Ananova:

British troops in Iraq could hand over the Maysan province to local security forces within a matter of weeks, a senior Army officer said.

Lieutenant Colonel Ben Edwards, Commanding Officer of the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards, has just completed a six-month deployment in the southern tribal region bordering Iran.

Speaking about the eventual handover from the RSDG base in Fallingbostel, northern Germany, he said: "I think we're within weeks. It may be many weeks, it may be 12 or 14 weeks, which in some senses is a few months, but we are weeks away from a Maysan province that will take a huge amount of responsibility for its own destiny rather than having to be nudged by us and the people who work with us out of our camp."

The RSDG tank squadron and two companies from the Highlanders, 4th Battalion of the newly-formed Royal Regiment of Scotland, have been based at Camp Abu Neji since October.

It lies in between the province's main city of Al Amarah and the southern city of Basra.

The forces were given the four-fold task of improving the area's security, economy, governance and communication to the standard at which it could be handed over to an elected provincial council.

Within each areas there was an "enormous" amount of work to be done, Lt Col Edwards said.

Among the largest jobs was creating a new Iraqi battalion with some 835 men from the streets of the province.

A police academy was also set up and 500 police officers trained. This included the involvement of retired police officers from the UK, Australia and New Zealand working alongside the local men.

Control has since been handed to the next deployment, the Queen's Royal Hussars and the Devonshire and Dorset Light Infantry.