Brigade in Germany, he became Operations Officer to the 13th/18th Royal Hussars (Queen Mary’s Own) in UK and Germany. He married his Spanish wife, Estrella, in 1983. He attended the Army Command and Staff Course in 1984.

After Staff College, he was posted to HQ 12th Armoured Brigade in Germany as Chief of Staff. On returning to his Regiment, he trained in Norway, Denmark, Turkey and Greece. In 1988 he was posted to SHAPE, Belgium. He assumed command of the 13th/18th Royal Hussars (Queen Mary’s Own) in 1991, in Germany, before amalgamating the Regiment with the 15th/19th King’s Royal Hussars to form the Light Dragoons in Hohne. He relinquished command of the Light Dragoons in 1993 and attended the Higher Command and Staff Course at Camberley, after which he held a senior appointment at the Staff College.

He took command of 7th Armoured Brigade in Germany in December 1996, spending six months in 1997 in Banja Luka, Bosnia, as Deputy Commander/Chief of Staff HQ Multinational Division (South West). 1999 saw him completing his command, attending the Royal College of Defence Studies and then moving to Permanent Joint Headquarters, Northwood, where he oversaw UK operations in the Balkans, Middle East, Sierra Leone and Afghanistan.

He moved to the Ministry of Defence and assumed the appointment of Director Overseas Military Activity in December 2001, and established the Directorate of Strategic Planning until his current appointment as General Officer Commanding MND(SE), taking over from Major General Graeme Lamb on 28 December 2003.