Gordon Brown: Afghan campaign is succeeding

Britain's offensive against the Taliban is showing signs of success, despite the heavy losses of recent days, Gordon Brown has said. The Prime Minister said the campaign in Afghanistan was a "patriotic duty" to keep the streets of Britain safe from the threat of terrorist attack. In an interview with the British Forces Broadcasting Service, he paid tribute to the "sacrifice" of the 15 troops who had died since the start of the month in the bloodiest fighting the Army has seen in the Afghan campaign. "I know that this has been a difficult summer - it is going to be a difficult summer," he said. "These sacrifices that have hurt so many families in our country are ones that the whole of Britain will want to acknowledge." However he said that he had been assured in a lengthy briefing by commanders that the Operation Panther's Claw offensive to drive the Taliban from central Helmand province was making "considerable progress". "I think the operation we are engaged with is showing signs of success. Our troops are making progress as they attempt to make the area safe," he said. "The reports that I have show that despite the loss of life - and it is tragic and it is very, very sad indeed - our forces are doing a magnificent job in moving forward." He acknowledged that there was public concern about the campaign, but he insisted that it was part of a "clear strategy" to clear the terrorist networks from Afghanistan and Pakistan in order to protect the streets of Britain. "This is a patriotic duty," he said. "Of course people want to know if the action we are taking is the right action. "It comes back to terrorism on the streets of Britain. If we were to allow the Taliban to be back in power in Afghanistan and al-Qaeda then to have the freedom of manoeuvre it had before 2001, then we would be less safe as a country. "There is a line of terror - what you might call a chain of terror - that links what's happening in Afghanistan and Pakistan to the streets of Britain."

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ITN | July 12, 2009

Tags:. .freedom. .terror. .ones. .hurt. .progress