The Chief Minister, Fabian Picardo, yesterday visited the Royal Gibraltar Regiment troops on Exercise Jebel Sahara in Marrakech.

The Chief Minister spent most of the day with the Regiment visiting different areas in which different sections of the Regiment were exercising a variety of skills.

The tour included a visit to the Regiment’s camp and the firing of the British Army's new sniper rifle.

The Chief Minister also had lunch in the camp. Yesterday evening he hosted a dinner for the Officers and Senior Non-Commissioned Officers of the Regiment.

The Chief Minister said: "Visiting the Regiment on exercise is one of the highlights of being Chief Minister. The professionalism with which the Regiment conducts itself here in Morocco and the relationships they have fostered with their Moroccan counterparts over many years demonstrates the Regiment’s ability to promote Gibraltar in their own particular way. It also reflects their huge importance as part of the British military establishment and in the projection of British influence abroad."