Prince Harry hails Afghanistan veterans as they complete gruelling 1,000-mile trek of Britain

Long haul: Prince Harry meets with members of the Walking With The Wounded team in the forecourt of Buckingham Palace
PA
Sebastian Mann1 November 2015

Six wounded Afghanistan veterans have arrived in London at the end of a gruelling 1,000-mile trek of Britain - to cheers, applause and hugs from Prince Harry.

The group of ex-servicemen and women reached the Buckingham Palace finishing line at around 10.30am.

Since the start of the walk in August, the team has travelled the length and breadth of Britain over 72 days and were joined by Harry along the walk, as well as celebrities and American football stars.

Among the group are three victims of IED blasts in Afghanistan, amputees and two who suffered traumatic brain injuries while another lost an eye.

Finish line: The veterans ended their slog at Buckingham Palace
Getty

The Walk of Britain is designed to raise awareness of the work of the charity Walking With The Wounded (WWTW), which supports injured members of the armed forces back into independence through employment.

The group finished the trek by walking along The Mall before they were greeted by Harry on the forecourt of the Palace.

Royal welcome: Prince Harry greets the veterans
Getty

He hugged them and upon hearing they had missed the Rugby World Cup final, joked: "If you're going to finish the day after the Rugby World Cup you may as well have watched it."

Matt Fisher, 30, who was shot in the foot on Boxing Day in 2009, praised Harry's support of the walk as "amazing".

He added: "He is the man for the armed forces, he gets involved. And what a place to finish."

The trek through mainland UK has seen them reach the summit of four peaks - Ben Nevis, Scafell Pike, Snowdon and Pen Y Fan.

Additional reporting by PA

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