"Some" "Some time" "Some time after" "Some time after sunset" "Some time after sunset a group of" "Some time after sunset a group of men" "Some time after sunset a group of men gathered" "Some time after sunset a group of men gathered together" "Some time after sunset a group of men gathered together in" "Some time after sunset a group of men gathered together in Kandahar" "Some time after sunset a group of men gathered together in Kandahar to men gathered together in Kandahar to savour the men gathered together in Kandahar to savour the moment men gathered together in Kandahar to savour the moment they made" "men gathered together in Kandahar to savour the moment they made history." "savour the moment they made history." "Televisions savour the moment they made history." "Televisions have been savour the moment they made history." "Televisions have been banned savour the moment they made history." "Televisions have been banned in" "Televisions have been banned in Afghanistan," "Televisions have been banned in Afghanistan, but" "Televisions have been banned in Afghanistan, but these" "Televisions have been banned in Afghanistan, but these men" "Televisions have been banned in Afghanistan, but these men were" "Afghanistan, but these men were honoured guests." "Afghanistan, but these men were honoured guests." "Osama" "Afghanistan, but these men were honoured guests." "Osama Bin Laden" "Afghanistan, but these men were honoured guests." "Osama Bin Laden and honoured guests." "Osama Bin Laden and his honoured guests." "Osama Bin Laden and his Al-Qaeda honoured guests." "Osama Bin Laden and his Al-Qaeda faithful honoured guests." "Osama Bin Laden and his Al-Qaeda faithful were honoured guests." "Osama Bin Laden and his Al-Qaeda faithful were there honoured guests." "Osama Bin Laden and his Al-Qaeda faithful were there to his Al-Qaeda faithful were there to watch his Al-Qaeda faithful were there to watch the his Al-Qaeda faithful were there to watch the horror his Al-Qaeda faithful were there to watch the horror of" "his Al-Qaeda faithful were there to watch the horror of 9/11 his Al-Qaeda faithful were there to watch the horror of 9/11 unfold." "What" "What Al-Qaeda" "What Al-Qaeda call" "What Al-Qaeda call the" "What Al-Qaeda call the Manhattan" "What Al-Qaeda call the Manhattan Raid." "So" "So the" "So the West invaded" "So the West invaded Afghanistan." "So the West invaded Afghanistan." "There" "So the West invaded Afghanistan." "There was" "So the West invaded Afghanistan." "There was a belief it" "So the West invaded Afghanistan." "There was a belief it could" "So the West invaded Afghanistan." "There was a belief it could be done" "There was a belief it could be done quickly," "There was a belief it could be done quickly, with a very" "There was a belief it could be done quickly, with a very light quickly, with a very light footprint." "quickly, with a very light footprint." "We could be quickly, with a very light footprint." "We could be in and we footprint." "We could be in and we could footprint." "We could be in and we could be footprint." "We could be in and we could be out again." "footprint." "We could be in and we could be out again." "And footprint." "We could be in and we could be out again." "And we footprint." "We could be in and we could be out again." "And we ended footprint." "We could be in and we could be out again." "And we ended up could be out again." "And we ended up doing neither could be out again." "And we ended up doing neither one could be out again." "And we ended up doing neither one thing nor doing neither one thing nor the other." "doing neither one thing nor the other." "Instead, doing neither one thing nor the other." "Instead, 47 doing neither one thing nor the other." "Instead, 47 nations, doing neither one thing nor the other." "Instead, 47 nations, America other." "Instead, 47 nations, America and other." "Instead, 47 nations, America and Britain other." "Instead, 47 nations, America and Britain especially, have other." "Instead, 47 nations, America and Britain especially, have been and Britain especially, have been sucked and Britain especially, have been sucked ever and Britain especially, have been sucked ever deeper and Britain especially, have been sucked ever deeper into" "sucked ever deeper into a quagmire." "I sucked ever deeper into a quagmire." "I used to sucked ever deeper into a quagmire." "I used to ask sucked ever deeper into a quagmire." "I used to ask myself every sucked ever deeper into a quagmire." "I used to ask myself every time I" "I used to ask myself every time I went to" "I used to ask myself every time I went to Afghanistan:" "I used to ask myself every time I went to Afghanistan: what are we went to Afghanistan: what are we doing went to Afghanistan: what are we doing here?" "went to Afghanistan: what are we doing here?" "In went to Afghanistan: what are we doing here?" "In the went to Afghanistan: what are we doing here?" "In the first went to Afghanistan: what are we doing here?" "In the first of went to Afghanistan: what are we doing here?" "In the first of three doing here?" "In the first of three programmes doing here?" "In the first of three programmes marking doing here?" "In the first of three programmes marking ten doing here?" "In the first of three programmes marking ten years doing here?" "In the first of three programmes marking ten years of doing here?" "In the first of three programmes marking ten years of war programmes marking ten years of war in programmes marking ten years of war in Afghanistan, programmes marking ten years of war in Afghanistan, I've programmes marking ten years of war in Afghanistan, I've been examining" "in Afghanistan, I've been examining some in Afghanistan, I've been examining some of the key in Afghanistan, I've been examining some of the key decisions in Afghanistan, I've been examining some of the key decisions that have" "some of the key decisions that have shaped some of the key decisions that have shaped the some of the key decisions that have shaped the conflict." "some of the key decisions that have shaped the conflict." "A conflict that shaped the conflict." "A conflict that has cost shaped the conflict." "A conflict that has cost many shaped the conflict." "A conflict that has cost many thousands shaped the conflict." "A conflict that has cost many thousands of shaped the conflict." "A conflict that has cost many thousands of lives." "has cost many thousands of lives." "Including has cost many thousands of lives." "Including more has cost many thousands of lives." "Including more than has cost many thousands of lives." "Including more than 370 British" "Including more than 370 British servicemen" "Including more than 370 British servicemen and women." "With" "With the right" "With the right attention," "With the right attention, the" "With the right attention, the right strategy" "With the right attention, the right strategy and" "With the right attention, the right strategy and the" "With the right attention, the right strategy and the right" "With the right attention, the right strategy and the right resources, strategy and the right resources, the war would strategy and the right resources, the war would be strategy and the right resources, the war would be over and" "strategy and the right resources, the war would be over and most the war would be over and most of our the war would be over and most of our boys the war would be over and most of our boys would be" "the war would be over and most of our boys would be home, the war would be over and most of our boys would be home, but our boys would be home, but we didn't do our boys would be home, but we didn't do it." "our boys would be home, but we didn't do it." "It's our boys would be home, but we didn't do it." "It's important to our boys would be home, but we didn't do it." "It's important to give didn't do it." "It's important to give people didn't do it." "It's important to give people a clear didn't do it." "It's important to give people a clear idea didn't do it." "It's important to give people a clear idea that there didn't do it." "It's important to give people a clear idea that there is people a clear idea that there is an end to this." "So" "So will" "So will the" "So will the death" "So will the death of Osama Bin" "So will the death of Osama Bin Laden who" "So will the death of Osama Bin Laden who started" "So will the death of Osama Bin Laden who started the" "So will the death of Osama Bin Laden who started the Afghan" "So will the death of Osama Bin Laden who started the Afghan war" "So will the death of Osama Bin Laden who started the Afghan war bring who started the Afghan war bring us any who started the Afghan war bring us any closer who started the Afghan war bring us any closer to" "who started the Afghan war bring us any closer to an end?" "who started the Afghan war bring us any closer to an end?" "Yeah!" "Two" "Two years" "Two years before" "Two years before 9/11," "Two years before 9/11, Afghanistan's" "Two years before 9/11, Afghanistan's UN" "Two years before 9/11, Afghanistan's UN envoy" "Two years before 9/11, Afghanistan's UN envoy arrived" "Two years before 9/11, Afghanistan's UN envoy arrived in New" "Two years before 9/11, Afghanistan's UN envoy arrived in New York." "Two years before 9/11, Afghanistan's UN envoy arrived in New York." "There" "UN envoy arrived in New York." "There he" "UN envoy arrived in New York." "There he handed" "UN envoy arrived in New York." "There he handed in his" "UN envoy arrived in New York." "There he handed in his resignation. he handed in his resignation." "I went to he handed in his resignation." "I went to the Security he handed in his resignation." "I went to the Security Council he handed in his resignation." "I went to the Security Council and said to the Security Council and said "Look, to the Security Council and said "Look, I have done to the Security Council and said "Look, I have done everything I" "to the Security Council and said "Look, I have done everything I know" ""Look, I have done everything I know and it" ""Look, I have done everything I know and it has" ""Look, I have done everything I know and it has got" ""Look, I have done everything I know and it has got us" ""Look, I have done everything I know and it has got us nowhere." "I" ""Look, I have done everything I know and it has got us nowhere." "I haven't and it has got us nowhere." "I haven't got anywhere and it has got us nowhere." "I haven't got anywhere because you and it has got us nowhere." "I haven't got anywhere because you are and it has got us nowhere." "I haven't got anywhere because you are not got anywhere because you are not supporting me, you got anywhere because you are not supporting me, you are got anywhere because you are not supporting me, you are not" "supporting me, you are not interested supporting me, you are not interested in supporting me, you are not interested in Afghanistan, supporting me, you are not interested in Afghanistan, but you interested in Afghanistan, but you are" "interested in Afghanistan, but you are wrong."" "interested in Afghanistan, but you are wrong." Afghanistan interested in Afghanistan, but you are wrong." Afghanistan had interested in Afghanistan, but you are wrong." Afghanistan had become are wrong." Afghanistan had become a pariah" "are wrong." Afghanistan had become a pariah state." "are wrong." Afghanistan had become a pariah state." "The are wrong." Afghanistan had become a pariah state." "The Taliban government pariah state." "The Taliban government had pariah state." "The Taliban government had allowed pariah state." "The Taliban government had allowed Al-Qaeda pariah state." "The Taliban government had allowed Al-Qaeda to pariah state." "The Taliban government had allowed Al-Qaeda to establish had allowed Al-Qaeda to establish its had allowed Al-Qaeda to establish its base had allowed Al-Qaeda to establish its base there had allowed Al-Qaeda to establish its base there from had allowed Al-Qaeda to establish its base there from where" "its base there from where Osama Bin Laden had its base there from where Osama Bin Laden had declared its base there from where Osama Bin Laden had declared a holy its base there from where Osama Bin Laden had declared a holy war" "its base there from where Osama Bin Laden had declared a holy war on" "Laden had declared a holy war on Jews" "Laden had declared a holy war on Jews and" "Laden had declared a holy war on Jews and Christians." "Laden had declared a holy war on Jews and Christians." "The" "Laden had declared a holy war on Jews and Christians." "The Taliban" "Jews and Christians." "The Taliban shared" "Jews and Christians." "The Taliban shared with" "Jews and Christians." "The Taliban shared with Al-Qaeda" "Jews and Christians." "The Taliban shared with Al-Qaeda its" "Jews and Christians." "The Taliban shared with Al-Qaeda its medieval shared with Al-Qaeda its medieval version of shared with Al-Qaeda its medieval version of Islam." "shared with Al-Qaeda its medieval version of Islam." "The shared with Al-Qaeda its medieval version of Islam." "The United shared with Al-Qaeda its medieval version of Islam." "The United Nations version of Islam." "The United Nations had been version of Islam." "The United Nations had been trying version of Islam." "The United Nations had been trying to version of Islam." "The United Nations had been trying to persuade had been trying to persuade the Taliban had been trying to persuade the Taliban to had been trying to persuade the Taliban to kick had been trying to persuade the Taliban to kick out" "had been trying to persuade the Taliban to kick out Al-Qaeda." "had been trying to persuade the Taliban to kick out Al-Qaeda." "Their" "Taliban to kick out Al-Qaeda." "Their envoy" "Taliban to kick out Al-Qaeda." "Their envoy had" "Taliban to kick out Al-Qaeda." "Their envoy had had a rare" "Taliban to kick out Al-Qaeda." "Their envoy had had a rare meeting envoy had had a rare meeting with Mullah envoy had had a rare meeting with Mullah Omar, envoy had had a rare meeting with Mullah Omar, the envoy had had a rare meeting with Mullah Omar, the Taliban" "envoy had had a rare meeting with Mullah Omar, the Taliban leader," "Mullah Omar, the Taliban leader, a veteran" "Mullah Omar, the Taliban leader, a veteran of" "Mullah Omar, the Taliban leader, a veteran of the war of" "Mullah Omar, the Taliban leader, a veteran of the war of the" "Mullah Omar, the Taliban leader, a veteran of the war of the 1980s." "Mullah Omar, the Taliban leader, a veteran of the war of the 1980s. veteran of the war of the 1980s." "A very veteran of the war of the 1980s." "A very shy veteran of the war of the 1980s." "A very shy man." "He had veteran of the war of the 1980s." "A very shy man." "He had lost veteran of the war of the 1980s." "A very shy man." "He had lost an eye veteran of the war of the 1980s." "A very shy man." "He had lost an eye and very shy man." "He had lost an eye and he was very much very shy man." "He had lost an eye and he was very much aware of very shy man." "He had lost an eye and he was very much aware of that, very shy man." "He had lost an eye and he was very much aware of that, so he was very much aware of that, so he he was very much aware of that, so he kept, he was very much aware of that, so he kept, you" "he was very much aware of that, so he kept, you know, always he was very much aware of that, so he kept, you know, always playing he kept, you know, always playing with his hand" "he kept, you know, always playing with his hand like this." "he kept, you know, always playing with his hand like this." "Very, he kept, you know, always playing with his hand like this." "Very, very with his hand like this." "Very, very soft with his hand like this." "Very, very soft spoken. with his hand like this." "Very, very soft spoken." "I told with his hand like this." "Very, very soft spoken." "I told him:" "with his hand like this." "Very, very soft spoken." "I told him:" "look, with his hand like this." "Very, very soft spoken." "I told him:" "look, this soft spoken." "I told him:" "look, this group soft spoken." "I told him:" "look, this group have soft spoken." "I told him:" "look, this group have an soft spoken." "I told him:" "look, this group have an agenda that soft spoken." "I told him:" "look, this group have an agenda that has group have an agenda that has nothing to do with group have an agenda that has nothing to do with Afghanistan." "group have an agenda that has nothing to do with Afghanistan." "And nothing to do with Afghanistan." "And that will nothing to do with Afghanistan." "And that will create a lot nothing to do with Afghanistan." "And that will create a lot of that will create a lot of problems for that will create a lot of problems for you." "that will create a lot of problems for you." "He that will create a lot of problems for you." "He said:" "that will create a lot of problems for you." "He said:" "Osama Bin that will create a lot of problems for you." "He said:" "Osama Bin Laden, for you." "He said:" "Osama Bin Laden, you for you." "He said:" "Osama Bin Laden, you know, he for you." "He said:" "Osama Bin Laden, you know, he is our for you." "He said:" "Osama Bin Laden, you know, he is our guest." "for you." "He said:" "Osama Bin Laden, you know, he is our guest." "In you know, he is our guest." "In Afghanistan, you know, he is our guest." "In Afghanistan, Bin you know, he is our guest." "In Afghanistan, Bin Laden was more you know, he is our guest." "In Afghanistan, Bin Laden was more than" "Afghanistan, Bin Laden was more than just" "Afghanistan, Bin Laden was more than just a guest." "Afghanistan, Bin Laden was more than just a guest." "As" "Afghanistan, Bin Laden was more than just a guest." "As a wealthy" "Afghanistan, Bin Laden was more than just a guest." "As a wealthy Saudi," "Afghanistan, Bin Laden was more than just a guest." "As a wealthy Saudi, he just a guest." "As a wealthy Saudi, he helped just a guest." "As a wealthy Saudi, he helped bankroll just a guest." "As a wealthy Saudi, he helped bankroll the just a guest." "As a wealthy Saudi, he helped bankroll the Taliban just a guest." "As a wealthy Saudi, he helped bankroll the Taliban regime." "helped bankroll the Taliban regime." "Mullah helped bankroll the Taliban regime." "Mullah Omar helped bankroll the Taliban regime." "Mullah Omar refused helped bankroll the Taliban regime." "Mullah Omar refused to helped bankroll the Taliban regime." "Mullah Omar refused to disown" "Mullah Omar refused to disown his friend" "Mullah Omar refused to disown his friend and" "Mullah Omar refused to disown his friend and benefactor." "Mullah Omar refused to disown his friend and benefactor." "Lakhdar friend and benefactor." "Lakhdar Brahimi's friend and benefactor." "Lakhdar Brahimi's mission friend and benefactor." "Lakhdar Brahimi's mission had failed." "friend and benefactor." "Lakhdar Brahimi's mission had failed." "He" "Brahimi's mission had failed." "He warned" "Brahimi's mission had failed." "He warned the Security" "Brahimi's mission had failed." "He warned the Security Council" "Brahimi's mission had failed." "He warned the Security Council that" "Brahimi's mission had failed." "He warned the Security Council that by warned the Security Council that by ignoring warned the Security Council that by ignoring Afghanistan they ignoring Afghanistan they were storing ignoring Afghanistan they were storing up trouble." "You" "You are" "You are wrong" "You are wrong to" "You are wrong to think" "You are wrong to think that, you" "You are wrong to think that, you know," "You are wrong to think that, you know, this" "You are wrong to think that, you know, this is a small" "You are wrong to think that, you know, this is a small country," "You are wrong to think that, you know, this is a small country, a far know, this is a small country, a far away know, this is a small country, a far away country," "know, this is a small country, a far away country, you know, this is a small country, a far away country, you know, what away country, you know, what happens there away country, you know, what happens there is" "away country, you know, what happens there is irrelevant." "away country, you know, what happens there is irrelevant." "It will blow away country, you know, what happens there is irrelevant." "It will blow in there is irrelevant." "It will blow in our faces." "Oh" "Oh shit!" "The" "The impact" "The impact of" "The impact of 9/11" "The impact of 9/11 cannot" "The impact of 9/11 cannot be" "The impact of 9/11 cannot be understated." "The impact of 9/11 cannot be understated." "It was the" "The impact of 9/11 cannot be understated." "It was the deadliest understated." "It was the deadliest attack understated." "It was the deadliest attack against America understated." "It was the deadliest attack against America in attack against America in its history." "attack against America in its history." "With attack against America in its history." "With nearly attack against America in its history." "With nearly 3,000 attack against America in its history." "With nearly 3,000 dead, attack against America in its history." "With nearly 3,000 dead, it history." "With nearly 3,000 dead, it was history." "With nearly 3,000 dead, it was inevitable history." "With nearly 3,000 dead, it was inevitable that history." "With nearly 3,000 dead, it was inevitable that America would was inevitable that America would strike back." "was inevitable that America would strike back." "The was inevitable that America would strike back." "The people who was inevitable that America would strike back." "The people who knocked strike back." "The people who knocked these strike back." "The people who knocked these buildings strike back." "The people who knocked these buildings down will strike back." "The people who knocked these buildings down will hear strike back." "The people who knocked these buildings down will hear all these buildings down will hear all of these buildings down will hear all of us soon." "these buildings down will hear all of us soon." "Prompting these buildings down will hear all of us soon." "Prompting America these buildings down will hear all of us soon." "Prompting America to of us soon." "Prompting America to invade of us soon." "Prompting America to invade Afghanistan of us soon." "Prompting America to invade Afghanistan was of us soon." "Prompting America to invade Afghanistan was exactly invade Afghanistan was exactly what Osama Bin invade Afghanistan was exactly what Osama Bin Laden was invade Afghanistan was exactly what Osama Bin Laden was hoping invade Afghanistan was exactly what Osama Bin Laden was hoping for" "invade Afghanistan was exactly what Osama Bin Laden was hoping for on" "Osama Bin Laden was hoping for on September 11th." "Osama Bin Laden was hoping for on September 11th." "His" "Osama Bin Laden was hoping for on September 11th." "His son" "Osama Bin Laden was hoping for on September 11th." "His son has" "Osama Bin Laden was hoping for on September 11th." "His son has told" "Osama Bin Laden was hoping for on September 11th." "His son has told us" "September 11th." "His son has told us in" "September 11th." "His son has told us in retrospect:" "September 11th." "His son has told us in retrospect: my" "September 11th." "His son has told us in retrospect: my father's dream" "September 11th." "His son has told us in retrospect: my father's dream was in retrospect: my father's dream was to in retrospect: my father's dream was to get in retrospect: my father's dream was to get America" "in retrospect: my father's dream was to get America to invade to get America to invade Afghanistan." "To" "To me it's just" "To me it's just common" "To me it's just common sense." "To me it's just common sense." "Obviously" "To me it's just common sense." "Obviously you" "To me it's just common sense." "Obviously you got to" "To me it's just common sense." "Obviously you got to go" "To me it's just common sense." "Obviously you got to go get" "To me it's just common sense." "Obviously you got to go get the" "To me it's just common sense." "Obviously you got to go get the guy." "Obviously you got to go get the guy." "Obviously you got to go get the guy." "America" "Obviously you got to go get the guy." "America gave" "Obviously you got to go get the guy." "America gave the" "Obviously you got to go get the guy." "America gave the Taliban" "Obviously you got to go get the guy." "America gave the Taliban every" "America gave the Taliban every chance" "America gave the Taliban every chance to" "America gave the Taliban every chance to avoid" "America gave the Taliban every chance to avoid war." "America gave the Taliban every chance to avoid war." "All" "America gave the Taliban every chance to avoid war." "All they" "America gave the Taliban