A service commemorating the British Army’s decades-long deployment in Northern Ireland has begun.

Veterans from around the UK attended the event near Belfast, close to the Army’s Lisburn headquarters in Northern Ireland.

Hundreds of ex-servicemen attended, including those from the Royal Engineers and the Parachute Regiment.

A group of ex-service men on bikes, calling themselves the Legion Riders, wore leathers decorated with airbrushed scenes from the Battle of Britain and the Somme.

When the Army first deployed in 1969, the intention was a short intervention.

By 2005 when it ended, Operation Banner had become the British Army’s longest continuous deployment.

DUP leader Arlene Foster, actor Charlie Lawson and widows bereaved during the Troubles were among those to attend.