English: Pictured are soldiers from 1st Battalion the Irish Guards conducting a live firing exercise deep in the Belize Jungle.

Foot guards from 1st Battalion the Irish Guards swapped their pristine celebrity ceremonial world of bearskins and red tunics for anonymous camouflage, leeches and mosquito nets as they test their operational skills on a rigorous jungle warfare exercise in Belize - Exercise MAYAN STORM.

The exercise is named after the ancient Mayan people that had previously inhabited Central America and, like them, The Guards have been deployed deep in the heart of Belize’s rainforest, learning how to live and fight using the jungle itself as a powerful weapon and defence. Most challenging of all for the Hounslow based soldiers, that most commonly are recruited from Liverpool and Ireland, has been learning how to navigate and survive amidst the natural dangers that lie beneath the verdant canopy. Venomous spiders, snakes, malaria and tropical disease add a frisson to a training package that requires soldiers to prove themselves against a formidable enemy in the most challenging physical environment on earth.

Image was a winner in the 2017 Army Photographic Competition.

• Organization: Army
• Object Name: 1st-Cat11-Pro Story 1
• Category: MOD
• Supplemental Categories: Training, Army, People
• Keywords: Army, Belize, Exercise, Foot Guards, Guards, Household Division, Irish Guards, Jungle, Army Photographic Competition 2017, Forest, Trees, Silhouette
• Country: Belize