every chance to avoid war." "All they had to chance to avoid war." "All they had to do chance to avoid war." "All they had to do was chance to avoid war." "All they had to do was hand over Bin chance to avoid war." "All they had to do was hand over Bin Laden." "chance to avoid war." "All they had to do was hand over Bin Laden." "If do was hand over Bin Laden." "If Bin Laden is do was hand over Bin Laden." "If Bin Laden is the do was hand over Bin Laden." "If Bin Laden is the guy we do was hand over Bin Laden." "If Bin Laden is the guy we want do was hand over Bin Laden." "If Bin Laden is the guy we want then do was hand over Bin Laden." "If Bin Laden is the guy we want then the" "Laden is the guy we want then the assassination" "Laden is the guy we want then the assassination out" "Laden is the guy we want then the assassination out can" "Laden is the guy we want then the assassination out can get" "Laden is the guy we want then the assassination out can get him." "Laden is the guy we want then the assassination out can get him." "It assassination out can get him." "It was assassination out can get him." "It was a serious effort to assassination out can get him." "It was a serious effort to persuade the was a serious effort to persuade the Taliban:" "was a serious effort to persuade the Taliban: you do was a serious effort to persuade the Taliban: you do not was a serious effort to persuade the Taliban: you do not want to" "Taliban: you do not want to go down with" "Taliban: you do not want to go down with Al-Qaeda." "Taliban: you do not want to go down with Al-Qaeda." "If you" "Taliban: you do not want to go down with Al-Qaeda." "If you will with Al-Qaeda." "If you will hand these with Al-Qaeda." "If you will hand these guys with Al-Qaeda." "If you will hand these guys over, with Al-Qaeda." "If you will hand these guys over, our with Al-Qaeda." "If you will hand these guys over, our war isn't these guys over, our war isn't with you." "these guys over, our war isn't with you." "The these guys over, our war isn't with you." "The Taliban these guys over, our war isn't with you." "The Taliban response these guys over, our war isn't with you." "The Taliban response was these guys over, our war isn't with you." "The Taliban response was that you." "The Taliban response was that their you." "The Taliban response was that their ancient you." "The Taliban response was that their ancient hospitality you." "The Taliban response was that their ancient hospitality code their ancient hospitality code trumped all other their ancient hospitality code trumped all other considerations." "their ancient hospitality code trumped all other considerations." "It trumped all other considerations." "It was trumped all other considerations." "It was no, we trumped all other considerations." "It was no, we are trumped all other considerations." "It was no, we are not trumped all other considerations." "It was no, we are not going trumped all other considerations." "It was no, we are not going to trumped all other considerations." "It was no, we are not going to separate was no, we are not going to separate ourselves was no, we are not going to separate ourselves from was no, we are not going to separate ourselves from our" "was no, we are not going to separate ourselves from our traditional ourselves from our traditional hospitality ourselves from our traditional hospitality of ourselves from our traditional hospitality of welcoming ourselves from our traditional hospitality of welcoming guests." "ourselves from our traditional hospitality of welcoming guests." "ourselves from our traditional hospitality of welcoming guests." "hospitality of welcoming guests." "It's hospitality of welcoming guests." "It's hard to understand hospitality of welcoming guests." "It's hard to understand that," "It's hard to understand that, when you" "It's hard to understand that, when you are" "It's hard to understand that, when you are dealing" "It's hard to understand that, when you are dealing with you are dealing with Osama Bin Laden." "you are dealing with Osama Bin Laden." "It happened you are dealing with Osama Bin Laden." "It happened like you are dealing with Osama Bin Laden." "It happened like that." "you are dealing with Osama Bin Laden." "It happened like that." "The" "Laden." "It happened like that." "The life of" "Laden." "It happened like that." "The life of the" "Laden." "It happened like that." "The life of the guest is" "Laden." "It happened like that." "The life of the guest is protected life of the guest is protected by the life of the guest is protected by the lives of life of the guest is protected by the lives of the hosts." "life of the guest is protected by the lives of the hosts." "Nearly life of the guest is protected by the lives of the hosts." "Nearly four the lives of the hosts." "Nearly four weeks the lives of the hosts." "Nearly four weeks after the lives of the hosts." "Nearly four weeks after 9/11 the lives of the hosts." "Nearly four weeks after 9/11 America's weeks after 9/11 America's patience ran weeks after 9/11 America's patience ran out." "The" "The President" "The President told his" "The President told his Generals" "The President told his Generals to" "The President told his Generals to unleash" "The President told his Generals to unleash holy hell." "The President told his Generals to unleash holy hell." "On" "The President told his Generals to unleash holy hell." "On my" "The President told his Generals to unleash holy hell." "On my orders," "The President told his Generals to unleash holy hell." "On my orders, the unleash holy hell." "On my orders, the United unleash holy hell." "On my orders, the United States unleash holy hell." "On my orders, the United States military unleash holy hell." "On my orders, the United States military has unleash holy hell." "On my orders, the United States military has begun" "United States military has begun strikes" "United States military has begun strikes against" "United States military has begun strikes against Al-Qaeda terrorist strikes against Al-Qaeda terrorist training strikes against Al-Qaeda terrorist training camps strikes against Al-Qaeda terrorist training camps and strikes against Al-Qaeda terrorist training camps and military training camps and military installations training camps and military installations of" "training camps and military installations of the training camps and military installations of the Taliban regime installations of the Taliban regime in Afghanistan." "America" "America was" "America was determined" "America was determined not" "America was determined not to" "America was determined not to get" "America was determined not to get bogged" "America was determined not to get bogged down" "America was determined not to get bogged down in" "America was determined not to get bogged down in Afghanistan" "America was determined not to get bogged down in Afghanistan so there bogged down in Afghanistan so there was bogged down in Afghanistan so there was no bogged down in Afghanistan so there was no large bogged down in Afghanistan so there was no large ground" "bogged down in Afghanistan so there was no large ground invasion, bogged down in Afghanistan so there was no large ground invasion, no was no large ground invasion, no heavy was no large ground invasion, no heavy armour." "was no large ground invasion, no heavy armour." "Instead, was no large ground invasion, no heavy armour." "Instead, America heavy armour." "Instead, America relied heavy armour." "Instead, America relied on heavy armour." "Instead, America relied on CIA heavy armour." "Instead, America relied on CIA operatives, heavy armour." "Instead, America relied on CIA operatives, precision, relied on CIA operatives, precision, speed, relied on CIA operatives, precision, speed, just relied on CIA operatives, precision, speed, just 1800 troops" "relied on CIA operatives, precision, speed, just 1800 troops and relied on CIA operatives, precision, speed, just 1800 troops and buying speed, just 1800 troops and buying up speed, just 1800 troops and buying up Afghan" "speed, just 1800 troops and buying up Afghan militias." "speed, just 1800 troops and buying up Afghan militias." "Its speed, just 1800 troops and buying up Afghan militias." "Its plan speed, just 1800 troops and buying up Afghan militias." "Its plan was up Afghan militias." "Its plan was war light." "up Afghan militias." "Its plan was war light." "We up Afghan militias." "Its plan was war light." "We sent up Afghan militias." "Its plan was war light." "We sent in up Afghan militias." "Its plan was war light." "We sent in 20 up Afghan militias." "Its plan was war light." "We sent in 20 or up Afghan militias." "Its plan was war light." "We sent in 20 or 30 up Afghan militias." "Its plan was war light." "We sent in 20 or 30 CIA light." "We sent in 20 or 30 CIA officers light." "We sent in 20 or 30 CIA officers with light." "We sent in 20 or 30 CIA officers with several light." "We sent in 20 or 30 CIA officers with several million officers with several million dollars officers with several million dollars in officers with several million dollars in walking officers with several million dollars in walking around officers with several million dollars in walking around money" "officers with several million dollars in walking around money and dollars in walking around money and bought dollars in walking around money and bought the dollars in walking around money and bought the Northern dollars in walking around money and bought the Northern Alliance" "dollars in walking around money and bought the Northern Alliance over bought the Northern Alliance over to our bought the Northern Alliance over to our side." "bought the Northern Alliance over to our side." "The bought the Northern Alliance over to our side." "The Northern Alliance bought the Northern Alliance over to our side." "The Northern Alliance was our side." "The Northern Alliance was a our side." "The Northern Alliance was a coalition our side." "The Northern Alliance was a coalition of a coalition of warlords which had once a coalition of warlords which had once ruled a coalition of warlords which had once ruled much a coalition of warlords which had once ruled much of Afghanistan." "a coalition of warlords which had once ruled much of Afghanistan." "They once ruled much of Afghanistan." "They were once ruled much of Afghanistan." "They were a ragtag once ruled much of Afghanistan." "They were a ragtag militia, once ruled much of Afghanistan." "They were a ragtag militia, now once ruled much of Afghanistan." "They were a ragtag militia, now aligned were a ragtag militia, now aligned to were a ragtag militia, now aligned to the were a ragtag militia, now aligned to the world's were a ragtag militia, now aligned to the world's most" "were a ragtag militia, now aligned to the world's most sophisticated to the world's most sophisticated fighting to the world's most sophisticated fighting force." "In" "In the" "In the 1990s," "In the 1990s, the Northern" "In the 1990s, the Northern Alliance" "In the 1990s, the Northern Alliance had" "In the 1990s, the Northern Alliance had lost" "In the 1990s, the Northern Alliance had lost to" "In the 1990s, the Northern Alliance had lost to the" "In the 1990s, the Northern Alliance had lost to the Taliban" "In the 1990s, the Northern Alliance had lost to the Taliban in a civil had lost to the Taliban in a civil war costing had lost to the Taliban in a civil war costing tens had lost to the Taliban in a civil war costing tens of thousands" "war costing tens of thousands of lives." "war costing tens of thousands of lives." "The war costing tens of thousands of lives." "The tables war costing tens of thousands of lives." "The tables were now war costing tens of thousands of lives." "The tables were now turning." "." "On" "On 13th" "On 13th November" "On 13th November 2001," "On 13th November 2001, just" "On 13th November 2001, just five weeks" "On 13th November 2001, just five weeks after" "On 13th November 2001, just five weeks after the" "On 13th November 2001, just five weeks after the invasion," "On 13th November 2001, just five weeks after the invasion, the weeks after the invasion, the Northern weeks after the invasion, the Northern Alliance weeks after the invasion, the Northern Alliance captured weeks after the invasion, the Northern Alliance captured the" "Northern Alliance captured the capital," "Northern Alliance captured the capital, Kabul." "Northern Alliance captured the capital, Kabul." "It looked" "Northern Alliance captured the capital, Kabul." "It looked like the capital, Kabul." "It looked like the war capital, Kabul." "It looked like the war was over." "capital, Kabul." "It looked like the war was over." "That's capital, Kabul." "It looked like the war was over." "That's not war was over." "That's not what Osama Bin war was over." "That's not what Osama Bin Laden thought was war was over." "That's not what Osama Bin Laden thought was going to" "Bin Laden thought was going to happen." "Bin Laden thought was going to happen." "He" "Bin Laden thought was going to happen." "He thought it" "Bin Laden thought was going to happen." "He thought it was going to happen." "He thought it was going to be a happen." "He thought it was going to be a long, happen." "He thought it was going to be a long, protracted happen." "He thought it was going to be a long, protracted guerrilla be a long, protracted guerrilla struggle." "be a long, protracted guerrilla struggle." "He was be a long, protracted guerrilla struggle." "He was surprised." "The" "The celebrations" "The celebrations in" "The celebrations in Kabul" "The celebrations in Kabul concealed" "The celebrations in Kabul concealed a mass" "The celebrations in Kabul concealed a mass of" "The celebrations in Kabul concealed a mass of underlying" "The celebrations in Kabul concealed a mass of underlying tribal a mass of underlying tribal and sectarian a mass of underlying tribal and sectarian tensions." "a mass of underlying tribal and sectarian tensions." "The a mass of underlying tribal and sectarian tensions." "The Northern sectarian tensions." "The Northern Alliance sectarian tensions." "The Northern Alliance represented sectarian tensions." "The Northern Alliance represented ethnic sectarian tensions." "The Northern Alliance represented ethnic groups" "Alliance represented ethnic groups in" "Alliance represented ethnic groups in the" "Alliance represented ethnic groups in the north." "Alliance represented ethnic groups in the north." "The" "Alliance represented ethnic groups in the north." "The Taliban were" "Alliance represented ethnic groups in the north." "The Taliban were drawn in the north." "The Taliban were drawn from in the north." "The Taliban were drawn from the in the north." "The Taliban were drawn from the majority in the north." "The Taliban were drawn from the majority Pashtun in the north." "The Taliban were drawn from the majority Pashtun of from the majority Pashtun of the south." "from the majority Pashtun of the south." "To from the majority Pashtun of the south." "To avoid from the majority Pashtun of the south." "To avoid another from the majority Pashtun of the south." "To avoid another inter-ethnic south." "To avoid another inter-ethnic civil south." "To avoid another inter-ethnic civil war, south." "To avoid another inter-ethnic civil war, Afghanistan south." "To avoid another inter-ethnic civil war, Afghanistan needed civil war, Afghanistan needed a leader civil war, Afghanistan needed a leader acceptable civil war, Afghanistan needed a leader acceptable to civil war, Afghanistan needed a leader acceptable to both the" "leader acceptable to both the north and leader acceptable to both the north and the leader acceptable to both the north and the south." "That" "That leader" "That leader was" "That leader was a Pashtun" "That leader was a Pashtun who" "That leader was a Pashtun who attempted up" "That leader was a Pashtun who attempted up with" "That leader was a Pashtun who attempted up with US" "That leader was a Pashtun who attempted up with US Special attempted up with US Special Forces at a secret attempted up with US Special Forces at a secret airbase attempted up with US Special Forces at a secret airbase near" "attempted up with US Special Forces at a secret airbase near the at a secret airbase near the Pakistan at a secret airbase near the Pakistan border." "at a secret airbase near the Pakistan border." "His at a secret airbase near the Pakistan border." "His name at a secret airbase near the Pakistan border." "His name was Hamid" "Pakistan border." "His name was Hamid Karzai." "Pakistan border." "His name was Hamid Karzai." "Pakistan border." "His name was Hamid Karzai." "Pakistan border." "His name was Hamid Karzai." "In" "Pakistan border." "His name was Hamid Karzai." "In 2001 my" "Pakistan border." "His name was Hamid Karzai." "In 2001 my mission was to" "Karzai." "In 2001 my mission was to link" "Karzai." "In 2001 my mission was to link up with Hamid" "Karzai." "In 2001 my mission was to link up with Hamid Karzai." "Karzai." "In 2001 my mission was to link up with Hamid Karzai." "I liked link up with Hamid Karzai." "I liked him link up with Hamid Karzai." "I liked him immediately. link up with Hamid Karzai." "I liked him immediately." "I can't say link up with Hamid Karzai." "I liked him immediately." "I can't say I've him immediately." "I can't say I've worked him immediately." "I can't say I've worked with him immediately." "I can't say I've worked with many him immediately." "I can't say I've worked with many Afghan him immediately." "I can't say I've worked with many Afghan warlords worked with many Afghan warlords before, worked with many Afghan warlords before, so maybe they worked with many Afghan warlords before, so maybe they are worked with many Afghan warlords before, so maybe they are all" "before, so maybe they are all equally before, so maybe they are all equally personable, before, so maybe they are all equally personable, but before, so maybe they are all equally personable, but Karzai" "before, so maybe they are all equally personable, but Karzai was equally personable, but Karzai was a very equally personable, but Karzai was a very modest equally personable, but Karzai was a very modest man," "equally personable, but Karzai was a very modest man, very equally personable, but Karzai was a very modest man, very polite." "very modest man, very polite." "Captain very modest man, very polite." "Captain Amerine's very modest man, very polite." "Captain Amerine's mission very modest man, very polite." "Captain Amerine's mission was very modest man, very polite." "Captain Amerine's mission was to" "Captain Amerine's mission was to raise" "Captain Amerine's mission was to raise an army" "Captain Amerine's mission was to raise an army against the" "Captain Amerine's mission was to raise an army against the Taliban." "raise an army against the Taliban." "The raise an army against the Taliban." "The Taliban raise an army against the Taliban." "The Taliban had raise an army against the Taliban." "The Taliban had retreated raise an army against the Taliban." "The Taliban had retreated south" "The Taliban had retreated south and were" "The Taliban had retreated south and were regrouping" "The Taliban had retreated south and were regrouping for a" "The Taliban had retreated south and were regrouping for a last" "The Taliban had retreated south and were regrouping for a last stand" "The Taliban had retreated south and were regrouping for a last stand in were regrouping for a last stand in their spiritual were regrouping for a last stand in their spiritual home were regrouping for a last stand in their spiritual home in Kandahar." "." "During" "During a chaotic" "During a chaotic day" "During a chaotic day of" "During a chaotic day of fighting," "During a chaotic day of fighting, Karzai" "During a chaotic day of fighting, Karzai and" "During a chaotic day of fighting, Karzai and Amerine" "During a chaotic day of fighting, Karzai and Amerine learnt" "During a chaotic day of fighting, Karzai and Amerine learnt that" "Karzai and Amerine learnt that hundreds" "Karzai and Amerine learnt that hundreds of" "Karzai and Amerine learnt that hundreds of Taliban" "Karzai and Amerine learnt that hundreds of Taliban fighters hundreds of Taliban fighters were closing in hundreds of Taliban fighters were closing in on hundreds of Taliban fighters were closing in on them." "hundreds of Taliban fighters were closing in on them." "hundreds of Taliban fighters were closing in on them." "Basically, hundreds of Taliban fighters were closing in on them." "Basically, as closing in on them." "Basically, as all closing in on them." "Basically, as all hell closing in on them." "Basically, as all hell was closing in on them." "Basically, as all hell was breaking loose closing in on them." "Basically, as all hell was breaking loose and we all hell was breaking loose and we were all hell was breaking loose and we were waiting for all hell was breaking loose and we were waiting for the Taliban all hell was breaking loose and we were waiting for the Taliban to" "were waiting for the Taliban to overrun were waiting for the Taliban to overrun our location were waiting for the Taliban to overrun our location and were waiting for the Taliban to overrun our location and kill overrun our location and kill everybody," "overrun our location and kill everybody, Karzai overrun our location and kill everybody, Karzai was overrun our location and kill everybody, Karzai was standing out everybody, Karzai was standing out there everybody, Karzai was standing out there in" "everybody, Karzai was standing out there in the everybody, Karzai was standing out there in the street, everybody, Karzai was standing out there in the street, calmly there in the street, calmly directing there in the street, calmly directing people" "there in the street, calmly directing people and there in the street, calmly directing people and trying there in the street, calmly directing people and trying to directing people and trying to gather directing people and trying to gather up" "directing people and trying to gather up guerrillas directing people and trying to gather up guerrillas to fight with gather up guerrillas to fight with us." "gather up guerrillas to fight with us." "He was gather up guerrillas to fight with us." "He was definitely us." "He was definitely cool under pressure." "We" "We received" "We received a phone" "We received a phone call late" "We received a phone call late at" "We received a phone call late at night." "We received a phone call late at night." "Everybody" "We received a phone call late at night." "Everybody was" "We received a phone call late at night." "Everybody was asleep night." "Everybody was asleep except me night." "Everybody was asleep except me and night." "Everybody was asleep except me and Karzai." "night." "Everybody was asleep except me and Karzai." "After night." "Everybody was asleep except me and Karzai." "After he night." "Everybody was asleep except me and Karzai." "After he hung night." "Everybody was asleep except me and Karzai." "After he hung up me and Karzai." "After he hung up it was me and Karzai." "After he hung up it was like, me and Karzai." "After he hung up it was like, you me and Karzai." "After he hung up it was like, you know: who me and Karzai." "After he hung up it was like, you know: who was me and Karzai." "After he hung up it was like, you know: who was that?" "was like, you know: who was that?" "He says to was like, you know: who was that?" "He says to me:" "was like, you know: who was that?" "He says to me: that was like, you know: who was that?" "He says to me: that was was like, you know: who was that?" "He says to me: that was an was like, you know: who was that?" "He says to me: that was an intermediary says to me: that was an intermediary from Mullah says to me: that was an intermediary from Mullah Omar. says to me: that was an intermediary from Mullah Omar." "I kind of says to me: that was an intermediary from Mullah Omar." "I kind of did from Mullah Omar." "I kind of did a double-take." "from Mullah Omar." "I kind of did a double-take." "I'm from Mullah Omar." "I kind of did a double-take." "I'm like:" "from Mullah Omar." "I kind of did a double-take." "I'm like: what from Mullah Omar." "I kind of did a double-take." "I'm like: what did double-take." "I'm like: what did Mullah Omar double-take." "I'm like: what did Mullah Omar want?" "double-take." "I'm like: what did Mullah Omar want?" "The double-take." "I'm like: what did Mullah Omar want?" "The Taliban leader" "Mullah Omar want?" "The Taliban leader wanted" "Mullah Omar want?" "The Taliban leader wanted to" "Mullah Omar want?" "The Taliban leader wanted to explore the" "Mullah Omar want?" "The