Thursday, June 10, 2010

How Britain Got Into The Mess Of Afghanistan


The Whitehall Mandarins Who Set Up The Bloodiest Mission Since Korea -- Times Online

It was January 26, 2006, when Britain’s Defence Secretary announced the decision to send 3,300 troops to southern Afghanistan on a stabilisation mission. Two months later, John Reid uttered the fateful hope that the task force would return home after three years “without a shot being fired”.

Until now, the subsequent woes in Helmand, where almost 300 British servicemen and women have been killed and hundreds more injured, have largely been blamed on underfunding by the previous Government. Alleged misjudgments by Brigadier Ed Butler, the first commander on the ground, are also cited as a reason why what was billed as a development operation — admittedly backed by attack helicopters and manned by paratroopers — rapidly unravelled into the bloodiest fighting mission since the Korean War.

Read more ....

My Comment: This Times article lists the people responsible for getting Britain into Afghanistan and into a fight that it was unprepared for. But what is shocking is that many of these individuals have since been promoted within government, and are now holding responsible and important positions.

Where is the accountability? The responsibility for ones actions?

It seems that in England .... bad decisions that cost lives is no hindrance to your career or future in holding a high ranking position in the government.

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