Bob Stewart said he wept and it took four hours to identify his soldiers in a morgue after the blast in Ballykelly, Northern Ireland, in 1982

A Conservative former British Army officer has told MPs of how he cradled a girl injured in a bomb blast as she died.

Speaking at a Commons debate to mark Remembrance Day, Bob Stewart recalled how the young girl, who had lost her legs and one arm in the attack, asked if she was going to die – and he told her she would.

In a deeply moving speech, Mr Stewart also said he watched six men under his command die during the same incident in Northern Ireland in 1982.

Mr Stewart said it took four hours to identify his six soldiers in the morgue.

“I remember all the men that were killed under my command and in particular today may I mention those killed at Ballykelly on 6 December 1982 where 17 people were killed. Six of them were civilians and 11 were soldiers,” he said.

“Six of the soldiers were from my own company, the company of the Cheshire’s: Stephen Bagshaw, Clinton Collins, Philip McDonough, David Stitt, Stephen Smith and Shaw Williamson. They all died when I was present.

“I was the incident commander and as I went into the wrecked building that was the Droppin Well (Pub), almost the first person I saw was a girl lying on the ground. I was horrified. Both her legs had gone and an arm. I knelt down horrified again and spoke to her.”