The last bastion manhattan6/5/2023 Yet those sacrifices have not been in vain. Many more have sustained life changing injuries. We knew we had to act.ĭuring that hard fought campaign 453 British Servicemen and women have paid the ultimate price. We knew they posed a direct threat to Britain. We knew that Al Qaeda were using Afghanistan as a base for their terrorist operations. The destruction of the Twin Towers and the murder of thousands of innocent people, including many Britons could not go unanswered. It is important to remind ourselves why we were there in the first place. By the end of the year our combat troops will have departed and our 13-year campaign will be over. This week we reach a major milestone in our Afghanistan mission as UK forces leave Camp Bastion for the last time. Why we've made a difference: Michael Fallon has said that British soldiers did not die in vain in Afghanistan The operation began with Afghan forces moving into the site and taking over from the Britons tower by tower to secure the 24km perimeter. They know we are going, but I doubt they know the precise moment.' One soldier said of the Taliban: 'I genuinely think it will be a tactical surprise. There was tightened security surrounding the exact details of the date of departure amid fears the Taliban could make one last attack before the troops leave. It is a big day for the forces and it is job done in Helmand.' John Downing, 29, a senior aircraftsman of the RAF regiment, said: 'I'm relieved to be getting out of there. Major General Sayed Malook, who is taking over the base, said as the western forces were leaving: 'They have given peace and security for the Afghan people.' Marines take off from Camp Bastion in Helmand province on Mondayįour-hundred and fifty-three men and women lost their lives in the ferocious battle to liberate the Afghan province of Helmand. Published: 11:31 BST, 27 October 2014 | Updated: 18:22 BST, 27 October 2014ĬH-53E and Chinook helicopters with U.S. 20,000 Afghan civilians also killedīy Larisa Brown, Daily Mail Defence Reporter In Camp Bastion, Afghanistan and John Stevens for the Daily Mail Of the 453 British troops who have died in the conflict, 35 were teenagers.Defence Secretary admits Afghanistan still plagued by insurgency, and failure to leave a memorial seen by some as a symbol of the West's failure to secure the country, despite hundreds of lives lost.Top-ranking soldiers and relatives of those killed said there was an obvious risk they would be 'desecrated'.Army insisted it was not because of fears memorials would be defaced or destroyed.As UK's campaign in Afghanistan ended it was confirmed walls had been dismantled.Lives of young Britons killed fighting the Taliban had been commemorated on memorial walls in Camp Bastion.But criticism grows as army confirms no memorial to fallen soldiers will remain on the site.Final 300 men and women are flown out of Camp Bastion in signal that Britain's war in Afghanistan is over.'Happy B-Day': Troops commemorate final day at Camp Bastion as last 300 soldiers are airlifted out of base as 13-year war ends
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