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Labour MP urges Afghan withdrawal Labour MP urges Afghan withdrawal
(about 1 hour later)
A former Labour minister has called for the "great majority" of British troops to be withdrawn from Afghanistan.A former Labour minister has called for the "great majority" of British troops to be withdrawn from Afghanistan.
Kim Howells, chairman of the intelligence and security committee, said the money should be diverted to securing Britain from terrorist attack.Kim Howells, chairman of the intelligence and security committee, said the money should be diverted to securing Britain from terrorist attack.
He made his call in the Guardian newspaper before the news that five UK soldiers had died in Helmand Province. He made his call before the news that five UK soldiers had died in a single incident in Helmand Province.
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) said securing Afghanistan's borders was vital for the UK's security. The Ministry of Defence said securing Afghanistan's borders was crucial for maintaining the UK's security.
An MoD spokesman said it was "vital to the UK that Afghanistan becomes a stable and secure state that is able to suppress violent extremism within its borders". A spokesman said it was "vital to the UK that Afghanistan becomes a stable and secure state that is able to suppress violent extremism within its borders".
"Britain's own security is at risk if we again allow Afghanistan to become a safe haven for terrorists," he added."Britain's own security is at risk if we again allow Afghanistan to become a safe haven for terrorists," he added.
'Nice to jihadists' 'Heavy burden'
Mr Howells - who supported the war when it began in 2001 - said the opportunity given to the Afghans to tackle the problems blighting the country had "largely been squandered". Mr Howells - a former foreign office minister who supported the war when it began in 2001 - said the opportunity given to the Afghans to tackle the problems blighting the country had "largely been squandered".
Meanwhile he said the British people were increasingly questioning whether deploying troops - at a cost to soldiers' lives and the public purse - was the most effective way of preventing "Islamic terrorist murders in the UK". Suggestions that British troops might have to remain in Afghanistan for decades to come to stabilise the country were "absurd", he said.
But he admitted that such a shift in tactics would mean "more intrusive surveillance in certain communities" in the UK. A properly planned, phased withdrawal of troops from Helmand province - where the majority of UK forces are based - was necessary.
"How long do we put up with brave young men and women dying and being injured in Afghanistan?" he told the BBC.
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"Perhaps, like me, they are considering that there might be more effective alternatives to the deployment and wondering why there has been little discussion about them, save for the usual 'if we are nice to violent jihadists they might be nice to us' variety," he wrote. Public support for the mission had been severely damaged by the recent Afghan presidential election, which was beset by claims of corruption.
The number of British military personnel killed on operations in Afghanistan since 2001 stands at 224. "I think that part of the problem is the way in which we have handled the Karzai government and the way in which we have handled our NATO allies because the great burden of fighting and of deaths and injuries have been borne by the Americans, by us, by the Canadians and the Danes.
This year, the UK deployment rose from 8,000 to just over 9,000 - the second largest contribution to the International Security Assistance Forces in the country. "Very few countries have put their troops in the way of danger as we have and we have borne the struggle against terrorism in Afghanistan hoping that it will reduce terrorism in this country."
Mr Howells said seven years of military involvement had subdued al-Qaeda's activities in Afghanistan but had not destroyed the organisation or its leader, Osama Bin Laden. Nor had it dealt with "al-Qaeda's protectors, the Taliban," he said. Military deaths
He said government spending on counter-terrorism should turn from Afghanistan to home soil. The BBC's defence correspondent Caroline Wyatt said this was the first call by a senior politician for UK troops to be pulled out.
"It is time to ask whether the fight against those who are intent on murdering British citizens might better be served by diverting [the cost of maintaining British forces in Afghanistan] to the work of the UK Border Agency and our police and intelligence services." However, she said there were other MPs from all parties, particularly among the Liberal Democrats, who felt the same way.
"It would be better... to bring home the great majority of our fighting men and women and concentrate on using the money saved to secure our own borders, gather intelligence on terrorist activities inside Britain, expand our intelligence operations abroad," he wrote in the newspaper. The deaths of a further five soldiers takes the number of British military personnel killed on operations in Afghanistan since 2001 to 229.
'Phased withdrawal' Prime Minister Gordon Brown said the whole country would mourn the deaths of the soldiers, who were shot by a "rogue" Afghan policeman.
He said co-operating with foreign intelligence services and countering the propaganda of those who encourage terrorism should also be prioritised. This year, the UK deployment rose from 8,000 to just over 9,000 - the second largest contribution to the international coalition in the country.
The MP for Pontypridd, a former Foreign Office minister, acknowledged that such a move would require "reinventing ourselves diplomatically and militarily", including renegotiating international agreements. The government has said it is prepared to send a further 500 troops to Afghanistan if certain conditions are met.
Home soil
Writing in Wednesday's Guardian, Mr Howells said seven years of military involvement had subdued al-Qaeda's activities in Afghanistan but had not destroyed the organisation or its leader, Osama Bin Laden.
Nor had it dealt with "al-Qaeda's protectors, the Taliban", he said.
He said the British people were increasingly questioning whether deploying troops - at a cost to soldiers' lives and the public purse - was the most effective way of preventing "Islamic terrorist murders in the UK".
British troops have been in Afghanistan since 2001British troops have been in Afghanistan since 2001
It would also mean "intrusive" surveillance inside the UK, more police officers and border officials and a re-examination of arrangements that allow free movement in the EU. "It is time to ask whether the fight against those who are intent on murdering British citizens might better be served by diverting [the cost of maintaining British forces in Afghanistan] to the work of the UK Border Agency and our police and intelligence services.
"It would be better... to bring home the great majority of our fighting men and women and concentrate on using the money saved to secure our own borders, gather intelligence on terrorist activities inside Britain, expand our intelligence operations abroad."
He said co-operating with foreign intelligence services and countering the propaganda of those who encourage terrorism should be prioritised.
He acknowledged such a move would require "reinventing ourselves diplomatically and militarily" as well as a heavier police presence on the streets of the UK and "intrusive" surveillance.
"Life inside the UK would have to change," he said."Life inside the UK would have to change," he said.
"Some of these changes will create great opposition," he said, "but many of them will be welcomed.""Some of these changes will create great opposition," he said, "but many of them will be welcomed."
He said the shift in UK public opinion came at a time when the operation was growing, with the US commander requesting more soldiers.
A properly planned, phased withdrawal of troops from Helmand province - where the majority of UK forces are based - was necessary he said.