A WORCESTER soldier has died trying to retrieve the body of a fellow comrade in Afghanistan.

Private Jason Williams was securing the site of an earlier attack in which three Afghan National Army Warriors had been killed.

The aim was to stop the Taliban seizing the body but as his platoon moved into the area Pte Williams, from the 2nd Battalion Mercian Regiment (Worcesters and Foresters), stepped on a roadside bomb and died.

He was 23 years old.

His commanding officer Lieutenant Colonel Simon Banton said: “On the day he died Jason was taking part in an action which adhered to every soldiers’ oldest code: leave no man behind.

“His brave determination and commitment to his brothers in arms ensured that the Afghan Warrior’s family are able to pay their proper respects to their own fallen son.

“For his selfless sacrifice, ANA Warriors now refer to Jason as a hero.”

Pte Williams had been operating with The Light Dragoons Battle Group in the country’s Helmand Province and was based at Forward Operating Base Keenan in the Upper Gereshk Valley.

On one of the walls at Keenan, Pte Williams wrote: “A man is not finished when he is defeated.

“A man is finished when he quits.”

The platoon is playing a crucial role in providing security for the local population, enabling the reconstruction and redevelopment of the area.

Tributes paid to Pte Williams have described him as a man who was always smiling and had a promising career in the army.

Major Sam Plant said: “Private Williams was a shining star with an exceptionally bright future. He was a natural soldier and a leader of the future possessing intelligence, common sense, team spirit and courage in abundance.”

His platoon commander, Lieutenant Duncan Hadland, added he would have made the grade as a junior non-commissioned officer.

As a member of the local Worcestershire regiment, Pte Williams had many local friends in the Mercians.

Private Aaron Davis, also of Worcester, said: “Nobody ever had a bad word to say against him; he was part of the Worcester Gang and I will always remember him for the soldier he was and an absolutely great friend.”

Another friend, Private Dominic Carraher, said: “Jason Williams, the daddy of us all, was one of the nicest men you could ever meet.

“In the whole time I have known him, I have never seen him down or distraught because he was too busy keeping everyone else happy.”