A GULF war hero is this week recovering in Cyprus after being struck down by a mystery virus.

The proud parents of 19-years-old paratrooper Lee Foster were devastated on Easter Sunday when a Major from the British Military knocked on the door of their Tyldesley, home to inform them their son was very seriously ill with suspected meningitis.

Mum and stepdad Sharon and Stuart Grantham and dad Chris Foster, who had just started to relax after weeks of stress during the battles to free Iraq, suffered 24 hours of agony waiting for the results of tests.

After a sleepless night Sharon answered a Monday morning phone call believing the bad news had come -- but instead heard Lee, who is serving with the 1st Battalion Parachute Regiment near Basra, on the line.

The former Freddies' pupil, of Cumberland Avenue, told his distraught family he was OK but weak and sore from a lumbar puncture and was suffering from a viral infection.

One of four brothers he said he had got up in the morning, had breakfast and felt rough. He asked for a tablet and the next thing he remembered was waking up in hospital on a ventilator.

Sharon, who sports a yellow ribbon, said: "It's been a nightmare, an Easter we will never forget. We couldn't believe he had got through the war and we faced losing him through a virus.

"He celebrated his 19th birthday on Good Friday but didn't remember it because he didn't know how long he'd been in hospital.

"He is being send to Cyprus to recover, but has said he wants to go back to Iraq to be with his mates. They're like one big happy family.

"We didn't want him to join up but he always wanted to and loves his job. He lied about his age so that he could join Tyldesley Army Cadets. He told them he was 13 when he was 12. He later went on to the Army Foundation College at Harrogate and has won his American Wings as well.

"For security reasons we don't know where he is but believe he was helping to keep law and order in a small town near Basra when he was taken ill.

"We are a very close family and have had so much support from members and from friends in the area, we would like to thank them all and let them all know Lee is now doing well and on the road to recovery."