Afghanistan conflict 'far from over'
Coalition forces fighting Taliban in Afghanistan have 'only scratched the surface', former SAS commander says
Also In The News
|
Andrew Strauss hit his third century of the series as England dominated the opening day of the final Test against the West Indies in Trinidad. |  |
Saturday, 07, Mar 2009 10:15
The former commander of SAS troops in Afghanistan has warned the eight-year conflict with the Taliban has only so far "scratched the surface".
Major Sebastian Morley compares the current conflict with the beginning of Vietnam war, which lasted 16 years.
"The operations that we are conducting are so worthless," he told the Daily Telegraph.
"It's just crazy to think we hold that ground or have any influence on what goes on beyond the bases."
Major Morley, who resigned from the army last summer following the death of four of his soldiers in a Snatch Land Rover, added: "I don't think we have even scratched the surface as far as this conflict goes.
"This is the equivalent to the start of the Vietnam conflict, there is much more to come."
Since the US-led invasion of Afghanistan in late 2001 149 British service personnel have been killed.
Four of those deaths prompted Major Morley, 40, to resign last June.
He told the Telegraph the Ministry of Defence had "blood on its hands" over its failure to replace the Snatch Land Rovers used in Afghanistan and Iraq despite offering inadequate protection to troops.
There have been 38 deaths involving British personnel in the vehicles since they were introduced in 2003.
The deaths of Corporal Sarah Bryant - the first female soldier killed in Afghanistan - and three of her colleagues when their vehicle hit a Taliban anti-tank mine proved the last straw for Major Morley.
"I had to resign. I had warned [the MoD] time and time again that there were going to be needless deaths if we were not given the right equipment, and they ignored this advice."
The MoD, which plans to withdraw Snatch Land Rovers before the end of the year, denied Major Morley's claims.
"The security challenge is manageable by the available forces and the overriding mood of the local population is one of optimism and hope," a spokesman said.
"British forces are better equipped than ever before, with new technology and state of the art armoured vehicles continuing to arrive in Afghanistan.
"We accept that Snatch is not suitable for high risk environments but it is adequate for the job it is given."