A BRITISH soldier who gave birth to a baby while serving in Afghanistan is now believed to be recovering at the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford.

Lance Bombardier Lynette Pearce gave birth to her son at the field hospital at Camp Bastion, near Lashkar Gah, on Tuesday.

It is believed she was unaware of her pregnancy.

A specialist medical team from the JR flew out to Afghanistan to bring her and her baby, which was born prematurely, back to the UK.

Last night, the Ministry of Defence said it could not confirm where the mother and baby were being treated.

However the Oxford Mail understands L Bmdr Pearce and her baby were taken straight to the JR after they were flown back into RAF Brize Norton .

A spokesman said: “We can confirm that on September 18 a UK servicewoman serving in Afghanistan gave birth in the Camp Bastion Field Hospital to a baby boy.

“It is not military policy to allow service women to deploy on operations if they are pregnant. In this instance the MoD was unaware of her pregnancy.

“As with all medical cases, when the need arises, individuals are returned to the UK for appropriate treatment.”

The John Radcliffe Hospital had not responded to a request for comment from the Oxford Mail at the time we went to press.