Taliban leader wanted to explore the terms" "Mullah Omar want?" "The Taliban leader wanted to explore the terms of wanted to explore the terms of a surrender." "wanted to explore the terms of a surrender." "Provided wanted to explore the terms of a surrender." "Provided the wanted to explore the terms of a surrender." "Provided the Taliban surrender." "Provided the Taliban returned surrender." "Provided the Taliban returned peacefully surrender." "Provided the Taliban returned peacefully to their surrender." "Provided the Taliban returned peacefully to their homes, returned peacefully to their homes, the returned peacefully to their homes, the war returned peacefully to their homes, the war would be returned peacefully to their homes, the war would be over, at" "the war would be over, at least that's the war would be over, at least that's what the war would be over, at least that's what the the war would be over, at least that's what the Taliban" "the war would be over, at least that's what the Taliban say Hamid that's what the Taliban say Hamid Karzai that's what the Taliban say Hamid Karzai promised Mullah that's what the Taliban say Hamid Karzai promised Mullah Omar." "." "Washington" "Washington rejected" "Washington rejected a deal" "Washington rejected a deal with" "Washington rejected a deal with the Taliban." "Washington rejected a deal with the Taliban." "Their" "Washington rejected a deal with the Taliban." "Their Afghan" "Washington rejected a deal with the Taliban." "Their Afghan mission" "Washington rejected a deal with the Taliban." "Their Afghan mission was:" "Taliban." "Their Afghan mission was:" "kill" "Taliban." "Their Afghan mission was:" "kill or" "Taliban." "Their Afghan mission was:" "kill or capture." "Taliban." "Their Afghan mission was:" "kill or capture." "They" "Taliban." "Their Afghan mission was:" "kill or capture." "They made" "Taliban." "Their Afghan mission was:" "kill or capture." "They made no kill or capture." "They made no distinction kill or capture." "They made no distinction between kill or capture." "They made no distinction between the Taliban distinction between the Taliban and Al-Qaeda." "distinction between the Taliban and Al-Qaeda." "Get distinction between the Taliban and Al-Qaeda." "Get your distinction between the Taliban and Al-Qaeda." "Get your BLEEP distinction between the Taliban and Al-Qaeda." "Get your BLEEP head distinction between the Taliban and Al-Qaeda." "Get your BLEEP head down!" "Al-Qaeda." "Get your BLEEP head down!" "REPORTER:" "Al-Qaeda." "Get your BLEEP head down!" "REPORTER:" "Do you" "Al-Qaeda." "Get your BLEEP head down!" "REPORTER:" "Do you think that" "Al-Qaeda." "Get your BLEEP head down!" "REPORTER:" "Do you think that was a" "REPORTER:" "Do you think that was a mistake?" "REPORTER:" "Do you think that was a mistake?" "REPORTER:" "Do you think that was a mistake?" "I do." "REPORTER:" "Do you think that was a mistake?" "I do." "Certainly" "REPORTER:" "Do you think that was a mistake?" "I do." "Certainly below" "REPORTER:" "Do you think that was a mistake?" "I do." "Certainly below the mistake?" "I do." "Certainly below the level mistake?" "I do." "Certainly below the level of Mullah mistake?" "I do." "Certainly below the level of Mullah Omar to have level of Mullah Omar to have considered level of Mullah Omar to have considered a political level of Mullah Omar to have considered a political approach considered a political approach which considered a political approach which would" "considered a political approach which would offer considered a political approach which would offer the considered a political approach which would offer the Taliban which would offer the Taliban possibilities which would offer the Taliban possibilities to which would offer the Taliban possibilities to participate" "possibilities to participate in a political possibilities to participate in a political process, possibilities to participate in a political process, provided possibilities to participate in a political process, provided that political process, provided that they political process, provided that they would cut" "political process, provided that they would cut ties political process, provided that they would cut ties with they would cut ties with international they would cut ties with international terrorism, they would cut ties with international terrorism, I think" "international terrorism, I think history international terrorism, I think history will judge international terrorism, I think history will judge that international terrorism, I think history will judge that a missed history will judge that a missed opportunity." "Because" "Because Washington" "Because Washington wanted to get" "Because Washington wanted to get in" "Because Washington wanted to get in and" "Because Washington wanted to get in and out" "Because Washington wanted to get in and out of Afghanistan" "Because Washington wanted to get in and out of Afghanistan swiftly, and out of Afghanistan swiftly, there and out of Afghanistan swiftly, there were and out of Afghanistan swiftly, there were few and out of Afghanistan swiftly, there were few US" "and out of Afghanistan swiftly, there were few US troops and out of Afghanistan swiftly, there were few US troops to and out of Afghanistan swiftly, there were few US troops to chase there were few US troops to chase the" "there were few US troops to chase the fleeing there were few US troops to chase the fleeing Al-Qaeda there were few US troops to chase the fleeing Al-Qaeda and there were few US troops to chase the fleeing Al-Qaeda and Taliban" "the fleeing Al-Qaeda and Taliban leaders." "the fleeing Al-Qaeda and Taliban leaders." "The the fleeing Al-Qaeda and Taliban leaders." "The hunt the fleeing Al-Qaeda and Taliban leaders." "The hunt for the fleeing Al-Qaeda and Taliban leaders." "The hunt for Osama Bin leaders." "The hunt for Osama Bin Laden leaders." "The hunt for Osama Bin Laden took Special leaders." "The hunt for Osama Bin Laden took Special Forces leaders." "The hunt for Osama Bin Laden took Special Forces to" "Laden took Special Forces to a network" "Laden took Special Forces to a network of" "Laden took Special Forces to a network of caves close" "Laden took Special Forces to a network of caves close to network of caves close to the Pakistan network of caves close to the Pakistan border." "network of caves close to the Pakistan border." "This network of caves close to the Pakistan border." "This top network of caves close to the Pakistan border." "This top now," "Pakistan border." "This top now, the very top" "Pakistan border." "This top now, the very top up" "Pakistan border." "This top now, the very top up there," "Pakistan border." "This top now, the very top up there, that's" "Pakistan border." "This top now, the very top up there, that's supposedly very top up there, that's supposedly where very top up there, that's supposedly where Bin very top up there, that's supposedly where Bin Laden is" "very top up there, that's supposedly where Bin Laden is hanging very top up there, that's supposedly where Bin Laden is hanging out." "very top up there, that's supposedly where Bin Laden is hanging out." "very top up there, that's supposedly where Bin Laden is hanging out." "The where Bin Laden is hanging out." "The Americans where Bin Laden is hanging out." "The Americans had where Bin Laden is hanging out." "The Americans had deployed where Bin Laden is hanging out." "The Americans had deployed less where Bin Laden is hanging out." "The Americans had deployed less than where Bin Laden is hanging out." "The Americans had deployed less than 100" "Americans had deployed less than 100 troops with which" "Americans had deployed less than 100 troops with which to" "Americans had deployed less than 100 troops with which to seal all" "Americans had deployed less than 100 troops with which to seal all routes troops with which to seal all routes out troops with which to seal all routes out of troops with which to seal all routes out of these troops with which to seal all routes out of these vast" "troops with which to seal all routes out of these vast mountains." "troops with which to seal all routes out of these vast mountains." "Bin out of these vast mountains." "Bin Laden out of these vast mountains." "Bin Laden slipped out of these vast mountains." "Bin Laden slipped away, out of these vast mountains." "Bin Laden slipped away, as did out of these vast mountains." "Bin Laden slipped away, as did the" "Laden slipped away, as did the Taliban leaders." "Laden slipped away, as did the Taliban leaders." "We" "Laden slipped away, as did the Taliban leaders." "We took our" "Laden slipped away, as did the Taliban leaders." "We took our eye" "Laden slipped away, as did the Taliban leaders." "We took our eye off" "Taliban leaders." "We took our eye off the" "Taliban leaders." "We took our eye off the ball" "Taliban leaders." "We took our eye off the ball and" "Taliban leaders." "We took our eye off the ball and gave" "Taliban leaders." "We took our eye off the ball and gave Osama Bin Laden the ball and gave Osama Bin Laden and Mullah the ball and gave Osama Bin Laden and Mullah Omar the ball and gave Osama Bin Laden and Mullah Omar a remarkable" "the ball and gave Osama Bin Laden and Mullah Omar a remarkable second and Mullah Omar a remarkable second chance." "and Mullah Omar a remarkable second chance." "In and Mullah Omar a remarkable second chance." "In one of and Mullah Omar a remarkable second chance." "In one of the and Mullah Omar a remarkable second chance." "In one of the most and Mullah Omar a remarkable second chance." "In one of the most brilliant chance." "In one of the most brilliant military chance." "In one of the most brilliant military comebacks chance." "In one of the most brilliant military comebacks of modern chance." "In one of the most brilliant military comebacks of modern times, military comebacks of modern times, the military comebacks of modern times, the Taliban military comebacks of modern times, the Taliban went from the military comebacks of modern times, the Taliban went from the ashes" "military comebacks of modern times, the Taliban went from the ashes of the Taliban went from the ashes of defeat the Taliban went from the ashes of defeat to the Taliban went from the ashes of defeat to being the Taliban went from the ashes of defeat to being on" "the Taliban went from the ashes of defeat to being on the the Taliban went from the ashes of defeat to being on the outskirts the Taliban went from the ashes of defeat to being on the outskirts of defeat to being on the outskirts of Kabul" "defeat to being on the outskirts of Kabul in a matter defeat to being on the outskirts of Kabul in a matter of less defeat to being on the outskirts of Kabul in a matter of less than a" "Kabul in a matter of less than a decade." "Any" "Any hope" "Any hope that the" "Any hope that the Afghan" "Any hope that the Afghan war" "Any hope that the Afghan war would" "Any hope that the Afghan war would be" "Any hope that the Afghan war would be brief" "Any hope that the Afghan war would be brief vanished" "Any hope that the Afghan war would be brief vanished when" "Any hope that the Afghan war would be brief vanished when Bin Laden" "Any hope that the Afghan war would be brief vanished when Bin Laden and be brief vanished when Bin Laden and Mullah be brief vanished when Bin Laden and Mullah Omar be brief vanished when Bin Laden and Mullah Omar slipped" "be brief vanished when Bin Laden and Mullah Omar slipped across the" "Mullah Omar slipped across the border" "Mullah Omar slipped across the border into" "Mullah Omar slipped across the border into Pakistan's" "Mullah Omar slipped across the border into Pakistan's Pashtun border into Pakistan's Pashtun tribal border into Pakistan's Pashtun tribal lands." "border into Pakistan's Pashtun tribal lands." "Greeting border into Pakistan's Pashtun tribal lands." "Greeting the border into Pakistan's Pashtun tribal lands." "Greeting the fugitives tribal lands." "Greeting the fugitives were tribal lands." "Greeting the fugitives were not only friends tribal lands." "Greeting the fugitives were not only friends and tribal lands." "Greeting the fugitives were not only friends and family, were not only friends and family, but were not only friends and family, but also were not only friends and family, but also elements were not only friends and family, but also elements of" "were not only friends and family, but also elements of Pakistan's but also elements of Pakistan's military but also elements of Pakistan's military intelligence but also elements of Pakistan's military intelligence sympathetic but also elements of Pakistan's military intelligence sympathetic to" "military intelligence sympathetic to Al-Qaeda military intelligence sympathetic to Al-Qaeda and who military intelligence sympathetic to Al-Qaeda and who had military intelligence sympathetic to Al-Qaeda and who had also military intelligence sympathetic to Al-Qaeda and who had also helped military intelligence sympathetic to Al-Qaeda and who had also helped the" "Al-Qaeda and who had also helped the Taliban" "Al-Qaeda and who had also helped the Taliban win" "Al-Qaeda and who had also helped the Taliban win the" "Al-Qaeda and who had also helped the Taliban win the Afghan civil" "Al-Qaeda and who had also helped the Taliban win the Afghan civil war" "Al-Qaeda and who had also helped the Taliban win the Afghan civil war in" "Taliban win the Afghan civil war in the 1990s." "Taliban win the Afghan civil war in the 1990s." "They" "Taliban win the Afghan civil war in the 1990s." "They wanted" "Taliban win the Afghan civil war in the 1990s." "They wanted the the 1990s." "They wanted the government the 1990s." "They wanted the government in the 1990s." "They wanted the government in Kabul the 1990s." "They wanted the government in Kabul that the 1990s." "They wanted the government in Kabul that was under government in Kabul that was under their government in Kabul that was under their influence government in Kabul that was under their influence and control government in Kabul that was under their influence and control and" "their influence and control and which their influence and control and which was their influence and control and which was not their influence and control and which was not under their influence and control and which was not under the influence" "their influence and control and which was not under the influence of which was not under the influence of India." "They which was not under the influence of India." "They had which was not under the influence of India." "They had given which was not under the influence of India." "They had given them" "India." "They had given them their first" "India." "They had given them their first batch" "India." "They had given them their first batch of" "India." "They had given them their first batch of serious" "India." "They had given them their first batch of serious weaponry, first batch of serious weaponry, ammunition." "first batch of serious weaponry, ammunition." "Money." "first batch of serious weaponry, ammunition." "Money." "There first batch of serious weaponry, ammunition." "Money." "There were ammunition." "Money." "There were Pakistani ammunition." "Money." "There were Pakistani military officers who ammunition." "Money." "There were Pakistani military officers who were" "Pakistani military officers who were working" "Pakistani military officers who were working and" "Pakistani military officers who were working and serving" "Pakistani military officers who were working and serving with working and serving with the Taliban." "working and serving with the Taliban." "After working and serving with the Taliban." "After 9/11, working and serving with the Taliban." "After 9/11, Pakistan's" "Taliban." "After 9/11, Pakistan's President" "Taliban." "After 9/11, Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf" "Taliban." "After 9/11, Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf bowed" "Taliban." "After 9/11, Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf bowed to" "President Pervez Musharraf bowed to pressure and" "President Pervez Musharraf bowed to pressure and promised" "President Pervez Musharraf bowed to pressure and promised to" "President Pervez Musharraf bowed to pressure and promised to cut" "President Pervez Musharraf bowed to pressure and promised to cut his pressure and promised to cut his government's pressure and promised to cut his government's tie to pressure and promised to cut his government's tie to say the" "pressure and promised to cut his government's tie to say the Taliban." "government's tie to say the Taliban." " government's tie to say the Taliban." " ties government's tie to say the Taliban." " ties to government's tie to say the Taliban." " ties to the Taliban." "government's tie to say the Taliban." " ties to the Taliban." "government's tie to say the Taliban." " ties to the Taliban." "government's tie to say the Taliban." " ties to the Taliban." "The government's tie to say the Taliban." " ties to the Taliban." "The Bush" " ties to the Taliban." "The Bush administration" " ties to the Taliban." "The Bush administration was" " ties to the Taliban." "The Bush administration was ecstatic" " ties to the Taliban." "The Bush administration was ecstatic when administration was ecstatic when Musharraf administration was ecstatic when Musharraf agreed administration was ecstatic when Musharraf agreed to administration was ecstatic when Musharraf agreed to switch sides" "Musharraf agreed to switch sides after" "Musharraf agreed to switch sides after September 11th." "Musharraf agreed to switch sides after September 11th." "President" "Musharraf agreed to switch sides after September 11th." "President Bush after September 11th." "President Bush is a man who after September 11th." "President Bush is a man who believes after September 11th." "President Bush is a man who believes very after September 11th." "President Bush is a man who believes very strongly is a man who believes very strongly in is a man who believes very strongly in personal is a man who believes very strongly in personal relationships is a man who believes very strongly in personal relationships and he" "in personal relationships and he believed in personal relationships and he believed that in personal relationships and he believed that he in personal relationships and he believed that he and General believed that he and General Musharraf believed that he and General Musharraf had" "believed that he and General Musharraf had developed" "Musharraf had developed a strong bond" "Musharraf had developed a strong bond between them." "Musharraf had developed a strong bond between them." "Many" "Musharraf had developed a strong bond between them." "Many Al-Qaeda bond between them." "Many Al-Qaeda members bond between them." "Many Al-Qaeda members were bond between them." "Many Al-Qaeda members were arrested." "bond between them." "Many Al-Qaeda members were arrested." "Not bond between them." "Many Al-Qaeda members were arrested." "Not so, bond between them." "Many Al-Qaeda members were arrested." "Not so, the members were arrested." "Not so, the Taliban members were arrested." "Not so, the Taliban high members were arrested." "Not so, the Taliban high command." "Mullah members were arrested." "Not so, the Taliban high command." "Mullah Omar" "Taliban high command." "Mullah Omar and" "Taliban high command." "Mullah Omar and his" "Taliban high command." "Mullah Omar and his fellow" "Taliban high command." "Mullah Omar and his fellow fugitive" "Taliban high command." "Mullah Omar and his fellow fugitive leaders were and his fellow fugitive leaders were reported and his fellow fugitive leaders were reported to be living and his fellow fugitive leaders were reported to be living openly and his fellow fugitive leaders were reported to be living openly in" "and his fellow fugitive leaders were reported to be living openly in the reported to be living openly in the border reported to be living openly in the border city of reported to be living openly in the border city of Quetta." "reported to be living openly in the border city of Quetta." "Right reported to be living openly in the border city of Quetta." "Right on reported to be living openly in the border city of Quetta." "Right on the border city of Quetta." "Right on the outskirts border city of Quetta." "Right on the outskirts of border city of Quetta." "Right on the outskirts of Quetta there border city of Quetta." "Right on the outskirts of Quetta there is the outskirts of Quetta there is the biggest outskirts of Quetta there is the biggest refugee outskirts of Quetta there is the biggest refugee camp, outskirts of Quetta there is the biggest refugee camp, about" "outskirts of Quetta there is the biggest refugee camp, about 100,000 biggest refugee camp, about 100,000 people." "biggest refugee camp, about 100,000 people." "Now, biggest refugee camp, about 100,000 people." "Now, this is biggest refugee camp, about 100,000 people." "Now, this is the biggest refugee camp, about 100,000 people." "Now, this is the centre biggest refugee camp, about 100,000 people." "Now, this is the centre of people." "Now, this is the centre of everything people." "Now, this is the centre of everything and people." "Now, this is the centre of everything and control people." "Now, this is the centre of everything and control of - people." "Now, this is the centre of everything and control of" " The everything and control of" " The centre of the Taliban?" "everything and control of" " The centre of the Taliban?" "everything and control of" " The centre of the Taliban?" "everything and control of" " The centre of the Taliban?" "The centre centre of the Taliban?" "The centre of anyone centre of the Taliban?" "The centre of anyone coming centre of the Taliban?" "The centre of anyone coming and centre of the Taliban?" "The centre of anyone coming and going, of anyone coming and going, any terrorist of anyone coming and going, any terrorist coming and of anyone coming and going, any terrorist coming and going." "of anyone coming and going, any terrorist coming and going." "of anyone coming and going, any terrorist coming and going." "Any terrorist coming and going." "Any jihadi group?" "terrorist coming and going." "Any jihadi group?" "terrorist coming and going." "Any jihadi group?" "terrorist coming and going." "Any jihadi group?" "Yes, terrorist coming and going." "Any jihadi group?" "Yes, anyone jihadi group?" "Yes, anyone could come jihadi group?" "Yes, anyone could come there and go." "jihadi group?" "Yes, anyone could come there and go." "Can jihadi group?" "Yes, anyone could come there and go." "Can you come there and go." "Can you differentiate come there and go." "Can you differentiate between come there and go." "Can you differentiate between a Taliban come there and go." "Can you differentiate between a Taliban or a differentiate between a Taliban or a refugee?" "differentiate between a Taliban or a refugee?" "No, sir, differentiate between a Taliban or a refugee?" "No, sir, you differentiate between a Taliban or a refugee?" "No, sir, you cannot." "They refugee?" "No, sir, you cannot." "They are the refugee?" "No, sir, you cannot." "They are the same, refugee?" "No, sir, you cannot." "They are the same, same refugee?" "No, sir, you cannot." "They are the same, same beards, refugee?" "No, sir, you cannot." "They are the same, same beards, carrying are the same, same beards, carrying weapons." "are the same, same beards, carrying weapons." "It's the are the same, same beards, carrying weapons." "It's the same people." "are the same, same beards, carrying weapons." "It's the same people." "In weapons." "It's the same people." "In Kabul, weapons." "It's the same people." "In Kabul, the weapons." "It's the same people." "In Kabul, the Afghan Intelligence" "Kabul, the Afghan Intelligence Service" "Kabul, the Afghan Intelligence Service did" "Kabul, the Afghan Intelligence Service did not" "Kabul, the Afghan Intelligence Service did not accept there" "Kabul, the Afghan Intelligence Service did not accept there was" "Kabul, the Afghan Intelligence Service did not accept there was an" "Service did not accept there was an innocent" "Service did not accept there was an innocent explanation" "Service did not accept there was an innocent explanation to Mullah innocent explanation to Mullah Omar's innocent explanation to Mullah Omar's presence." "innocent explanation to Mullah Omar's presence." "From innocent explanation to Mullah Omar's presence." "From the innocent explanation to Mullah Omar's presence." "From the outset," "Omar's presence." "From the outset, there" "Omar's presence." "From the outset, there was" "Omar's presence." "From the outset, there was deep" "Omar's