British Army to Retreat in Afghanistan

British Commanders are Making Plans to Withdraw from Outlying Bases

Nov 8, 2009

Following the results of a new poll showing public backing for the war in Afghanistan is falling, the British Army's commanders want to abandon a number of outlying bases

A survey carried out by ComRes for the BBC's Politics Show has found that public support for the war in Afghanistan is falling. At the same time, it is understood that British commanders in Afghanistan are planning to withdraw British troops from a number of bases and would only attempt to hold some of the larger towns in Helmand Province.

Survey Shows Fall in Public Support

The ComRes survey results show that 64% of the British public think that the war in Afghanistan is "unwinnable." This figure has risen from 58% in July.

The poll, taken from 1,009 participants also shows that 42% do not understand the mission's purpose. Other findings from the same survey include that 63% of the British public believe that British troops should be withdrawn as soon as possible from the theatre of war.

Lieutenant General Jim Dutton, the commander of the British army in Afghanistan stated on the BBC's Politics Show that "collectively we have not been as good at explaining" the purpose of the British army's deployment, but also stated that "I don't sense any lack of support for soldiers back home."

Army Would Like to Retreat Within Afghanistan

It has been reported that army chiefs are making provisions to withdraw British soldiers from a number of outlying bases in Afghanistan. This includes Musa Qala, where 15 soldiers have died in the line of duty.

General Sir David Richards, the Chief of the General Staff, is said to be supporting the idea, which is known as retrenchment. Gordon Brown knows of the idea, but has not yet announced any decision.

The retrenchment plan comes soon after former Minister for the Middle East, Kim Howells called for a complete withdrawal of troops from the country.

British commanders in Afghanistan are concerned about Musa Qala which has a population of about 2,000 but ties up a fair number of the British task force which some believe is needless as it is less important to he main objective of the occupation that the more major cities. The soldiers in Musa Qala must also be supplied using helicopters which are very scarce or land convoys which are vulnerable to attack from the Taliban.

War in Afghanistan

The war in Afghanistan begun on Oct. 7, 2001, in response to the 9/11 terrorist attacks in New York. The objective of the invasion was to find Osama bin Laden and other high-ranking Al Qaeda officials.

Afghanistan was chosen as the target as bin Laden had been living in the country and Al Qaeda were operating militant training camps.

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