- Senior sources say SAS will stay in Helmand to help Afghan forces weed out insurgents
- Timetable decided at G8 summit will see Afghan forces take control of combat missions by mid-2013
By
Christopher Leake
16:30 EST, 19 May 2012
|
16:33 EST, 19 May 2012
SAS troops will stay in Afghanistan to conduct counter-terrorism operations against the remnants of Al Qaeda after UK combat soldiers leave in 2014, it was revealed last night.
Senior sources said members of the elite regiment will remain in Helmand Province to help Afghan forces weed out insurgents.
David Cameron and fellow Nato leaders will today map out plans to withdraw frontline troops from the fight against the Taliban in two years’ time.
On the ground: SAS troops will stay in Afghanistan to conduct counter-terrorism operations against the remnants of Al Qaeda after UK combat soldiers leave in 2014
Officials said the ‘great majority’ of British forces would come home but they conceded the SAS and their naval counterparts, the SBS, are almost certain to remain after the deadline, so UK personnel will still be in harm’s way.
The SAS and SBS have done valuable covert work uncovering Taliban bomb factories and identifying the location of their leaders for air and ground attacks.
The G8 summit in America this weekend will draw up plans for withdrawal from Afghanistan and agree to provide funds for Afghan armed forces after 2014.
Talks: David Cameron and fellow Nato leaders will today map out plans to withdraw frontline troops from the fight against the Taliban in two years’ time
Britain will contribute £70 million a year to a total fund of £700 million.
The UK is also running an officer-training school in the Afghan capital Kabul dubbed ‘Sandhurst in the sand.’
The UK will begin to dramatically reduce troop numbers next year.
The timetable mapped out at the summit will see Afghan forces take control of all combat missions by the middle of 2013.
At that point, commanders will agree a more concrete plan on how quickly they can remove the remaining soldiers.
A senior British official said: ‘Our forces will not remain in a combat role in Afghanistan beyond 2014. The majority that remain will be in a training and mentoring role.
‘But I wouldn’t rule out a small number of forces playing a counter-terrorism role if needed.
‘This would be in keeping with how we are working to protect ourselves from the threat emanating from other parts of the world, such as the Arabian Peninsula.’
Security sources said the size of the British deployment would depend on where Al Qaeda was operating in 2014. The number of Special Forces could be as low as ten, but could be as high as 200.
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