presence." "From the outset, there was deep distrust" "Omar's presence." "From the outset, there was deep distrust of there was deep distrust of Pakistan's there was deep distrust of Pakistan's motives." "there was deep distrust of Pakistan's motives." "The there was deep distrust of Pakistan's motives." "The Taliban" "Pakistan's motives." "The Taliban leadership" "Pakistan's motives." "The Taliban leadership were" "Pakistan's motives." "The Taliban leadership were hibernating" "Pakistan's motives." "The Taliban leadership were hibernating in leadership were hibernating in Pakistan." "leadership were hibernating in Pakistan." "They were not leadership were hibernating in Pakistan." "They were not defeated leadership were hibernating in Pakistan." "They were not defeated or" "Pakistan." "They were not defeated or killed." "Pakistan." "They were not defeated or killed." "The" "Pakistan." "They were not defeated or killed." "The Americans" "Pakistan." "They were not defeated or killed." "The Americans received killed." "The Americans received verbal killed." "The Americans received verbal assurances killed." "The Americans received verbal assurances from killed." "The Americans received verbal assurances from President verbal assurances from President Musharraf verbal assurances from President Musharraf that verbal assurances from President Musharraf that Pakistan will" "Musharraf that Pakistan will co-operate," "Musharraf that Pakistan will co-operate, but" "Musharraf that Pakistan will co-operate, but they" "Musharraf that Pakistan will co-operate, but they kept" "Musharraf that Pakistan will co-operate, but they kept the co-operate, but they kept the Taliban co-operate, but they kept the Taliban intact." "co-operate, but they kept the Taliban intact." "I mean" "Taliban intact." "I mean the leadership of" "Taliban intact." "I mean the leadership of the" "Taliban intact." "I mean the leadership of the Taliban." "Taliban intact." "I mean the leadership of the Taliban." "I learned leadership of the Taliban." "I learned over leadership of the Taliban." "I learned over time leadership of the Taliban." "I learned over time in leadership of the Taliban." "I learned over time in dealing leadership of the Taliban." "I learned over time in dealing with President over time in dealing with President Musharraf over time in dealing with President Musharraf that he would over time in dealing with President Musharraf that he would literally" "Musharraf that he would literally tell" "Musharraf that he would literally tell me the" "Musharraf that he would literally tell me the truth." "Musharraf that he would literally tell me the truth." "I had an" "Musharraf that he would literally tell me the truth." "I had an occasion tell me the truth." "I had an occasion when I tell me the truth." "I had an occasion when I asked tell me the truth." "I had an occasion when I asked him tell me the truth." "I had an occasion when I asked him to tell me the truth." "I had an occasion when I asked him to dismantle when I asked him to dismantle a certain when I asked him to dismantle a certain terrorist when I asked him to dismantle a certain terrorist camp that when I asked him to dismantle a certain terrorist camp that was" "certain terrorist camp that was directed certain terrorist camp that was directed towards certain terrorist camp that was directed towards Kashmir certain terrorist camp that was directed towards Kashmir and after directed towards Kashmir and after we directed towards Kashmir and after we wrangled" "directed towards Kashmir and after we wrangled a bit directed towards Kashmir and after we wrangled a bit about directed towards Kashmir and after we wrangled a bit about it, directed towards Kashmir and after we wrangled a bit about it, he" "we wrangled a bit about it, he agreed." "we wrangled a bit about it, he agreed." "And we wrangled a bit about it, he agreed." "And he we wrangled a bit about it, he agreed." "And he did we wrangled a bit about it, he agreed." "And he did dismantle it?" "we wrangled a bit about it, he agreed." "And he did dismantle it?" "we wrangled a bit about it, he agreed." "And he did dismantle it?" "agreed." "And he did dismantle it?" "He did agreed." "And he did dismantle it?" "He did dismantle agreed." "And he did dismantle it?" "He did dismantle it." "agreed." "And he did dismantle it?" "He did dismantle it." "However, agreed." "And he did dismantle it?" "He did dismantle it." "However, he" "He did dismantle it." "However, he remantled" "He did dismantle it." "However, he remantled it" "He did dismantle it." "However, he remantled it a couple" "He did dismantle it." "However, he remantled it a couple of" "He did dismantle it." "However, he remantled it a couple of kilometres remantled it a couple of kilometres away so remantled it a couple of kilometres away so when remantled it a couple of kilometres away so when I went remantled it a couple of kilometres away so when I went back to" "remantled it a couple of kilometres away so when I went back to him I away so when I went back to him I said:" "away so when I went back to him I said: now, away so when I went back to him I said: now, this away so when I went back to him I said: now, this time I" "away so when I went back to him I said: now, this time I have to said: now, this time I have to ask you said: now, this time I have to ask you to" "said: now, this time I have to ask you to dismantle said: now, this time I have to ask you to dismantle this terrorist you to dismantle this terrorist camp, you to dismantle this terrorist camp, so" "you to dismantle this terrorist camp, so let's you to dismantle this terrorist camp, so let's say you you to dismantle this terrorist camp, so let's say you have 12 you to dismantle this terrorist camp, so let's say you have 12 in" "camp, so let's say you have 12 in total, camp, so let's say you have 12 in total, tomorrow there will camp, so let's say you have 12 in total, tomorrow there will be" "camp, so let's say you have 12 in total, tomorrow there will be 11, total, tomorrow there will be 11, and every total, tomorrow there will be 11, and every day total, tomorrow there will be 11, and every day after this there will" "and every day after this there will be and every day after this there will be 11." "and every day after this there will be 11. "OK, and every day after this there will be 11. "OK, I agree", and every day after this there will be 11. "OK, I agree", and" "and every day after this there will be 11. "OK, I agree", and he did and every day after this there will be 11. "OK, I agree", and he did it." "be 11. "OK, I agree", and he did it." "Terrorists be 11. "OK, I agree", and he did it." "Terrorists who be 11. "OK, I agree", and he did it." "Terrorists who once be 11. "OK, I agree", and he did it." "Terrorists who once occupied" "Terrorists who once occupied Afghanistan" "Terrorists who once occupied Afghanistan now" "Terrorists who once occupied Afghanistan now occupy" "Terrorists who once occupied Afghanistan now occupy cells" "Terrorists who once occupied Afghanistan now occupy cells at" "Afghanistan now occupy cells at Guantanamo." "Afghanistan now occupy cells at Guantanamo." "APPLAUSE" "Afghanistan now occupy cells at Guantanamo." "APPLAUSE" "Afghanistan now occupy cells at Guantanamo." "APPLAUSE." "Four" "Guantanamo." "APPLAUSE." "Four months after" "Guantanamo." "APPLAUSE." "Four months after 9/11," "Guantanamo." "APPLAUSE." "Four months after 9/11, there" "Guantanamo." "APPLAUSE." "Four months after 9/11, there was" "Guantanamo." "APPLAUSE." "Four months after 9/11, there was a feeling" "Guantanamo." "APPLAUSE." "Four months after 9/11, there was a feeling in after 9/11, there was a feeling in Washington after 9/11, there was a feeling in Washington of:" "after 9/11, there was a feeling in Washington of: mission after 9/11, there was a feeling in Washington of: mission accomplished." "Liberated" "Liberated from" "Liberated from the" "Liberated from the austerity" "Liberated from the austerity of" "Liberated from the austerity of the" "Liberated from the austerity of the Taliban" "Liberated from the austerity of the Taliban regime," "Liberated from the austerity of the Taliban regime, Afghans" "Liberated from the austerity of the Taliban regime, Afghans celebrated" "Taliban regime, Afghans celebrated the" "Taliban regime, Afghans celebrated the birth" "Taliban regime, Afghans celebrated the birth of" "Taliban regime, Afghans celebrated the birth of new" "Taliban regime, Afghans celebrated the birth of new freedoms," "Taliban regime, Afghans celebrated the birth of new freedoms, a free the birth of new freedoms, a free press, the birth of new freedoms, a free press, a role the birth of new freedoms, a free press, a role for" "the birth of new freedoms, a free press, a role for women the birth of new freedoms, a free press, a role for women and press, a role for women and eventually press, a role for women and eventually the" "press, a role for women and eventually the first press, a role for women and eventually the first democratically eventually the first democratically elected eventually the first democratically elected head eventually the first democratically elected head of eventually the first democratically elected head of state;" "eventually the first democratically elected head of state; but the elected head of state; but the Americans had elected head of state; but the Americans had made elected head of state; but the Americans had made it" "elected head of state; but the Americans had made it clear elected head of state; but the Americans had made it clear from the" "Americans had made it clear from the start that they" "Americans had made it clear from the start that they weren't" "Americans had made it clear from the start that they weren't there" "Americans had made it clear from the start that they weren't there to start that they weren't there to rebuild start that they weren't there to rebuild Afghanistan." "start that they weren't there to rebuild Afghanistan." "That start that they weren't there to rebuild Afghanistan." "That was start that they weren't there to rebuild Afghanistan." "That was a job rebuild Afghanistan." "That was a job for rebuild Afghanistan." "That was a job for Hamid rebuild Afghanistan." "That was a job for Hamid Karzai's rebuild Afghanistan." "That was a job for Hamid Karzai's new rebuild Afghanistan." "That was a job for Hamid Karzai's new government." "for Hamid Karzai's new government." "The for Hamid Karzai's new government." "The US for Hamid Karzai's new government." "The US insisted for Hamid Karzai's new government." "The US insisted that for Hamid Karzai's new government." "The US insisted that public for Hamid Karzai's new government." "The US insisted that public safety" "The US insisted that public safety in" "The US insisted that public safety in Afghanistan" "The US insisted that public safety in Afghanistan should" "The US insisted that public safety in Afghanistan should be in Afghanistan should be a responsibility in Afghanistan should be a responsibility for in Afghanistan should be a responsibility for the in Afghanistan should be a responsibility for the Afghans," "responsibility for the Afghans, despite responsibility for the Afghans, despite the responsibility for the Afghans, despite the fact responsibility for the Afghans, despite the fact that at responsibility for the Afghans, despite the fact that at this point" "despite the fact that at this point the country despite the fact that at this point the country had no despite the fact that at this point the country had no army despite the fact that at this point the country had no army and" "despite the fact that at this point the country had no army and no the country had no army and no police force." "the country had no army and no police force." "The the country had no army and no police force." "The US the country had no army and no police force." "The US Defence police force." "The US Defence Secretary, police force." "The US Defence Secretary, Donald police force." "The US Defence Secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, police force." "The US Defence Secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, said it" "Secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, said it would" "Secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, said it would be a" "Secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, said it would be a fool's" "Secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, said it would be a fool's errand to get more would be a fool's errand to get more involved would be a fool's errand to get more involved in a would be a fool's errand to get more involved in a tribal" "would be a fool's errand to get more involved in a tribal society involved in a tribal society as complex involved in a tribal society as complex as Afghanistan." "involved in a tribal society as complex as Afghanistan." "Rumsfeld complex as Afghanistan." "Rumsfeld said US complex as Afghanistan." "Rumsfeld said US forces complex as Afghanistan." "Rumsfeld said US forces would complex as Afghanistan." "Rumsfeld said US forces would use complex as Afghanistan." "Rumsfeld said US forces would use their said US forces would use their influence said US forces would use their influence to said US forces would use their influence to prevent influence to prevent outright fighting influence to prevent outright fighting but" "influence to prevent outright fighting but that influence to prevent outright fighting but that nobody influence to prevent outright fighting but that nobody would influence to prevent outright fighting but that nobody would do fighting but that nobody would do peacekeeping" "fighting but that nobody would do peacekeeping or fighting but that nobody would do peacekeeping or public peacekeeping or public security outside peacekeeping or public security outside Kabul." "peacekeeping or public security outside Kabul." "Wouldn't peacekeeping or public security outside Kabul." "Wouldn't get peacekeeping or public security outside Kabul." "Wouldn't get that peacekeeping or public security outside Kabul." "Wouldn't get that in outside Kabul." "Wouldn't get that in Colchester, outside Kabul." "Wouldn't get that in Colchester, would outside Kabul." "Wouldn't get that in Colchester, would you?" "outside Kabul." "Wouldn't get that in Colchester, would you?" "Britain" "Colchester, would you?" "Britain led the" "Colchester, would you?" "Britain led the first" "Colchester, would you?" "Britain led the first group of" "Colchester, would you?" "Britain led the first group of international the first group of international forces to the first group of international forces to assist the first group of international forces to assist with the first group of international forces to assist with the security" "forces to assist with the security of Kabul." "forces to assist with the security of Kabul." "That forces to assist with the security of Kabul." "That left forces to assist with the security of Kabul." "That left 80% forces to assist with the security of Kabul." "That left 80% of forces to assist with the security of Kabul." "That left 80% of the of Kabul." "That left 80% of the country, of Kabul." "That left 80% of the country, more of Kabul." "That left 80% of the country, more than twice of Kabul." "That left 80% of the country, more than twice the size of country, more than twice the size of the country, more than twice the size of the UK, country, more than twice the size of the UK, unsecured." "Who" "Who did" "Who did Secretary" "Who did Secretary Rumsfeld" "Who did Secretary Rumsfeld think" "Who did Secretary Rumsfeld think then" "Who did Secretary Rumsfeld think then would keep" "Who did Secretary Rumsfeld think then would keep law" "Who did Secretary Rumsfeld think then would keep law and" "Who did Secretary Rumsfeld think then would keep law and order?" "Who did Secretary Rumsfeld think then would keep law and order?" "then would keep law and order?" "My view then would keep law and order?" "My view is then would keep law and order?" "My view is he did not then would keep law and order?" "My view is he did not care." "then would keep law and order?" "My view is he did not care." "then would keep law and order?" "My view is he did not care." "How did then would keep law and order?" "My view is he did not care." "How did he view is he did not care." "How did he imagine view is he did not care." "How did he imagine that stability view is he did not care." "How did he imagine that stability was view is he did not care." "How did he imagine that stability was going imagine that stability was going to arise imagine that stability was going to arise out imagine that stability was going to arise out of imagine that stability was going to arise out of a " "imagine that stability was going to arise out of a" " I don't think he arise out of a" " I don't think he cared arise out of a" " I don't think he cared about arise out of a" " I don't think he cared about stability." "arise out of a" " I don't think he cared about stability." "He was cared about stability." "He was intent, cared about stability." "He was intent, give him cared about stability." "He was intent, give him his cared about stability." "He was intent, give him his credit, cared about stability." "He was intent, give him his credit, on intent, give him his credit, on dismantling intent, give him his credit, on dismantling and intent, give him his credit, on dismantling and destroying intent, give him his credit, on dismantling and destroying Al-Qaeda." "dismantling and destroying Al-Qaeda." "I don't dismantling and destroying Al-Qaeda." "I don't think he was dismantling and destroying Al-Qaeda." "I don't think he was intent dismantling and destroying Al-Qaeda." "I don't think he was intent at" "I don't think he was intent at all on" "I don't think he was intent at all on what the" "I don't think he was intent at all on what the Afghan" "I don't think he was intent at all on what the Afghan of" "I don't think he was intent at all on what the Afghan of the" "I don't think he was intent at all on what the Afghan of the future - on what the Afghan of the future - the Afghanistan on what the Afghan of the future - the Afghanistan of the on what the Afghan of the future - the Afghanistan of the future" "on what the Afghan of the future - the Afghanistan of the future would the Afghanistan of the future would look the Afghanistan of the future would look like." "the Afghanistan of the future would look like." "the Afghanistan of the future would look like." "It's the Afghanistan of the future would look like." "It's generally the Afghanistan of the future would look like." "It's generally right not look like." "It's generally right not to look like." "It's generally right not to put ourselves look like." "It's generally right not to put ourselves into the look like." "It's generally right not to put ourselves into the business to put ourselves into the business of to put ourselves into the business of trying to to put ourselves into the business of trying to govern to put ourselves into the business of trying to govern a very foreign" "of trying to govern a very foreign country of trying to govern a very foreign country for of trying to govern a very foreign country for which we of trying to govern a very foreign country for which we had of trying to govern a very foreign country for which we had neither the" "country for which we had neither the cultural country for which we had neither the cultural nor country for which we had neither the cultural nor the linguistic cultural nor the linguistic capacity to do cultural nor the linguistic capacity to do it" "cultural nor the linguistic capacity to do it and cultural nor the linguistic capacity to do it and which would cultural nor the linguistic capacity to do it and which would have to do it and which would have dragged to do it and which would have dragged us" "to do it and which would have dragged us into to do it and which would have dragged us into Afghan to do it and which would have dragged us into Afghan quarrels to do it and which would have dragged us into Afghan quarrels and" "dragged us into Afghan quarrels and pretty soon we dragged us into Afghan quarrels and pretty soon we would dragged us into Afghan quarrels and pretty soon we would be the dragged us into Afghan quarrels and pretty soon we would be the problem," "pretty soon we would be the problem, not pretty soon we would be the problem, not as pretty soon we would be the problem, not as an occupying pretty soon we would be the problem, not as an occupying power," "pretty soon we would be the problem, not as an occupying power, but pretty soon we would be the problem, not as an occupying power, but it's not as an occupying power, but it's beyond" "not as an occupying power, but it's beyond our not as an occupying power, but it's beyond our competence." "On the other beyond our competence." "On the other hand, beyond our competence." "On the other hand, I think we beyond our competence." "On the other hand, I think we should have hand, I think we should have done more hand, I think we should have done more to hand, I think we should have done more to build hand, I think we should have done more to build up the" "hand, I think we should have done more to build up the Afghan more to build up the Afghan capability more to build up the Afghan capability to provide more to build up the Afghan capability to provide for more to build up the Afghan capability to provide for their own" "capability to provide for their own security." "capability to provide for their own security." "Security capability to provide for their own security." "Security forces." "capability to provide for their own security." "Security forces." "There security." "Security forces." "There is one security." "Security forces." "There is one thing security." "Security forces." "There is one thing I wish we security." "Security forces." "There is one thing I wish we had security." "Security forces." "There is one thing I wish we had done, is one thing I wish we had done, it was is one thing I wish we had done, it was to use is one thing I wish we had done, it was to use the" "is one thing I wish we had done, it was to use the time is one thing I wish we had done, it was to use the time when things is one thing I wish we had done, it was to use the time when things were" "was to use the time when things were relatively was to use the time when things were relatively quiet." "was to use the time when things were relatively quiet." "Karzai was to use the time when things were relatively quiet." "Karzai had was to use the time when things were relatively quiet." "Karzai had no relatively quiet." "Karzai had no militia relatively quiet." "Karzai had no militia of relatively quiet." "Karzai had no militia of his own." "relatively quiet." "Karzai had no militia of his own." "His relatively quiet." "Karzai had no militia of his own." "His interim militia of his own." "His interim government, militia of his own." "His interim government, brokered militia of his own." "His interim government, brokered by militia of his own." "His interim government, brokered by the militia of his own." "His interim government, brokered by the UN, government, brokered by the UN, included government, brokered by the UN, government, brokered by the UN, included government, brokered by the UN, government, brokered by the UN, included" "government, brokered by the UN, included warlords, government, brokered by the UN, included warlords, the government, brokered by the UN, included warlords, the same government, brokered by the UN, included warlords, the same people" "included warlords, the same people whose included warlords, the same people whose corruption included warlords, the same people whose corruption had given included warlords, the same people whose corruption had given rise to whose corruption had given rise to the" "whose corruption had given rise to the Taliban." "whose corruption had given rise to the Taliban." "Their whose corruption had given rise to the Taliban." "Their militias whose corruption had given rise to the Taliban." "Their militias filled the Taliban." "Their militias filled the the Taliban." "Their militias filled the power the Taliban." "Their militias filled the power vacuum the Taliban." "Their militias filled the power vacuum outside the Taliban." "Their militias filled the power vacuum outside Kabul." "the Taliban." "Their militias filled the power vacuum outside Kabul." "the power vacuum outside Kabul." "People forget the power vacuum outside Kabul." "People forget that the power vacuum outside Kabul." "People forget that he the power vacuum outside Kabul." "People forget that he didn't" "People forget that he didn't create this" "People