York soldiers serving in Belize have been cut off from loved ones by strikes and anti-government unrest. Andrew Hitchon reports from the Central American republic.

ONE of the smallest countries in Central America has been cut off from the rest of the world by strikes and anti-government unrest.

That has left British soldiers engaged in gruelling jungle training unable to contact their loved ones at home.

Soldiers from the 1st Battalion of the Prince of Wales's Own Regiment of Yorkshire are currently in Belize carrying out a joint training exercise with the 700-strong Belize Defence Force (BDF).

A series of strikes by workers from the key national telecommunications company BTL has hit communications while also crippling services such as internet banking in the tiny former British colony.

The strikes have helped lead to unrest in the main centre of Belize City, with reports suggesting that a student protest against the telecoms strike degenerated into riots in which shops were looted.

Some of the 600-plus British soldiers, who include a number from York, said they already felt cut off from the outside world, but the loss of both telephone and email links had made things even worse.

Lance Corporal Peter Grimston, from the Pottery Lane area of York, said he had been unable to send a proper message of goodbye to his fiance, which he had intended to do by email before going into the jungle.

"We are in the middle of nowhere here," he said, though he said the army had improved communications for the soldiers out on the exercise, called Tropical Storm Two.

Following the disturbances in Belize City, soldiers could be seen guarding some buildings, while residents appeared to be getting on with their lives.

Prime Minister Said Musa said his government would survive the unrest, but said the country's $1 billion debt problem posed a serious threat to its future.

Updated: 10:43 Wednesday, May 04, 2005