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HIV prevention strategy for deployed UK troops

British soldiers deployed on training exercises in Africa are being issued with free condoms amid mounting fears of rising HIV/AIDS rates among the troops. The latest prevention measure was instituted after hundreds of soldiers in Kenya and South Africa were found to be ignoring the standard 'no sex' order. According to Reuters, senior army officials were also urging troops who had visited brothels or had sex with local women to immediately test for HIV as well as hepatitis B on their return to the UK. Although no official figures have been released on the number of HIV-positive British troops, up to 3,000 are deployed annually to Kenya and South Africa.

This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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