forget that he didn't create this administration." "People forget that he didn't create this administration." "We" "People forget that he didn't create this administration." "We did." "People forget that he didn't create this administration." "We did." "We, this administration." "We did." "We, the international this administration." "We did." "We, the international community, this administration." "We did." "We, the international community, including international community, including the United international community, including the United Nations, international community, including the United Nations, including the United Nations, including myself, we the United Nations, including myself, we formed" "the United Nations, including myself, we formed this the United Nations, including myself, we formed this government myself, we formed this government and myself, we formed this government and we myself, we formed this government and we told" "myself, we formed this government and we told him:" "myself, we formed this government and we told him: please come myself, we formed this government and we told him: please come to and we told him: please come to Kabul and and we told him: please come to Kabul and lead" "and we told him: please come to Kabul and lead this and we told him: please come to Kabul and lead this group." "and we told him: please come to Kabul and lead this group." "We" "Kabul and lead this group." "We allied ourselves" "Kabul and lead this group." "We allied ourselves with" "Kabul and lead this group." "We allied ourselves with former" "Kabul and lead this group." "We allied ourselves with former warlords" "Kabul and lead this group." "We allied ourselves with former warlords and ourselves with former warlords and our ourselves with former warlords and our objective ourselves with former warlords and our objective was ourselves with former warlords and our objective was to ourselves with former warlords and our objective was to destroy" "our objective was to destroy Al-Qaeda our objective was to destroy Al-Qaeda and our objective was to destroy Al-Qaeda and we our objective was to destroy Al-Qaeda and we very our objective was to destroy Al-Qaeda and we very much our objective was to destroy Al-Qaeda and we very much then" "Al-Qaeda and we very much then created" "Al-Qaeda and we very much then created and" "Al-Qaeda and we very much then created and empowered" "Al-Qaeda and we very much then created and empowered a group of created and empowered a group of political created and empowered a group of political actors created and empowered a group of political actors not created and empowered a group of political actors not accountable" "created and empowered a group of political actors not accountable and political actors not accountable and also political actors not accountable and also people who political actors not accountable and also people who as political actors not accountable and also people who as they" "political actors not accountable and also people who as they grew political actors not accountable and also people who as they grew in also people who as they grew in power also people who as they grew in power actually also people who as they grew in power actually caused" "also people who as they grew in power actually caused more power actually caused more instability." "In" "In all" "In all this," "In all this, the" "In all this, the Taliban" "In all this, the Taliban who" "In all this, the Taliban who just" "In all this, the Taliban who just months" "In all this, the Taliban who just months earlier" "In all this, the Taliban who just months earlier had been" "In all this, the Taliban who just months earlier had been the months earlier had been the government months earlier had been the government of months earlier had been the government of Afghanistan seemed to government of Afghanistan seemed to have just" "government of Afghanistan seemed to have just vanished. government of Afghanistan seemed to have just vanished." "I was government of Afghanistan seemed to have just vanished." "I was one of have just vanished." "I was one of the people have just vanished." "I was one of the people who have just vanished." "I was one of the people who was have just vanished." "I was one of the people who was saying:" "have just vanished." "I was one of the people who was saying:" "look, have just vanished." "I was one of the people who was saying:" "look, where people who was saying:" "look, where are people who was saying:" "look, where are the Taliban?" "people who was saying:" "look, where are the Taliban?" "You people who was saying:" "look, where are the Taliban?" "You know, people who was saying:" "look, where are the Taliban?" "You know, these are the Taliban?" "You know, these people are the Taliban?" "You know, these people controlled are the Taliban?" "You know, these people controlled 90% are the Taliban?" "You know, these people controlled 90% of are the Taliban?" "You know, these people controlled 90% of the people controlled 90% of the country a people controlled 90% of the country a few weeks people controlled 90% of the country a few weeks ago." "people controlled 90% of the country a few weeks ago." "REPORTER:" "people controlled 90% of the country a few weeks ago." "REPORTER:" "What a few weeks ago." "REPORTER:" "What was the response?" "a few weeks ago." "REPORTER:" "What was the response?" "a few weeks ago." "REPORTER:" "What was the response?" "The a few weeks ago." "REPORTER:" "What was the response?" "The response a few weeks ago." "REPORTER:" "What was the response?" "The response was:" "the response?" "The response was:" "it's the response?" "The response was:" "it's useless." "the response?" "The response was:" "it's useless." "They have the response?" "The response was:" "it's useless." "They have been it's useless." "They have been defeated." "it's useless." "They have been defeated." "They it's useless." "They have been defeated." "They have it's useless." "They have been defeated." "They have gone, it's useless." "They have been defeated." "They have gone, finished, defeated." "They have gone, finished, they will never defeated." "They have gone, finished, they will never come back." "defeated." "They have gone, finished, they will never come back." "defeated." "They have gone, finished, they will never come back." "Within they will never come back." "Within six months of they will never come back." "Within six months of the they will never come back." "Within six months of the invasion, they will never come back." "Within six months of the invasion, Britain six months of the invasion, Britain and America six months of the invasion, Britain and America began six months of the invasion, Britain and America began to six months of the invasion, Britain and America began to avert" "six months of the invasion, Britain and America began to avert their and America began to avert their gaze from and America began to avert their gaze from Afghanistan, and America began to avert their gaze from Afghanistan, pre-occupied" "gaze from Afghanistan, pre-occupied by gaze from Afghanistan, pre-occupied by another matter." "gaze from Afghanistan, pre-occupied by another matter." "Preparations gaze from Afghanistan, pre-occupied by another matter." "Preparations for by another matter." "Preparations for the war by another matter." "Preparations for the war in by another matter." "Preparations for the war in Iraq." "The" "The biggest" "The biggest single" "The biggest single mistake," "The biggest single mistake, just one," "The biggest single mistake, just one, probably Iraq." "We" "We didn't" "We didn't know" "We didn't know then," "We didn't know then, you" "We didn't know then, you know," "We didn't know then, you know, the" "We didn't know then, you know, the most" "We didn't know then, you know, the most important" "We didn't know then, you know, the most important player" "We didn't know then, you know, the most important player in" "We didn't know then, you know, the most important player in Afghanistan most important player in Afghanistan to most important player in Afghanistan to the most important player in Afghanistan to the Americans most important player in Afghanistan to the Americans was" "most important player in Afghanistan to the Americans was absent-minded to the Americans was absent-minded from to the Americans was absent-minded from day to the Americans was absent-minded from day one, to the Americans was absent-minded from day one, was" "to the Americans was absent-minded from day one, was looking from day one, was looking somewhere else." "from day one, was looking somewhere else." "The from day one, was looking somewhere else." "The world from day one, was looking somewhere else." "The world was from day one, was looking somewhere else." "The world was now from day one, was looking somewhere else." "The world was now focused else." "The world was now focused almost else." "The world was now focused almost exclusively else." "The world was now focused almost exclusively on else." "The world was now focused almost exclusively on Iraq." "else." "The world was now focused almost exclusively on Iraq." "While almost exclusively on Iraq." "While Taliban almost exclusively on Iraq." "While Taliban gunmen almost exclusively on Iraq." "While Taliban gunmen started almost exclusively on Iraq." "While Taliban gunmen started to almost exclusively on Iraq." "While Taliban gunmen started to pour" "Taliban gunmen started to pour across" "Taliban gunmen started to pour across the" "Taliban gunmen started to pour across the border" "Taliban gunmen started to pour across the border into" "Taliban gunmen started to pour across the border into Afghanistan." "across the border into Afghanistan." "It across the border into Afghanistan." "It was across the border into Afghanistan." "It was March across the border into Afghanistan." "It was March 2003, across the border into Afghanistan." "It was March 2003, just 18 across the border into Afghanistan." "It was March 2003, just 18 months" "It was March 2003, just 18 months after the" "It was March 2003, just 18 months after the invasion." "It was March 2003, just 18 months after the invasion." "The" "It was March 2003, just 18 months after the invasion." "The Taliban were after the invasion." "The Taliban were back." "after the invasion." "The Taliban were back." "The after the invasion." "The Taliban were back." "The Taliban after the invasion." "The Taliban were back." "The Taliban went after the invasion." "The Taliban were back." "The Taliban went into after the invasion." "The Taliban were back." "The Taliban went into Kandahar back." "The Taliban went into Kandahar and they back." "The Taliban went into Kandahar and they were back." "The Taliban went into Kandahar and they were looking back." "The Taliban went into Kandahar and they were looking for back." "The Taliban went into Kandahar and they were looking for targets." "and they were looking for targets." "You and they were looking for targets." "You know, there and they were looking for targets." "You know, there were and they were looking for targets." "You know, there were very and they were looking for targets." "You know, there were very few" "You know, there were very few targets." "You know, there were very few targets." "Who" "You know, there were very few targets." "Who - there" "You know, there were very few targets." "Who - there were just targets." "Who - there were just Afghans targets." "Who - there were just Afghans living targets." "Who - there were just Afghans living there." "targets." "Who - there were just Afghans living there." "There were targets." "Who - there were just Afghans living there." "There were no" "Afghans living there." "There were no foreign" "Afghans living there." "There were no foreign troops there." "Afghans living there." "There were no foreign troops there." "There" "Afghans living there." "There were no foreign troops there." "There were foreign troops there." "There were a few foreign troops there." "There were a few Afghan foreign troops there." "There were a few Afghan government few Afghan government representatives, few Afghan government representatives, who few Afghan government representatives, who really few Afghan government representatives, who really weren't representatives, who really weren't worth representatives, who really weren't worth killing as far" "representatives, who really weren't worth killing as far as the Taliban worth killing as far as the Taliban were worth killing as far as the Taliban were concerned worth killing as far as the Taliban were concerned in worth killing as far as the Taliban were concerned in those early" "worth killing as far as the Taliban were concerned in those early days were concerned in those early days so were concerned in those early days so the were concerned in those early days so the Taliban were concerned in those early days so the Taliban just" "were concerned in those early days so the Taliban just went further were concerned in those early days so the Taliban just went further and so the Taliban just went further and further so the Taliban just went further and further into" "so the Taliban just went further and further into Afghanistan, so the Taliban just went further and further into Afghanistan, looking further into Afghanistan, looking for further into Afghanistan, looking for targets." "further into Afghanistan, looking for targets." "The further into Afghanistan, looking for targets." "The United further into Afghanistan, looking for targets." "The United Nations for targets." "The United Nations in Afghanistan for targets." "The United Nations in Afghanistan has for targets." "The United Nations in Afghanistan has ordered for targets." "The United Nations in Afghanistan has ordered its for targets." "The United Nations in Afghanistan has ordered its staff" "Afghanistan has ordered its staff not" "Afghanistan has ordered its staff not to" "Afghanistan has ordered its staff not to travel" "Afghanistan has ordered its staff not to travel by road" "Afghanistan has ordered its staff not to travel by road through the not to travel by road through the area not to travel by road through the area where not to travel by road through the area where an International Red" "area where an International Red Cross area where an International Red Cross worker area where an International Red Cross worker was area where an International Red Cross worker was murdered last" "Cross worker was murdered last Thursday." "Cross worker was murdered last Thursday." "He" "Cross worker was murdered last Thursday." "He was" "Cross worker was murdered last Thursday." "He was ordered out of" "Cross worker was murdered last Thursday." "He was ordered out of his" "Thursday." "He was ordered out of his car" "Thursday." "He was ordered out of his car by a" "Thursday." "He was ordered out of his car by a group of armed" "Thursday." "He was ordered out of his car by a group of armed men and" "Thursday." "He was ordered out of his car by a group of armed men and then car by a group of armed men and then shot." "car by a group of armed men and then shot." "You car by a group of armed men and then shot." "You had car by a group of armed men and then shot." "You had American car by a group of armed men and then shot." "You had American Generals shot." "You had American Generals sending shot." "You had American Generals sending off shot." "You had American Generals sending off cables, shot." "You had American Generals sending off cables, saying:" "sending off cables, saying:" "something sending off cables, saying:" "something is sending off cables, saying:" "something is happening." "sending off cables, saying:" "something is happening." "Sending something is happening." "Sending cables something is happening." "Sending cables even something is happening." "Sending cables even to something is happening." "Sending cables even to Rumsfeld something is happening." "Sending cables even to Rumsfeld and I think cables even to Rumsfeld and I think Rumsfeld cables even to Rumsfeld and I think Rumsfeld ignored cables even to Rumsfeld and I think Rumsfeld ignored them, cables even to Rumsfeld and I think Rumsfeld ignored them, the White" "Rumsfeld ignored them, the White House" "Rumsfeld ignored them, the White House ignored" "Rumsfeld ignored them, the White House ignored them." "Rumsfeld ignored them, the White House ignored them." "Rumsfeld ignored them, the White House ignored them." "We" "Rumsfeld ignored them, the White House ignored them." "We clearly" "Rumsfeld ignored them, the White House ignored them." "We clearly have" "House ignored them." "We clearly have moved" "House ignored them." "We clearly have moved from" "House ignored them." "We clearly have moved from major" "House ignored them." "We clearly have moved from major combat activity" "House ignored them." "We clearly have moved from major combat activity to moved from major combat activity to a moved from major combat activity to a period moved from major combat activity to a period of moved from major combat activity to a period of stability" "moved from major combat activity to a period of stability and a period of stability and stabilisation a period of stability and stabilisation and a period of stability and stabilisation and reconstruction a period of stability and stabilisation and reconstruction and" "stabilisation and reconstruction and activities." "stabilisation and reconstruction and activities." "It stabilisation and reconstruction and activities." "It was stabilisation and reconstruction and activities." "It was the stabilisation and reconstruction and activities." "It was the forgotten stabilisation and reconstruction and activities." "It was the forgotten war activities." "It was the forgotten war of activities." "It was the forgotten war of 2002 activities." "It was the forgotten war of 2002 to activities." "It was the forgotten war of 2002 to 2005." "activities." "It was the forgotten war of 2002 to 2005." "The activities." "It was the forgotten war of 2002 to 2005." "The Taliban activities." "It was the forgotten war of 2002 to 2005." "The Taliban were of 2002 to 2005." "The Taliban were re-organising." "of 2002 to 2005." "The Taliban were re-organising." "They were of 2002 to 2005." "The Taliban were re-organising." "They were licking re-organising." "They were licking their re-organising." "They were licking their wounds re-organising." "They were licking their wounds and re-organising." "They were licking their wounds and figuring re-organising." "They were licking their wounds and figuring out their wounds and figuring out what to their wounds and figuring out what to do their wounds and figuring out what to do next." "their wounds and figuring out what to do next." "There their wounds and figuring out what to do next." "There wasn't their wounds and figuring out what to do next." "There wasn't a heavy to do next." "There wasn't a heavy British to do next." "There wasn't a heavy British or to do next." "There wasn't a heavy British or coalition to do next." "There wasn't a heavy British or coalition loss to do next." "There wasn't a heavy British or coalition loss and to do next." "There wasn't a heavy British or coalition loss and the" "British or coalition loss and the country seemed to" "British or coalition loss and the country seemed to be" "British or coalition loss and the country seemed to be relatively country seemed to be relatively stable." "It country seemed to be relatively stable." "It wasn't country seemed to be relatively stable." "It wasn't a war country seemed to be relatively stable." "It wasn't a war on country seemed to be relatively stable." "It wasn't a war on the front stable." "It wasn't a war on the front pages." "And" "And yet" "And yet the" "And yet the Afghan" "And yet the Afghan war" "And yet the Afghan war was far from" "And yet the Afghan war was far from over." "And yet the Afghan war was far from over." "In" "And yet the Afghan war was far from over." "In fact, it was" "And yet the Afghan war was far from over." "In fact, it was about over." "In fact, it was about to reignite." "over." "In fact, it was about to reignite." "By over." "In fact, it was about to reignite." "By 2005, over." "In fact, it was about to reignite." "By 2005, NATO was over." "In fact, it was about to reignite." "By 2005, NATO was in reignite." "By 2005, NATO was in control." "reignite." "By 2005, NATO was in reignite." "By 2005, NATO was in control reignite." "By 2005, NATO was in control and reignite." "By 2005, NATO was in control and did reignite." "By 2005, NATO was in control and did what reignite." "By 2005, NATO was in control and did what Washington reignite." "By 2005, NATO was in control and did what Washington had control and did what Washington had so opposed at control and did what Washington had so opposed at the start." "control and did what Washington had so opposed at the start." "They so opposed at the start." "They increased troop so opposed at the start." "They increased troop numbers so opposed at the start." "They increased troop numbers and so opposed at the start." "They increased troop numbers and inched increased troop numbers and inched towards increased troop numbers and inched towards nation building." "increased troop numbers and inched towards nation building." "NATO increased troop numbers and inched towards nation building." "NATO wanted towards nation building." "NATO wanted to towards nation building." "NATO wanted to extend towards nation building." "NATO wanted to extend the towards nation building." "NATO wanted to extend the authority towards nation building." "NATO wanted to extend the authority of towards nation building." "NATO wanted to extend the authority of the to extend the authority of the Afghan to extend the authority of the Afghan President to extend the authority of the Afghan President Hamid to extend the authority of the Afghan President Hamid Karzai" "Afghan President Hamid Karzai beyond Kabul." "Afghan President Hamid Karzai beyond Kabul." "Britain" "Afghan President Hamid Karzai beyond Kabul." "Britain took" "Afghan President Hamid Karzai beyond Kabul." "Britain took on" "Kabul." "Britain took on Helmand province." "It" "It was" "It was suggested" "It was suggested that" "It was suggested that I should" "It was suggested that I should go" "It was suggested that I should go down" "It was suggested that I should go down to" "It was suggested that I should go down to this place" "It was suggested that I should go down to this place called down to this place called Lashkar Gah." "down to this place called Lashkar Gah." "Everybody down to this place called Lashkar Gah." "Everybody said:" "down to this place called Lashkar Gah." "Everybody said:" "look, down to this place called Lashkar Gah." "Everybody said:" "look, it's down to this place called Lashkar Gah." "Everybody said:" "look, it's not" "Gah." "Everybody said:" "look, it's not entirely" "Gah." "Everybody said:" "look, it's not entirely safe," "Gah." "Everybody said:" "look, it's not entirely safe, but you will" "Gah." "Everybody said:" "look, it's not entirely safe, but you will be OK." "entirely safe, but you will be OK." "Boarding entirely safe, but you will be OK." "Boarding an entirely safe, but you will be OK." "Boarding an old entirely safe, but you will be OK." "Boarding an old Russian entirely safe, but you will be OK." "Boarding an old Russian helicopter," "Boarding an old Russian helicopter, Britain's" "Boarding an old Russian helicopter, Britain's Foreign Office minister" "Britain's Foreign Office minister decided" "Britain's Foreign Office minister decided to" "Britain's Foreign Office minister decided to take a" "Britain's Foreign Office minister decided to take a look" "Britain's Foreign Office minister decided to take a look for" "Britain's Foreign Office minister decided to take a look for himself decided to take a look for himself at decided to take a look for himself at Lashkar decided to take a look for himself at Lashkar Gah, decided to take a look for himself at Lashkar Gah, capital of Helmand" "at Lashkar Gah, capital of Helmand province." "at Lashkar Gah, capital of Helmand province." "And at Lashkar Gah, capital of Helmand province." "And as at Lashkar Gah, capital of Helmand province." "And as we at Lashkar Gah, capital of Helmand province." "And as we came province." "And as we came into Lashkar province." "And as we came into Lashkar Gah province." "And as we came into Lashkar Gah I saw province." "And as we came into Lashkar Gah I saw down province." "And as we came into Lashkar Gah I saw down below province." "And as we came into Lashkar Gah I saw down below me province." "And as we came into Lashkar Gah I saw down below me this" "Lashkar Gah I saw down below me this fort." "Lashkar Gah I saw down