After beating a humiliating retreat in 1996, Russian forces were sent back in 1999, following a rebel raid on the southern Russian region of Dagestan.

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It flared up over plans to mark the battle's 250th anniversary with a re-enactment, and ended with Quebec separatists crying victory and Canada's federal government beating a hasty retreat.

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But many ordinary Libyans remain skeptical that powerful militias, many of which have vast weapons arsenals, will surrender so easily and may simply be beating a tactical retreat until popular anger calms.

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"Downing Street suddenly knew that it faced a choice between the story coming out, though in a far more technicolour and dramatic way than anyone had up to that stage realised, or beating a hasty retreat, " he writes in the latest edition of the magazine, edited by Tory MP Boris Johnson.

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In 2008, he was assigned to Hounslow, West London, and became "an integral member of the Corps of Drums throughout the Battalion's time on public duties, the highlight of which was being a part of the Household Division's Beating the Retreat -- a real honour for a line infantry Corps of Drums, " the ministry said.

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Beating an orderly retreat is always a tricky military manoeuvre.

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Two decades after the Kremlin started beating the retreat from the Soviet empire, a new hegemony, based on pipelines rather than tanks, is advancing and shows every sign of proving durable.

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The day ended with a rendition of military musical march The Beating of Retreat.

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The key to beating the rush is to force the cavalry charge of defenders into a retreat by breaching the defensive line.

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