Afghan war debate heightens in Britain after troops’ deaths
Soldiers were gunned down by police after patrol
LONDON - The deaths of five British soldiers gunned down by an Afghan police officer as they made tea after a patrol has shaken public support for the war in Afghanistan, intensifying debate about the human cost of the conflict and increasing calls for a pullout.
If British troops cannot trust the colleagues they are supposed to be training, critics asked yesterday, how can they fight the Taliban? And where does it leave an exit strategy that depends on handing over control to Afghan forces?
The deaths dominated media coverage even as the Ministry of Defense announced the death of another British soldier yesterday in an explosion in Helmand province.
Several newspapers used the same photo, of the bloodied flak jacket of one of the victims. “Gunned down as they had tea’’ said the Daily Mail. “A bloody betrayal,’’ said The Times, while the Daily Mail asked: “What kind of war is this?’’
Hundreds of people used Facebook and other sites to post tributes to the dead men, who included 18-year-old Guardsman Jimmy Major of the Grenadier Guards and regimental Sergeant Major Darren Chant, the regiment’s senior noncommissioned officer.
“I don’t think we ever should have gone there,’’ said Jane Cooke, a midwife, expressing an increasingly common view about Afghanistan. “There is an inner conflict going on there, and it’s never going to be resolved.’’
Armed Forces Minister Bill Rammell insisted British troops must stay in Afghanistan until the country’s own security forces are ready to take over.
“We do believe that the approach of partnering, mentoring, and training has to be the right approach because it’s about building Afghan capacity,’’ he said. “We do not want our troops to be there forever and a day.’’
Prime Minister Gordon Brown is expected to defend his government’s commitment to Afghanistan in a major speech today, saying the war is essential to British security, according to excerpts released in advance.
Britain is the largest contributor to NATO forces in Afghanistan after the United States, with about 9,000 troops in the country and 500 more committed by the government last month.
The mission had strong public support after the 2001 invasion, which came soon after the Sept. 11 attacks in the United States. But that backing has waned as casualties increase among the troops in volatile Helmand province, where the Taliban insurgency is growing.
Prime Minister Gordon Brown is to defend his government’s commitment to Afghanistan in a speech today, saying the war is essential to his country’s security, according to excerpts released in advance by his office.