below me this fort." "The" "Lashkar Gah I saw down below me this fort." "The commander" "Lashkar Gah I saw down below me this fort." "The commander was" "Lashkar Gah I saw down below me this fort." "The commander was a guy" "Lashkar Gah I saw down below me this fort." "The commander was a guy who fort." "The commander was a guy who I said fort." "The commander was a guy who I said to:" "fort." "The commander was a guy who I said to: what's fort." "The commander was a guy who I said to: what's it fort." "The commander was a guy who I said to: what's it like fort." "The commander was a guy who I said to: what's it like here?" "fort." "The commander was a guy who I said to: what's it like here?" "He said to: what's it like here?" "He said:" "said to: what's it like here?" "He said: it ain't said to: what's it like here?" "He said: it ain't the said to: what's it like here?" "He said: it ain't the end said to: what's it like here?" "He said: it ain't the end of the said: it ain't the end of the earth but you said: it ain't the end of the earth but you can said: it ain't the end of the earth but you can see" "said: it ain't the end of the earth but you can see it from said: it ain't the end of the earth but you can see it from here." "said: it ain't the end of the earth but you can see it from here." "He but you can see it from here." "He said you but you can see it from here." "He said you could but you can see it from here." "He said you could run but you can see it from here." "He said you could run into but you can see it from here." "He said you could run into a drugs said you could run into a drugs convoy said you could run into a drugs convoy and he said you could run into a drugs convoy and he pointed said you could run into a drugs convoy and he pointed out to me" "convoy and he pointed out to me some of convoy and he pointed out to me some of these convoy and he pointed out to me some of these drugs convoy and he pointed out to me some of these drugs columns" "convoy and he pointed out to me some of these drugs columns actually convoy and he pointed out to me some of these drugs columns actually had of these drugs columns actually had anti-aircraft of these drugs columns actually had anti-aircraft missiles" "of these drugs columns actually had anti-aircraft missiles on of these drugs columns actually had anti-aircraft missiles on them." "anti-aircraft missiles on them." "You could anti-aircraft missiles on them." "You could be anti-aircraft missiles on them." "You could be running anti-aircraft missiles on them." "You could be running into anti-aircraft missiles on them." "You could be running into Taliban anti-aircraft missiles on them." "You could be running into Taliban or could be running into Taliban or just could be running into Taliban or just a village could be running into Taliban or just a village that could be running into Taliban or just a village that didn't like" "just a village that didn't like strangers." "just a village that didn't like strangers." "He just a village that didn't like strangers." "He said:" "just a village that didn't like strangers." "He said: we just a village that didn't like strangers." "He said: we don't just a village that didn't like strangers." "He said: we don't hang strangers." "He said: we don't hang around strangers." "He said: we don't hang around because strangers." "He said: we don't hang around because you strangers." "He said: we don't hang around because you never strangers." "He said: we don't hang around because you never know who around because you never know who is shooting around because you never know who is shooting at around because you never know who is shooting at you." "around because you never know who is shooting at you." "This really around because you never know who is shooting at you." "This really struck shooting at you." "This really struck me shooting at you." "This really struck me at the shooting at you." "This really struck me at the time shooting at you." "This really struck me at the time as shooting at you." "This really struck me at the time as being me at the time as being an observation me at the time as being an observation we me at the time as being an observation we ought me at the time as being an observation we ought to" "me at the time as being an observation we ought to take a observation we ought to take a bit of observation we ought to take a bit of notice of." "observation we ought to take a bit of notice of." "Helmand observation we ought to take a bit of notice of." "Helmand had observation we ought to take a bit of notice of." "Helmand had little of notice of." "Helmand had little infrastructure, of notice of." "Helmand had little infrastructure, few public of notice of." "Helmand had little infrastructure, few public services, infrastructure, few public services, no infrastructure, few public services, no functioning infrastructure, few public services, no functioning security, infrastructure, few public services, no functioning security, economy" "infrastructure, few public services, no functioning security, economy or no functioning security, economy or justice system." "no functioning security, economy or justice system." "The no functioning security, economy or justice system." "The Blair justice system." "The Blair government's justice system." "The Blair government's vision justice system." "The Blair government's vision for justice system." "The Blair government's vision for Helmand, government's vision for Helmand, however, government's vision for Helmand, however, did not government's vision for Helmand, however, did not lack for government's vision for Helmand, however, did not lack for ambition." "government's vision for Helmand, however, did not lack for ambition." "however, did not lack for ambition." "The original however, did not lack for ambition." "The original vision however, did not lack for ambition." "The original vision was that however, did not lack for ambition." "The original vision was that Karzai" "The original vision was that Karzai would" "The original vision was that Karzai would be able" "The original vision was that Karzai would be able to create a" "The original vision was that Karzai would be able to create a growing would be able to create a growing and would be able to create a growing and sustainable would be able to create a growing and sustainable peace would be able to create a growing and sustainable peace and" "would be able to create a growing and sustainable peace and that this and sustainable peace and that this would and sustainable peace and that this would create and sustainable peace and that this would create a space in and sustainable peace and that this would create a space in which" "would create a space in which governance would create a space in which governance would spread would create a space in which governance would spread and would create a space in which governance would spread and some governance would spread and some people" "governance would spread and some people likened governance would spread and some people likened this governance would spread and some people likened this to governance would spread and some people likened this to creating people likened this to creating Belgium people likened this to creating Belgium in a couple" "people likened this to creating Belgium in a couple of years. people likened this to creating Belgium in a couple of years." "A team" "Belgium in a couple of years." "A team of" "Belgium in a couple of years." "A team of experts" "Belgium in a couple of years." "A team of experts was dispatched" "Belgium in a couple of years." "A team of experts was dispatched to Helmand of experts was dispatched to Helmand by of experts was dispatched to Helmand by Whitehall of experts was dispatched to Helmand by Whitehall in of experts was dispatched to Helmand by Whitehall in late" "of experts was dispatched to Helmand by Whitehall in late 2005." "by Whitehall in late 2005." "Their task by Whitehall in late 2005." "Their task was to by Whitehall in late 2005." "Their task was to plan by Whitehall in late 2005." "Their task was to plan the by Whitehall in late 2005." "Their task was to plan the delivery by Whitehall in late 2005." "Their task was to plan the delivery of task was to plan the delivery of this task was to plan the delivery of this vision with task was to plan the delivery of this vision with troops task was to plan the delivery of this vision with troops providing" "this vision with troops providing protection and this vision with troops providing protection and expected this vision with troops providing protection and expected home this vision with troops providing protection and expected home in just protection and expected home in just three years." "protection and expected home in just three years." "It protection and expected home in just three years." "It was protection and expected home in just three years." "It was a task three years." "It was a task of biblical three years." "It was a task of biblical proportions." "three years." "It was a task of biblical proportions." "It three years." "It was a task of biblical proportions." "It was biblical proportions." "It was a medieval biblical proportions." "It was a medieval province, biblical proportions." "It was a medieval province, vast biblical proportions." "It was a medieval province, vast open biblical proportions." "It was a medieval province, vast open spaces." "medieval province, vast open spaces." "There was no medieval province, vast open spaces." "There was no infrastructure." "There was no infrastructure." "I remember" "There was no infrastructure." "I remember flying" "There was no infrastructure." "I remember flying across the remember flying across the province's remember flying across the province's only remember flying across the province's only road." "remember flying across the province's only road." "Corruption ran province's only road." "Corruption ran from province's only road." "Corruption ran from top province's only road." "Corruption ran from top to province's only road." "Corruption ran from top to bottom." "province's only road." "Corruption ran from top to bottom." "So province's only road." "Corruption ran from top to bottom." "So when province's only road." "Corruption ran from top to bottom." "So when one from top to bottom." "So when one looked from top to bottom." "So when one looked at all from top to bottom." "So when one looked at all of from top to bottom." "So when one looked at all of this, from top to bottom." "So when one looked at all of this, one from top to bottom." "So when one looked at all of this, one saw looked at all of this, one saw a rudderless looked at all of this, one saw a rudderless expanse looked at all of this, one saw a rudderless expanse of" "looked at all of this, one saw a rudderless expanse of not looked at all of this, one saw a rudderless expanse of not much looked at all of this, one saw a rudderless expanse of not much where" "rudderless expanse of not much where the rudderless expanse of not much where the principal rudderless expanse of not much where the principal economy rudderless expanse of not much where the principal economy was rudderless expanse of not much where the principal economy was drugs." "the principal economy was drugs." "Some the principal economy was drugs." "Some estimates the principal economy was drugs." "Some estimates said the principal economy was drugs." "Some estimates said that the principal economy was drugs." "Some estimates said that 80% the principal economy was drugs." "Some estimates said that 80% of the principal economy was drugs." "Some estimates said that 80% of the" "Some estimates said that 80% of the population were" "Some estimates said that 80% of the population were illiterate" "Some estimates said that 80% of the population were illiterate and" "Some estimates said that 80% of the population were illiterate and that population were illiterate and that extended population were illiterate and that extended to population were illiterate and that extended to many key population were illiterate and that extended to many key functions" "population were illiterate and that extended to many key functions in extended to many key functions in government, extended to many key functions in government, including the extended to many key functions in government, including the director government, including the director of" "government, including the director of education government, including the director of education who government, including the director of education who could government, including the director of education who could not government, including the director of education who could not read" "of education who could not read or write." "of education who could not read or write." "We of education who could not read or write." "We didn't of education who could not read or write." "We didn't know write." "We didn't know how many police write." "We didn't know how many police stations there write." "We didn't know how many police stations there were and police stations there were and the Chief of police stations there were and the Chief of Police police stations there were and the Chief of Police wasn't police stations there were and the Chief of Police wasn't really" "police stations there were and the Chief of Police wasn't really sure" "Chief of Police wasn't really sure either." "Chief of Police wasn't really sure either." "There" "Chief of Police wasn't really sure either." "There were" "Chief of Police wasn't really sure either." "There were sporadic either." "There were sporadic outbursts either." "There were sporadic outbursts of violence either." "There were sporadic outbursts of violence because either." "There were sporadic outbursts of violence because of either." "There were sporadic outbursts of violence because of the outbursts of violence because of the drug outbursts of violence because of the drug trafficking, and outbursts of violence because of the drug trafficking, and when outbursts of violence because of the drug trafficking, and when I asked" "drug trafficking, and when I asked the drug trafficking, and when I asked the American drug trafficking, and when I asked the American officer drug trafficking, and when I asked the American officer what drug trafficking, and when I asked the American officer what background" "the American officer what background research the American officer what background research I should the American officer what background research I should do the American officer what background research I should do to the American officer what background research I should do to understand" "research I should do to understand Helmand research I should do to understand Helmand a little research I should do to understand Helmand a little better, research I should do to understand Helmand a little better, he research I should do to understand Helmand a little better, he said" "Helmand a little better, he said I should" "Helmand a little better, he said I should watch" "Helmand a little better, he said I should watch The" "Helmand a little better, he said I should watch The Sopranos." "Helmand a little better, he said I should watch The Sopranos." "On" "Helmand a little better, he said I should watch The Sopranos." "On their should watch The Sopranos." "On their return should watch The Sopranos." "On their return home should watch The Sopranos." "On their return home for should watch The Sopranos." "On their return home for Christmas, should watch The Sopranos." "On their return home for Christmas, the return home for Christmas, the planners return home for Christmas, the planners met up return home for Christmas, the planners met up with return home for Christmas, the planners met up with their" "return home for Christmas, the planners met up with their Whitehall planners met up with their Whitehall masters." "planners met up with their Whitehall masters." "The planners met up with their Whitehall masters." "The planners planners met up with their Whitehall masters." "The planners told planners met up with their Whitehall masters." "The planners told them masters." "The planners told them their masters." "The planners told them their vision masters." "The planners told them their vision for masters." "The planners told them their vision for Helmand masters." "The planners told them their vision for Helmand was their vision for Helmand was unrealistic." "their vision for Helmand was unrealistic." "their vision for Helmand was unrealistic." "The their vision for Helmand was unrealistic." "The overwhelming unrealistic." "The overwhelming impression I unrealistic." "The overwhelming impression I had of unrealistic." "The overwhelming impression I had of that unrealistic." "The overwhelming impression I had of that afternoon impression I had of that afternoon was impression I had of that afternoon was of impression I had of that afternoon was of the impression I had of that afternoon was of the clock ticking." "impression I had of that afternoon was of the clock ticking." "impression I had of that afternoon was of the clock ticking." "impression I had of that afternoon was of the clock ticking." "The was of the clock ticking." "The conclusion that was of the clock ticking." "The conclusion that this was of the clock ticking." "The conclusion that this was not conclusion that this was not achievable conclusion that this was not achievable in conclusion that this was not achievable in three conclusion that this was not achievable in three years conclusion that this was not achievable in three years was" "conclusion that this was not achievable in three years was not conclusion that this was not achievable in three years was not an achievable in three years was not an acceptable conclusion." "achievable in three years was not an acceptable conclusion." "There achievable in three years was not an acceptable conclusion." "There was achievable in three years was not an acceptable conclusion." "There was an acceptable conclusion." "There was an unforgiving acceptable conclusion." "There was an unforgiving timeline acceptable conclusion." "There was an unforgiving timeline and acceptable conclusion." "There was an unforgiving timeline and there acceptable conclusion." "There was an unforgiving timeline and there was unforgiving timeline and there was no unforgiving timeline and there was no time unforgiving timeline and there was no time for discussion." "The" "The planners" "The planners were" "The planners were told to" "The planners were told to get" "The planners were told to get on with" "The planners were told to get on with it," "The planners were told to get on with it, but they" "The planners were told to get on with it, but they weren't" "The planners were told to get on with it, but they weren't the only with it, but they weren't the only ones with it, but they weren't the only ones asking with it, but they weren't the only ones asking awkward" "with it, but they weren't the only ones asking awkward questions." "with it, but they weren't the only ones asking awkward questions." "The ones asking awkward questions." "The Foreign Office ones asking awkward questions." "The Foreign Office minister ones asking awkward questions." "The Foreign Office minister wrote ones asking awkward questions." "The Foreign Office minister wrote to ones asking awkward questions." "The Foreign Office minister wrote to the" "Foreign Office minister wrote to the Ministry of" "Foreign Office minister wrote to the Ministry of Defence." "Foreign Office minister wrote to the Ministry of Defence." "Foreign Office minister wrote to the Ministry of Defence." "We were" "Ministry of Defence." "We were planning to" "Ministry of Defence." "We were planning to go" "Ministry of Defence." "We were planning to go down" "Ministry of Defence." "We were planning to go down there" "Ministry of Defence." "We were planning to go down there with" "Ministry of Defence." "We were planning to go down there with 3,300 planning to go down there with 3,300 troops, planning to go down there with 3,300 troops, we planning to go down there with 3,300 troops, we had planning to go down there with 3,300 troops, we had 30,000" "planning to go down there with 3,300 troops, we had 30,000 in Northern troops, we had 30,000 in Northern Ireland." "troops, we had 30,000 in Northern Ireland." "Are troops, we had 30,000 in Northern Ireland." "Are we troops, we had 30,000 in Northern Ireland." "Are we sure that we troops, we had 30,000 in Northern Ireland." "Are we sure that we are" "Ireland." "Are we sure that we are going" "Ireland." "Are we sure that we are going to be able" "Ireland." "Are we sure that we are going to be able to do going to be able to do something about going to be able to do something about this going to be able to do something about this and have going to be able to do something about this and have we" "going to be able to do something about this and have we got enough about this and have we got enough helicopters, about this and have we got enough helicopters, have about this and have we got enough helicopters, have we" "about this and have we got enough helicopters, have we got enough helicopters, have we got enough water, helicopters, have we got enough water, can helicopters, have we got enough water, can we helicopters, have we got enough water, can we - you" "helicopters, have we got enough water, can we - you know, helicopters, have we got enough water, can we - you know, can we do water, can we - you know, can we do all" "water, can we - you know, can we do all of this?" "water, can we - you know, can we do all of this?" "The water, can we - you know, can we do all of this?" "The Generals water, can we - you know, can we do all of this?" "The Generals said water, can we - you know, can we do all of this?" "The Generals said yes, all of this?" "The Generals said yes, yes all of this?" "The Generals said yes, yes and yes." "all of this?" "The Generals said yes, yes and yes." "The all of this?" "The Generals said yes, yes and yes." "The military all of this?" "The Generals said yes, yes and yes." "The military momentum yes and yes." "The military momentum was yes and yes." "The military momentum was unstoppable." "yes and yes." "The military momentum was unstoppable." "Britain yes and yes." "The military momentum was unstoppable." "Britain was yes and yes." "The military momentum was unstoppable." "Britain was going was unstoppable." "Britain was going to was unstoppable." "Britain was going to Helmand, was unstoppable." "Britain was going to Helmand, come was unstoppable." "Britain was going to Helmand, come what was unstoppable." "Britain was going to Helmand, come what may." "16 Air 16 Air Assault" "16 Air Assault was 16 Air Assault was the" "16 Air Assault was the brigade 16 Air Assault was the brigade chosen" "16 Air Assault was the brigade chosen to 16 Air Assault was the brigade chosen to provide protection for" "16 Air Assault was the brigade chosen to provide protection for the chosen to provide protection for the reconstruction chosen to provide protection for the reconstruction mission." "chosen to provide protection for the reconstruction mission." "They chosen to provide protection for the reconstruction mission." "They did reconstruction mission." "They did anticipate reconstruction mission." "They did anticipate some fighting." "reconstruction mission." "They did anticipate some fighting." "There reconstruction mission." "They did anticipate some fighting." "There was anticipate some fighting." "There was an anticipate some fighting." "There was an awful anticipate some fighting." "There was an awful lot anticipate some fighting." "There was an awful lot of anticipate some fighting." "There was an awful lot of grenade anticipate some fighting." "There was an awful lot of grenade launcher an awful lot of grenade launcher practice going an awful lot of grenade launcher practice going on an awful lot of grenade launcher practice going on down the an awful lot of grenade launcher practice going on down the ranges." "practice going on down the ranges." "And practice going on down the ranges." "And there wasn't practice going on down the ranges." "And there wasn't much practice going on down the ranges." "And there wasn't much of a practice going on down the ranges." "And there wasn't much of a queue for" "And there wasn't much of a queue for the" "And there wasn't much of a queue for the development brief." "And there wasn't much of a queue for the development brief." "There" "And there wasn't much of a queue for the development brief." "There were the development brief." "There were a lot of the development brief." "There were a lot of stripped the development brief." "There were a lot of stripped down the development brief." "There were a lot of stripped down