Roadside bombs in Afghanistan have killed five more British soldiers, pushing the country's military death toll past 200. The deaths have re-ignited debate about whether the mission there is worth the human cost.
The British Ministry of Defense says three soldiers died after they were attacked while on patrol in Helmand Province on Sunday morning. Two others were killed on Saturday.
This brings Britain's death toll in the country to 204.
Violence in Afghanistan is escalating ahead of Thursday's presidential election. British forces have lost 13 soldiers so far this month, and 22 in July, the deadliest month since 2001.
Gordon Brown, British Prime Minister, said, "It's to the professionalism and the dedication and courage of our troops that we owe the greatest debt and to those families who are suffering today as a result of untold grief because of the loss of loved ones, I want to say that the whole nation supports what their families have been able to do for our country."
Brown described the last few months as "a very difficult summer," but insisted the
troops' presence in Afghanistan was keeping Britain safe.
The UK now has about 9-thousand troops in Afghanistan.
But the rising death toll has sparked a debate in Britain about its role in the war and the quality of its military equipment.
Tony Philippson, Father of Soldier killed in Afghanistan, said, "It's very sad, and it's even sadder because a considerable part of those numbers, those that have been lost, those deaths were avoidable, as we know, because of lack of proper equipment."
With Afghanistan's election days away, Brown says his government has increased resources to deal with the new threat from Taliban insurgents.
The Prime Minister also warned that NATO forces should remain in the country until the Afghan government is capable of assuming more control.
(CCTV August 17, 2009)
