Relatives of two soldiers shot dead hours before deployment to Afghanistan wept on Saturday as their regiment returned home to the base where they were gunned down.
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There were wreaths and tears for Sappers Mark Quinsey, 23, and Patrick Azimkar, 21, outside Massereene Barracks, Antrim, as 38 Engineer Regiment paraded.
Mark Quiney's sister Jaime wiped the tears from her mother Pamela's cheek as they remembered Mark yards from where he died in the Real IRA attack in March.
Relatives received the Queen Elizabeth Cross.
Two other colleagues died in arid Helmand Province during an arduous six-month tour.
Sapper Mark Peebles from Perth knew the victims well.
"There was a lot of anger, a lot of rage, quite definitely sadness," he said.
Hundreds of people lined the route to the base waving Union flags and holding flowers.
Sapper Peebles added: "I wish Mark was here to share this with us. We just cracked on (in Afghanistan) but now that we have gotten back we have had more time to reflect and remember them for the times we had with them."
Apprehension
Simple wreaths outside the base marked the memories of those killed and the soldiers admitted there had been some apprehension about coming back.
Mark, from Birmingham, and Patrick, from London, went out to collect their final pizza delivery on March 7th when masked gunmen struck, firing more than 60 bullets in 30 seconds and hitting Mark at least 13 times.
The regiment also lost Sapper Jordan Rossi in an explosion near the town of Sangin in Helmand Province in May, and Captain Daniel Shepherd, who was killed while commanding an improvised explosive device disposal team in the Nad-e-Ali district of Helmand in July.
Sapper Peebles said they were fun-loving characters.
"They were a good bunch of guys, everybody misses them, their characters will never be replaced," he added.
"It makes you more determined to get on with your job no matter what happens, you just get back up and keep on going."
In six months the Engineers have built 13 bridges, 58 bases, enough protective wall to stretch from London to Brighton and shifted so much concrete-type material it could have filled Sydney Opera House more than three times.
They supported Operation Panther's Claw which retook territory in the relatively heavily populated central region of Helmand.
Lt Colonel Roger Lewis said: "Today has been brilliant, absolutely amazing, to have that many people out on the streets cheering us.
"After the events of March there was a little bit of trepidation.
"It is a feeling of joy tinged by a little bit of sadness. The whole of Antrim has come out today to see us."
About 400 soldiers and a brass band paraded the 15-minute route from Antrim Forum in the town where the local council held a function to welcome them home. Afterwards they exchanged hugs and tales with their families.
First Sea Lord Admiral Sir Mark Stanhope said they had been in Afghanistan making the world a more secure place.
"We must not allow terrorists of any sort to find sanctuary in any country in the world that will affect the security of the streets of the UK," he added.
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