vehicles the development brief." "There were a lot of stripped down vehicles going lot of stripped down vehicles going past lot of stripped down vehicles going past with lot of stripped down vehicles going past with 50cals lot of stripped down vehicles going past with 50cals on the" "lot of stripped down vehicles going past with 50cals on the top." "lot of stripped down vehicles going past with 50cals on the top." "This past with 50cals on the top." "This was, past with 50cals on the top." "This was, I think, every past with 50cals on the top." "This was, I think, every soldier's past with 50cals on the top." "This was, I think, every soldier's dream, was, I think, every soldier's dream, Afghanistan." "was, I think, every soldier's dream, Afghanistan." "Hugely was, I think, every soldier's dream, Afghanistan." "Hugely historically" "Afghanistan." "Hugely historically resonant." "An" "Afghanistan." "Hugely historically resonant." "An extraordinary country." "resonant." "An extraordinary country." "Classic resonant." "An extraordinary country." "Classic soldiering." "resonant." "An extraordinary country." "Classic soldiering." "Perhaps resonant." "An extraordinary country." "Classic soldiering." "Perhaps as a" "Classic soldiering." "Perhaps as a former" "Classic soldiering." "Perhaps as a former soldier" "Classic soldiering." "Perhaps as a former soldier myself I understand former soldier myself I understand that." "former soldier myself I understand that." "My former soldier myself I understand that." "My sense former soldier myself I understand that." "My sense was former soldier myself I understand that." "My sense was that they had that." "My sense was that they had come that." "My sense was that they had come with that." "My sense was that they had come with a larger that." "My sense was that they had come with a larger place that." "My sense was that they had come with a larger place in that." "My sense was that they had come with a larger place in the that." "My sense was that they had come with a larger place in the plan come with a larger place in the plan for come with a larger place in the plan for malletting the come with a larger place in the plan for malletting the Taliban." "come with a larger place in the plan for malletting the Taliban." "come with a larger place in the plan for malletting the Taliban." "No." "for malletting the Taliban." "No." "I dispute for malletting the Taliban." "No." "I dispute that. for malletting the Taliban." "No." "I dispute that." "I have been in for malletting the Taliban." "No." "I dispute that." "I have been in the dispute that." "I have been in the military dispute that." "I have been in the military for two dispute that." "I have been in the military for two dozen dispute that." "I have been in the military for two dozen years, dispute that." "I have been in the military for two dozen years, I had military for two dozen years, I had been on a military for two dozen years, I had been on a lot of military for two dozen years, I had been on a lot of operations," "been on a lot of operations, I knew the been on a lot of operations, I knew the consequences been on a lot of operations, I knew the consequences of the been on a lot of operations, I knew the consequences of the wrong use" "been on a lot of operations, I knew the consequences of the wrong use of the consequences of the wrong use of force." "I had the consequences of the wrong use of force." "I had been the consequences of the wrong use of force." "I had been in the consequences of the wrong use of force." "I had been in Afghanistan force." "I had been in Afghanistan twice force." "I had been in Afghanistan twice before." "force." "I had been in Afghanistan twice before." "The force." "I had been in Afghanistan twice before." "The force force." "I had been in Afghanistan twice before." "The force deployed twice before." "The force deployed gave twice before." "The force deployed gave a maximum twice before." "The force deployed gave a maximum of twice before." "The force deployed gave a maximum of only twice before." "The force deployed gave a maximum of only 800 fighting gave a maximum of only 800 fighting soldiers, gave a maximum of only 800 fighting soldiers, so gave a maximum of only 800 fighting soldiers, so the gave a maximum of only 800 fighting soldiers, so the reconstruction" "soldiers, so the reconstruction mission soldiers, so the reconstruction mission was soldiers, so the reconstruction mission was limited soldiers, so the reconstruction mission was limited to soldiers, so the reconstruction mission was limited to the soldiers, so the reconstruction mission was limited to the central" "mission was limited to the central area mission was limited to the central area of mission was limited to the central area of Helmand, mission was limited to the central area of Helmand, around mission was limited to the central area of Helmand, around the" "area of Helmand, around the capital Lashkar Gah." "Out" "Out on" "Out on patrol in" "Out on patrol in Helmand," "Out on patrol in Helmand, the British" "Out on patrol in Helmand, the British troops have" "Out on patrol in Helmand, the British troops have arrived" "Out on patrol in Helmand, the British troops have arrived and" "British troops have arrived and are introducing" "British troops have arrived and are introducing themselves" "British troops have arrived and are introducing themselves to their" "British troops have arrived and are introducing themselves to their new introducing themselves to their new neighbours." "introducing themselves to their new neighbours." "I'm introducing themselves to their new neighbours." "I'm good." "introducing themselves to their new neighbours." "I'm good." "Fine, neighbours." "I'm good." "Fine, thank you." "neighbours." "I'm good." "Fine, thank you." "How are you?" "neighbours." "I'm good." "Fine, thank you." "How are you?" "Does neighbours." "I'm good." "Fine, thank you." "How are you?" "Does he neighbours." "I'm good." "Fine, thank you." "How are you?" "Does he understand you." "How are you?" "Does he understand why the you." "How are you?" "Does he understand why the British you." "How are you?" "Does he understand why the British soldiers why the British soldiers are in Lashkar why the British soldiers are in Lashkar Gah?" "why the British soldiers are in Lashkar Gah?" "No, why the British soldiers are in Lashkar Gah?" "No, sir, why the British soldiers are in Lashkar Gah?" "No, sir, he why the British soldiers are in Lashkar Gah?" "No, sir, he doesn't" "Lashkar Gah?" "No, sir, he doesn't know." "Lashkar Gah?" "No, sir, he doesn't know." "From" "Lashkar Gah?" "No, sir, he doesn't know." "From the" "Lashkar Gah?" "No, sir, he doesn't know." "From the moment that" "Lashkar Gah?" "No, sir, he doesn't know." "From the moment that troops know." "From the moment that troops arrived, know." "From the moment that troops arrived, Helmand's know." "From the moment that troops arrived, Helmand's Afghan know." "From the moment that troops arrived, Helmand's Afghan governor arrived, Helmand's Afghan governor warned arrived, Helmand's Afghan governor warned that his arrived, Helmand's Afghan governor warned that his authority arrived, Helmand's Afghan governor warned that his authority was" "arrived, Helmand's Afghan governor warned that his authority was being warned that his authority was being undermined warned that his authority was being undermined by warned that his authority was being undermined by lawless warned that his authority was being undermined by lawless gunmen" "warned that his authority was being undermined by lawless gunmen in the undermined by lawless gunmen in the north." "undermined by lawless gunmen in the north." "He undermined by lawless gunmen in the north." "He urged undermined by lawless gunmen in the north." "He urged the army undermined by lawless gunmen in the north." "He urged the army to deal north." "He urged the army to deal with them." "north." "He urged the army to deal with them." "His north." "He urged the army to deal with them." "His argument north." "He urged the army to deal with them." "His argument was very with them." "His argument was very much with them." "His argument was very much saying:" "with them." "His argument was very much saying:" "I need with them." "His argument was very much saying:" "I need you with them." "His argument was very much saying:" "I need you to with them." "His argument was very much saying:" "I need you to make sure much saying:" "I need you to make sure that much saying:" "I need you to make sure that the much saying:" "I need you to make sure that the flag much saying:" "I need you to make sure that the flag of much saying:" "I need you to make sure that the flag of Afghanistan much saying:" "I need you to make sure that the flag of Afghanistan flies that the flag of Afghanistan flies over all that the flag of Afghanistan flies over all of that the flag of Afghanistan flies over all of the that the flag of Afghanistan flies over all of the district" "that the flag of Afghanistan flies over all of the district centres." "that the flag of Afghanistan flies over all of the district centres." "over all of the district centres." "Yes." "Did over all of the district centres." "Yes." "Did you over all of the district centres." "Yes." "Did you resist over all of the district centres." "Yes." "Did you resist that over all of the district centres." "Yes." "Did you resist that to begin" "Yes." "Did you resist that to begin with or not?" "Yes." "Did you resist that to begin with or not?" "Yes." "Did you resist that to begin with or not?" "Yes." "Did you resist that to begin with or not?" "We" "Yes." "Did you resist that to begin with or not?" "We did." "We" "Yes." "Did you resist that to begin with or not?" "We did." "We made" "Yes." "Did you resist that to begin with or not?" "We did." "We made it with or not?" "We did." "We made it very clear with or not?" "We did." "We made it very clear that we with or not?" "We did." "We made it very clear that we were going to with or not?" "We did." "We made it very clear that we were going to be very clear that we were going to be extremely very clear that we were going to be extremely limited very clear that we were going to be extremely limited in" "very clear that we were going to be extremely limited in our very clear that we were going to be extremely limited in our capability extremely limited in our capability to extremely limited in our capability to do extremely limited in our capability to do other" "extremely limited in our capability to do other operations." "extremely limited in our capability to do other operations." "The extremely limited in our capability to do other operations." "The Generals to do other operations." "The Generals in to do other operations." "The Generals in London to do other operations." "The Generals in London judged to do other operations." "The Generals in London judged that to do other operations." "The Generals in London judged that deploying in London judged that deploying north in London judged that deploying north was in London judged that deploying north was "unsustainable", in London judged that deploying north was "unsustainable", but" "in London judged that deploying north was "unsustainable", but the north was "unsustainable", but the Helmand north was "unsustainable", but the Helmand governor north was "unsustainable", but the Helmand governor persevered" "north was "unsustainable", but the Helmand governor persevered and north was "unsustainable", but the Helmand governor persevered and was" "Helmand governor persevered and was supported" "Helmand governor persevered and was supported by" "Helmand governor persevered and was supported by the" "Helmand governor persevered and was supported by the Afghan Intelligence supported by the Afghan Intelligence Service." "supported by the Afghan Intelligence Service." "The supported by the Afghan Intelligence Service." "The order supported by the Afghan Intelligence Service." "The order was given supported by the Afghan Intelligence Service." "The order was given to" "Service." "The order was given to defend missions" "Service." "The order was given to defend missions up" "Service." "The order was given to defend missions up to 70" "Service." "The order was given to defend missions up to 70 miles" "Service." "The order was given to defend missions up to 70 miles from defend missions up to 70 miles from the defend missions up to 70 miles from the reconstruction area." "By" "By late" "By late June," "By late June, the" "By late June, the army" "By late June, the army was" "By late June, the army was thinly" "By late June, the army was thinly spread across" "By late June, the army was thinly spread across three" "By late June, the army was thinly spread across three new" "By late June, the army was thinly spread across three new flash" "By late June, the army was thinly spread across three new flash points spread across three new flash points and spread across three new flash points and about spread across three new flash points and about to spread across three new flash points and about to stretch" "spread across three new flash points and about to stretch to spread across three new flash points and about to stretch to yet and about to stretch to yet a fourth, and about to stretch to yet a fourth, the town of" "and about to stretch to yet a fourth, the town of Sangin." "There" "There were" "There were no" "There were no angels" "There were no angels in" "There were no angels in Sangin." "There were no angels in Sangin." "There were two" "There were no angels in Sangin." "There were two warring" "There were no angels in Sangin." "There were two warring drug" "There were no angels in Sangin." "There were two warring drug cartels" "There were two warring drug cartels effectively" "There were two warring drug cartels effectively in" "There were two warring drug cartels effectively in Sangin" "There were two warring drug cartels effectively in Sangin and here we effectively in Sangin and here we were, effectively in Sangin and here we were, about effectively in Sangin and here we were, about to effectively in Sangin and here we were, about to deploy" "effectively in Sangin and here we were, about to deploy British effectively in Sangin and here we were, about to deploy British troops were, about to deploy British troops in were, about to deploy British troops in between" "were, about to deploy British troops in between those were, about to deploy British troops in between those two were, about to deploy British troops in between those two drugs were, about to deploy British troops in between those two drugs cartels." "in between those two drugs cartels." "I in between those two drugs cartels." "I did everything in between those two drugs cartels." "I did everything I possibly in between those two drugs cartels." "I did everything I possibly could in between those two drugs cartels." "I did everything I possibly could to" "I did everything I possibly could to engage" "I did everything I possibly could to engage anyone" "I did everything I possibly could to engage anyone who" "I did everything I possibly could to engage anyone who had engage anyone who had decision-making engage anyone who had decision-making authority to engage anyone who had decision-making authority to say:" "decision-making authority to say:" "this is decision-making authority to say:" "this is madness, decision-making authority to say:" "this is madness, this decision-making authority to say:" "this is madness, this cannot be this is madness, this cannot be happening." "this is madness, this cannot be happening." "this is madness, this cannot be happening." "But it this is madness, this cannot be happening." "But it was." "this is madness, this cannot be happening." "But it was." "The this is madness, this cannot be happening." "But it was." "The arrival happening." "But it was." "The arrival of happening." "But it was." "The arrival of the happening." "But it was." "The arrival of the troops happening." "But it was." "The arrival of the troops stirred happening." "But it was." "The arrival of the troops stirred up happening." "But it was." "The arrival of the troops stirred up a hornet's of the troops stirred up a hornet's nest. of the troops stirred up a hornet's nest." "I was of the troops stirred up a hornet's nest." "I was furious, of the troops stirred up a hornet's nest." "I was furious, watching of the troops stirred up a hornet's nest." "I was furious, watching that nest." "I was furious, watching that type of nest." "I was furious, watching that type of decision-making nest." "I was furious, watching that type of decision-making that type of decision-making that ended up type of decision-making that ended up uprooting type of decision-making that ended up uprooting the entire type of decision-making that ended up uprooting the entire plan" "up uprooting the entire plan that we had up uprooting the entire plan that we had devised." "up uprooting the entire plan that we had devised." "The up uprooting the entire plan that we had devised." "The summer up uprooting the entire plan that we had devised." "The summer of up uprooting the entire plan that we had devised." "The summer of 2006 saw had devised." "The summer of 2006 saw the had devised." "The summer of 2006 saw the British had devised." "The summer of 2006 saw the British Army had devised." "The summer of 2006 saw the British Army engaged had devised." "The summer of 2006 saw the British Army engaged in had devised." "The summer of 2006 saw the British Army engaged in some had devised." "The summer of 2006 saw the British Army engaged in some of the British Army engaged in some of its the British Army engaged in some of its fiercest the British Army engaged in some of its fiercest fighting the British Army engaged in some of its fiercest fighting in" "the British Army engaged in some of its fiercest fighting in half a its fiercest fighting in half a century." "its fiercest fighting in half a century." "Watch its fiercest fighting in half a century." "Watch it, its fiercest fighting in half a century." "Watch it, watch it!" "century." "Watch it, watch it!" "REPORTER:" "century." "Watch it, watch it!" "REPORTER:" "How century." "Watch it, watch it!" "REPORTER:" "How does century." "Watch it, watch it!" "REPORTER:" "How does this century." "Watch it, watch it!" "REPORTER:" "How does this compare to" "REPORTER:" "How does this compare to Iraq?" "REPORTER:" "How does this compare to Iraq?" "REPORTER:" "How does this compare to Iraq?" "REPORTER:" "How does this compare to Iraq?" "It's a" "REPORTER:" "How does this compare to Iraq?" "It's a lot" "REPORTER:" "How does this compare to Iraq?" "It's a lot worse." "REPORTER:" "How does this compare to Iraq?" "It's a lot worse." "It was a" "Iraq?" "It's a lot worse." "It was a lot" "Iraq?" "It's a lot worse." "It was a lot better." "Iraq?" "It's a lot worse." "It was a lot better." "We" "Iraq?" "It's a lot worse." "It was a lot better." "We didn't see" "Iraq?" "It's a lot worse." "It was a lot better." "We didn't see any action lot better." "We didn't see any action in lot better." "We didn't see any action in Iraq." "lot better." "We didn't see any action in Iraq." "Almost every lot better." "We didn't see any action in Iraq." "Almost every day lot better." "We didn't see any action in Iraq." "Almost every day you lot better." "We didn't see any action in Iraq." "Almost every day you can in Iraq." "Almost every day you can guarantee small in Iraq." "Almost every day you can guarantee small arms in Iraq." "Almost every day you can guarantee small arms fire incoming." "guarantee small arms fire incoming." "Pinned guarantee small arms fire incoming." "Pinned down guarantee small arms fire incoming." "Pinned down in a guarantee small arms fire incoming." "Pinned down in a series guarantee small arms fire incoming." "Pinned down in a series of guarantee small arms fire incoming." "Pinned down in a series of Alamos" "Pinned down in a series of Alamos across" "Pinned down in a series of Alamos across the north of" "Pinned down in a series of Alamos across the north of Helmand," "Pinned down in a series of Alamos across the north of Helmand, British across the north of Helmand, British soldiers across the north of Helmand, British soldiers became across the north of Helmand, British soldiers became magnets" "across the north of Helmand, British soldiers became magnets for across the north of Helmand, British soldiers became magnets for attacks soldiers became magnets for attacks from soldiers became magnets for attacks from the soldiers became magnets for attacks from the Taliban," "soldiers became magnets for attacks from the Taliban, drug soldiers became magnets for attacks from the Taliban, drug gangs soldiers became magnets for attacks from the Taliban, drug gangs and from the Taliban, drug gangs and locals" "from the Taliban, drug gangs and locals just from the Taliban, drug gangs and locals just angry at from the Taliban, drug gangs and locals just angry at the from the Taliban, drug gangs and locals just angry at the presence of" "locals just angry at the presence of foreigners. locals just angry at the presence of foreigners." "A lot of locals just angry at the presence of foreigners." "A lot of the locals just angry at the presence of foreigners." "A lot of the people we foreigners." "A lot of the people we were foreigners." "A lot of the people we were killing were foreigners." "A lot of the people we were killing were effectively foreigners." "A lot of the people we were killing were effectively the were killing were effectively the farmers were killing were effectively the farmers who were killing were effectively the farmers who had were killing were effectively the farmers who had AK-47s" "were killing were effectively the farmers who had AK-47s putting were killing were effectively the farmers who had AK-47s putting their farmers who had AK-47s putting their hands farmers who had AK-47s putting their hands by farmers who had AK-47s putting their hands by the Taliban" "farmers who had AK-47s putting their hands by the Taliban leadership." "farmers who had AK-47s putting their hands by the Taliban leadership." "hands by the Taliban leadership." "Part-time hands by the Taliban leadership." "Part-time Talibs hands by the Taliban leadership." "Part-time Talibs really?" "hands by the Taliban leadership." "Part-time Talibs really?" "hands by the Taliban leadership." "Part-time Talibs really?" "hands by the Taliban leadership." "Part-time Talibs really?" "Yes, and" "Part-time Talibs really?" "Yes, and not very" "Part-time Talibs really?" "Yes, and not very well" "Part-time Talibs really?" "Yes, and not very well trained" "Part-time Talibs really?" "Yes, and not very well trained ones" "Part-time Talibs really?" "Yes, and not very well trained ones and" "Part-time Talibs really?" "Yes, and not very well trained ones and we not very well trained ones and we killed not very well trained ones and we killed huge not very well trained ones and we killed huge numbers not very well trained ones and we killed huge numbers of" "not very well trained ones and we killed huge numbers of them." "That killed huge numbers of them." "That wasn't killed huge numbers of them." "That wasn't to killed huge numbers of them." "That wasn't to our liking at killed huge numbers of them." "That wasn't to our liking at all killed huge numbers of them." "That wasn't to our liking at all and we wasn't to our liking at all and we were wasn't to our liking at all and we were conscious wasn't to our liking at all and we were conscious that for" "wasn't to our liking at all and we were conscious that for everyone we were conscious that for everyone we killed were conscious that for everyone we killed we were conscious that for everyone we killed we were probably were conscious that for everyone we killed we were probably actually" "were conscious that for everyone we killed we were probably were conscious that for everyone we killed we were probably were conscious that for everyone we killed we were probably actually killed we were probably actually fuelling killed we were probably actually fuelling the" "killed we were probably actually fuelling the insurgency." "killed we were probably actually fuelling the insurgency." "killed we were probably actually fuelling the insurgency." "In fuelling the insurgency." "In day-to-day fuelling the insurgency." "In day-to-day command was Gen Sir Peter day-to-day command was Gen Sir Peter Wall, day-to-day command was Gen Sir Peter Wall, now head day-to-day command was Gen Sir Peter Wall, now head of day-to-day command was Gen Sir Peter Wall, now head of the British" "day-to-day command was Gen Sir Peter Wall, now head of the British Army." "day-to-day command was Gen Sir Peter Wall, now head of the British Army." "Wall, now head of the British Army." "REPORTER:" "Wall, now head of the British Army." "REPORTER:" "The" "Wall, now head of the British Army." "REPORTER:" "The mission" "Wall, now head of the British Army." "REPORTER:" "The mission changed" "REPORTER:" "The mission changed dramatically?" "REPORTER:" "The mission changed dramatically?" "REPORTER:" "The mission changed dramatically?" "REPORTER:" "The mission changed dramatically?" "No, I don't" "REPORTER:" "The mission changed dramatically?" "No, I don't think dramatically?" "No, I don't think it did dramatically?" "No, I don't think it did really." "dramatically?" "No, I don't think it did really." "dramatically?" "No, I don't think it did really." "Really?" "dramatically?" "No, I don't think it did really." "Really?" "dramatically?" "No, I don't think it did really." "Really?" "dramatically?" "No, I don't think it did really." "Really?" "dramatically?" "No, I don't think it did really." "Really?" "What, dramatically?" "No, I don't think it did really." "Really?" "What, in the did really." "Really?" "What, in the end changed did really." "Really?" "What, in the end changed or did really." "Really?" "What, in the end changed or the did really." "Really?" "What, in the end changed or the mode of delivery?" "end changed or the mode of delivery?" "end changed or the mode of delivery?" "end changed or the mode of delivery?" "Well, in end changed or the mode of delivery?" "Well, in the sense end changed or the mode of delivery?" "Well, in the sense that end changed or the mode of delivery?" "Well, in the sense that the" "Well, in the sense that the original mission" "Well, in the sense that the original mission was hearts" "Well, in the sense that the original mission was hearts and original mission was hearts and minds, original mission was hearts and minds, we will original mission was hearts and minds, we will bring original mission was hearts and minds, we will bring governance to" "minds, we will bring governance to this limited minds, we will bring governance to this limited area minds, we will bring governance to this limited area in minds, we will bring governance to this limited area in the centre of" "this limited area in the centre of Helmand this limited area in the centre of Helmand and this limited area in the centre of Helmand and within this limited area in the centre of Helmand and within a matter of this limited area in the centre of Helmand and within a matter of weeks" "Helmand and within a matter of weeks" "Helmand and within a matter of weeks 16 Air" "Helmand and within a matter of weeks 16 Air Assault" "Helmand and within a matter of weeks 16 Air Assault were" "Helmand and within a matter of weeks 16 Air Assault were fighting" "Helmand and within a matter of weeks 16 Air Assault were fighting for 16 Air Assault were fighting for their lives" "16 Air Assault were fighting for their lives and 16 Air Assault were fighting for their lives and no" "16 Air Assault were fighting for their lives and no governance, their lives and no governance, none at their lives and no governance, none at all, their lives and no governance, none at all, taking place?" "their lives and no governance, none at all, taking place?" "their lives and no governance, none at all, taking place?" "Had their lives and no governance, none at all, taking place?" "Had we their lives and no governance, none at all, taking place?" "Had we not at all, taking place?" "Had we not gone at all, taking place?" "Had we not gone north, at all, taking place?" "Had we not gone north, what would have at all, taking place?" "Had we not gone north, what would have happened gone north, what would have happened in your gone north, what would have happened in your estimation?" "gone north, what would have happened in your estimation?" "gone north, what would have happened in your estimation?" "That's not in your estimation?" "That's not for me to in your estimation?" "That's not for me to say." "You in your estimation?" "That's not for me to say." "You were in in your estimation?" "That's not for me to say." "You were in charge in your estimation?" "That's not for me to say." "You were in charge of the me to say." "You were in charge of the operational me to say." "You were in charge of the operational decision." "me to say." "You were in charge of the operational decision." "Yes." "me to say." "You were in charge of the operational decision." "Yes." "me to say." "You were in charge of the operational decision." "Yes." "So operational decision." "Yes." "So what's your estimation?" "operational decision." "Yes." "So what's your estimation? what's your estimation?" "I think Afghan what's your estimation?" "I think Afghan governance what's your estimation?" "I think Afghan governance in what's your estimation?" "I think Afghan governance in Helmand would" "Afghan governance in Helmand would have" "Afghan governance in Helmand would have collapsed," "Afghan governance in Helmand would have collapsed, I think you would have collapsed, I think you would have have collapsed, I think you would have seen have collapsed, I think you would have seen the have collapsed, I think you would have seen the Taliban breaking" "have collapsed, I think you would have seen the Taliban breaking out have seen the Taliban breaking out and you have seen the Taliban breaking out and you would have seen the Taliban breaking out and you would have have seen the Taliban breaking out and you would have had" "have seen the Taliban breaking out and you would have had your have seen the Taliban breaking out and you would have had your Alamos and you would have had your Alamos in and you would have had your Alamos in different" "and you would have had your Alamos in different parts and you would have had your Alamos in different parts of and you would have had your Alamos in different parts of Helmand." "SHOUTING" "SHOUTING" "Where" "Where has" "Where has he seen" "Where has he seen the" "Where has he seen the Taliban?" "Where has he seen the Taliban?" "Where?" "Where has he seen the Taliban?" "Where?" "The" "Where has he seen the Taliban?" "Where?" "The original" "Where has he seen the Taliban?" "Where?" "The original mission" "Where has he seen the Taliban?" "Where?" "The original mission was" "Where has he seen the Taliban?" "Where?" "The original mission was to" "Where?" "The original mission was to win" "Where?" "The original mission was to win hearts" "Where?" "The original mission was to win hearts and" "Where?" "The original mission was to win hearts and minds." "Where?" "The original mission was to win hearts and minds." "You would win hearts and minds." "You would accept, win hearts and minds." "You would accept, I guess, win hearts and minds." "You would accept, I guess, that win hearts and minds." "You would accept, I guess, that if only accept, I guess, that if only because we accept, I guess, that if only because we needed accept, I guess, that if only because we needed to" "accept, I guess, that if only because we needed to protect our because we needed to protect our soldiers, because we needed to protect our soldiers, that because we needed to protect our soldiers, that quite a lot" "because we needed to protect our soldiers, that quite a lot of because we needed to protect our soldiers, that quite a lot of Afghan soldiers, that quite a lot of Afghan hearts were soldiers, that quite a lot of Afghan hearts were lost in" "soldiers, that quite a lot of Afghan hearts were lost in the soldiers, that quite a lot of Afghan hearts were lost in the process?" "soldiers, that quite a lot of Afghan hearts were lost in the process?" "soldiers, that quite a lot of Afghan hearts were lost in the process?" "hearts were lost in the process?" "Undoubtedly." "hearts were lost in the process?" "Undoubtedly." "Yes, hearts were lost in the process?" "Undoubtedly." "Yes, undoubtedly." "Undoubtedly." "Yes, undoubtedly." "I accept" "Undoubtedly." "Yes, undoubtedly." "I accept that." "Undoubtedly." "Yes, undoubtedly." "I accept that." "Undoubtedly." "Yes, undoubtedly." "I accept that." "These" "Undoubtedly." "Yes, undoubtedly." "I accept that." "These guys" "Undoubtedly." "Yes, undoubtedly." "I accept that." "These guys here" "Undoubtedly." "Yes, undoubtedly." "I accept that." "These guys here are accept that." "These guys here are saying accept that." "These guys here are saying the accept that." "These guys here are saying the Taliban accept that." "These guys here are saying the Taliban - yeah, accept that." "These guys here are saying the Taliban - yeah, two accept that." "These guys here are saying the Taliban - yeah, two men?" "saying the Taliban - yeah, two men?" "Yeah?" "saying the Taliban - yeah, two men?" "Yeah?" "There." "saying the Taliban - yeah, two men?" "Yeah?" "There." "Taliban, saying the Taliban - yeah, two men?" "Yeah?" "There." "Taliban, yes?" "saying the Taliban - yeah, two men?" "Yeah?" "There." "Taliban, yes?" "REPORTER:" "Yeah?" "There." "Taliban, yes?" "REPORTER:" "How" "Yeah?" "There." "Taliban, yes?" "REPORTER:" "How much" "Yeah?" "There." "Taliban, yes?" "REPORTER:" "How much of" "Yeah?" "There." "Taliban, yes?" "REPORTER:" "How much of your" "Yeah?" "There." "Taliban, yes?" "REPORTER:" "How much of your original" "Yeah?" "There." "Taliban, yes?" "REPORTER:" "How much of your original plan" "Yeah?" "There." "Taliban, yes?" "REPORTER:" "How much of your original plan did" "How much of your original plan did you manage" "How much of your original plan did you manage to implement?" "How much of your original plan did you manage to implement?" "How much of your original plan did you manage to implement?" "Not you manage to implement?" "Not really very much." "I" "I think" "I think after the" "I think after the first" "I think after the first 18 months" "I think after the first 18 months of" "I think after the first 18 months of hard" "I think after the first 18 months of hard fighting," "I think after the first 18 months of hard fighting, understanding" "I think after the first 18 months of hard fighting, understanding the hard fighting, understanding the challenges hard fighting, understanding the challenges that hard fighting, understanding the challenges that the Taliban hard fighting, understanding the challenges that the Taliban posed," "challenges that the Taliban posed, our challenges that the Taliban posed, our expectation challenges that the Taliban posed, our expectation changed challenges that the Taliban posed, our expectation changed from challenges that the Taliban posed, our expectation changed from Belgium" "our expectation changed from Belgium in two our expectation changed from Belgium in two years our expectation changed from Belgium in two years to our expectation changed from Belgium in two years to Bangladesh our expectation changed from Belgium in two years to Bangladesh in" "our expectation changed from Belgium in two years to Bangladesh in 30." "in two years to Bangladesh in 30." "The in two years to Bangladesh in 30." "The scale in two years to Bangladesh in 30." "The scale of in two years to Bangladesh in 30." "The scale of the in two years to Bangladesh in 30." "The scale of the challenges in two years to Bangladesh in 30." "The scale of the challenges really" "The scale of the challenges really became" "The scale of the challenges really became apparent." "Jesus," "Jesus, stay" "Jesus, stay still." "Jesus, stay still." "Stay" "Jesus, stay still." "Stay still!" "Jesus, stay still." "Stay still!" "We got" "Jesus, stay still." "Stay still!" "We got to get" "Jesus, stay still." "Stay still!" "We got to get him" "Jesus, stay still." "Stay still!" "We got to get him out," "Jesus, stay still." "Stay still!" "We got to get him out, now!" "In" "In the" "In the first five" "In the first five years of" "In the first five years of the" "In the first five years of the Afghan" "In the first five years of the Afghan conflict," "In the first five years of the Afghan conflict, two" "In the first five years of the Afghan conflict, two British" "Afghan conflict, two British soldiers" "Afghan conflict, two British soldiers had been" "Afghan conflict, two British soldiers had been killed" "Afghan conflict, two British soldiers had been killed in" "Afghan conflict, two British soldiers had been killed in action." "soldiers had been killed in action." "In soldiers had been killed in action." "In 2006 soldiers had been killed in action." "In 2006 alone, soldiers had been killed in action." "In 2006 alone, that soldiers had been killed in action." "In 2006 alone, that rose soldiers had been killed in action." "In 2006 alone, that rose to soldiers had been killed in action." "In 2006 alone, that rose to 39." "In 2006 alone, that rose to 39." "A slow" "In 2006 alone, that rose to 39." "A slow drumbeat" "In 2006 alone, that rose to 39." "A slow drumbeat of" "In 2006 alone, that rose to 39." "A slow drumbeat of death began slow drumbeat of death began to roll." "Ministers" "Ministers said" "Ministers said the" "Ministers said the sacrifice" "Ministers said the sacrifice was" "Ministers said the sacrifice was about keeping" "Ministers said the sacrifice was about keeping the" "Ministers said the sacrifice was about keeping the streets" "Ministers said the sacrifice was about keeping the streets of Britain about keeping the streets of Britain safe about keeping the streets of Britain safe by about keeping the streets of Britain safe by denying about keeping the streets of Britain safe by denying Al-Qaeda" "about keeping the streets of Britain safe by denying Al-Qaeda a safe safe by denying Al-Qaeda a safe haven in Afghanistan." "Yet" "Yet a mission that had been" "Yet a mission that had been intend" "Yet a mission that had been intend to" "Yet a mission that had been intend to help" "Yet a mission that had been intend to help stabilise" "Yet a mission that had been intend to help stabilise Afghanistan to help stabilise Afghanistan seemed to to help stabilise Afghanistan seemed to have to help stabilise Afghanistan seemed to have made it to help stabilise Afghanistan seemed to have made it less stable." "There's" "There's no doubt" "There's no doubt that" "There's no doubt that the Taliban" "There's no doubt that the Taliban are growing" "There's no doubt that the Taliban are growing in" "There's no doubt that the Taliban are growing in confidence are growing in confidence and they are are growing in confidence and they are focusing are growing in confidence and they are focusing their are focusing their attention nowadays are focusing their attention nowadays on" "are focusing their attention nowadays on Kabul." "are focusing their attention nowadays on Kabul." "Well, are focusing their attention nowadays on Kabul." "Well, another nowadays on Kabul." "Well, another bomb blast nowadays on Kabul." "Well, another bomb blast on nowadays on Kabul." "Well, another bomb blast on the streets nowadays on Kabul." "Well, another bomb blast on the streets of bomb blast on the streets of Kabul." "This bomb blast on the streets of Kabul." "This is bomb blast on the streets of Kabul." "This is something bomb blast on the streets of Kabul." "This is something that's bomb blast on the streets of Kabul." "This is something that's becoming" "This is something that's becoming increasingly" "This is something that's becoming increasingly familiar." "By" "By the" "By the start" "By the start of" "By the start of 2007," "By the start of 2007, violence" "By the start of 2007, violence had spread" "By the start of 2007, violence had spread across" "By the start of 2007, violence had spread across much" "By the start of 2007, violence had spread across much of" "By the start of 2007, violence had spread across much of the" "By the start of 2007, violence had spread across much of the country spread across much of the country with spread across much of the country with a sevenfold spread across much of the country with a sevenfold increase spread across much of the country with a sevenfold increase in" "spread across much of the country with a sevenfold increase in suicide with a sevenfold increase in suicide bombings." "with a sevenfold increase in suicide bombings." "Many with a sevenfold increase in suicide bombings." "Many were being with a sevenfold increase in suicide bombings." "Many were being planned bombings." "Many were being planned and bombings." "Many were being planned and executed bombings." "Many were being planned and executed from bombings." "Many were being planned and executed from Pakistan." "The" "The then" "The then US" "The then US commander" "The then US commander was" "The then US commander was General Karl" "The then US commander was General Karl Eikenberry." "The then US commander was General Karl Eikenberry." "He had regular" "Karl Eikenberry." "He had regular meetings with" "Karl Eikenberry." "He had regular meetings with the" "Karl Eikenberry." "He had regular meetings with the Afghan" "Karl Eikenberry." "He had regular meetings with the Afghan President, meetings with the Afghan President, Hamid Karzai." "meetings with the Afghan President, Hamid Karzai." "Many meetings with the Afghan President, Hamid Karzai." "Many of meetings with the Afghan President, Hamid Karzai." "Many of my" "Hamid Karzai." "Many of my conversations" "Hamid Karzai." "Many of my conversations with" "Hamid Karzai." "Many of my conversations with him" "Hamid Karzai." "Many of my conversations with him were conversations with him were conversations conversations with him were conversations of conversations with him were conversations of maybe conversations with him were conversations of maybe 60 conversations with him were conversations of maybe 60 minutes," "conversations of maybe 60 minutes, and conversations of maybe 60 minutes, and 58 minutes would conversations of maybe 60 minutes, and 58 minutes would be conversations of maybe 60 minutes, and 58 minutes would be spent on" "and 58 minutes would be spent on Pakistan, and 58 minutes would be spent on Pakistan, and my and 58 minutes would be spent on Pakistan, and my view and 58 minutes would be spent on Pakistan, and my view was" "and 58 minutes would be spent on Pakistan, and my view was initially" "Pakistan, and my view was initially he" "Pakistan, and my view was initially he seems to be" "Pakistan, and my view was initially he seems to be obsessing" "Pakistan, and my view was initially he seems to be obsessing on" "Pakistan, and my view was initially he seems to be obsessing on this he seems to be obsessing on this subject, he seems to be obsessing on this subject, but I have he seems to be obsessing on this subject, but I have to" "he seems to be obsessing on this subject, but I have to tell you he seems to be obsessing on this subject, but I have to tell you as subject, but I have to tell you as I look back on" "subject, but I have to tell you as I look back on it, subject, but I have to tell you as I look back on it, no, subject, but I have to tell you as I look back on it, no, he was" "look back on it, no, he was absolutely look back on it, no, he was absolutely correct." "It look back on it, no, he was absolutely correct." "It was absolutely correct." "It was a very serious absolutely correct." "It was a very serious problem." "absolutely correct." "It was a very serious problem. absolutely correct." "It was a very serious problem." "I think absolutely correct." "It was a very serious problem." "I think around serious problem." "I think around that time serious problem." "I think around that time Pakistan serious problem." "I think around that time Pakistan came to serious problem." "I think around that time Pakistan came to the that time Pakistan came to the conclusion that time Pakistan came to the conclusion maybe the that time Pakistan came to the conclusion maybe the coalition conclusion maybe the coalition was going to" "conclusion maybe the coalition was going to be short conclusion maybe the coalition was going to be short of breath. going to be short of breath." "I believe going to be short of breath." "I believe very going to be short of breath." "I believe very strongly going to be short of breath." "I believe very strongly that, going to be short of breath." "I believe very strongly that, if believe very strongly that, if the coalition was believe very strongly that, if the coalition was not believe very strongly that, if the coalition was not going believe very strongly that, if the coalition was not going to" "believe very strongly that, if the coalition was not going to prevail coalition was not going to prevail in coalition was not going to prevail in Afghanistan, coalition was not going to prevail in Afghanistan, then Pakistan coalition was not going to prevail in Afghanistan, then Pakistan wanted" "in Afghanistan, then Pakistan wanted to in Afghanistan, then Pakistan wanted to make in Afghanistan, then Pakistan wanted to make sure that they in Afghanistan, then Pakistan wanted to make sure that they had some to make sure that they had some seat at" "to make sure that they had some seat at the table. to make sure that they had some seat at the table." "A seat to make sure that they had some seat at the table." "A seat for to make sure that they had some seat at the table." "A seat for Pakistan to make sure that they had some seat at the table." "A seat for Pakistan by at the table." "A seat for Pakistan by using at the table." "A seat for Pakistan by using the at the table." "A seat for Pakistan by using the Taliban at the table." "A seat for Pakistan by using the Taliban to at the table." "A seat for Pakistan by using the Taliban to gain at the table." "A seat for Pakistan by using the Taliban to gain influence using the Taliban to gain influence inside using the Taliban to gain influence inside Afghanistan." "using the Taliban to gain influence inside Afghanistan." "The using the Taliban to gain influence inside Afghanistan." "The CIA inside Afghanistan." "The CIA concluded inside Afghanistan." "The CIA concluded that inside Afghanistan." "The CIA concluded that America's inside Afghanistan." "The CIA concluded that America's closest concluded that America's closest ally concluded that America's closest ally in concluded that America's closest ally in the concluded that America's closest ally in the region could concluded that America's closest ally in the region could no" "concluded that America's closest ally in the region could no longer ally in the region could no longer be ally in the region could no longer be trusted." "ally in the region could no longer be trusted." "Pakistan's ally in the region could no longer be trusted." "Pakistan's intelligence be trusted." "Pakistan's intelligence service, be trusted." "Pakistan's intelligence service, the be trusted." "Pakistan's intelligence service, the ISI, be trusted." "Pakistan's intelligence service, the ISI, was be trusted." "Pakistan's intelligence service, the ISI, was playing service, the ISI, was playing a double game." "service, the ISI, was playing a double game." "You service, the ISI, was playing a double game." "You want to know service, the ISI, was playing a double game." "You want to know where double game." "You want to know where the double game." "You want to know where the headquarters double game." "You want to know where the headquarters of double game." "You want to know where the headquarters of the double game." "You want to know where the headquarters of the Afghan the headquarters of the Afghan Taliban the headquarters of the Afghan Taliban is?" "the headquarters of the Afghan Taliban is?" "Find the headquarters of the Afghan Taliban is?" "Find the the headquarters of the Afghan Taliban is?" "Find the headquarters of" "Taliban is?" "Find the headquarters of the" "Taliban is?" "Find the headquarters of the ISI." "Taliban is?" "Find the headquarters of the ISI." "They are in the" "Taliban is?" "Find the headquarters of the ISI." "They are in the same the ISI." "They are in the same building." "the ISI." "They are in the same building." "We've the ISI." "They are in the same building." "We've even the ISI." "They are in the same building." "We've even had the ISI." "They are in the same building." "We've even had reports the ISI." "They are in the same building." "We've even had reports of building." "We've even had reports of Pakistani building." "We've even had reports of Pakistani officers building." "We've even had reports of Pakistani officers being building." "We've even had reports of Pakistani officers being killed" "Pakistani officers being killed inside" "Pakistani officers being killed inside Afghanistan" "Pakistani officers being killed inside Afghanistan fighting" "Pakistani officers being killed inside Afghanistan fighting with" "Pakistani officers being killed inside Afghanistan fighting with the inside Afghanistan fighting with the Afghan inside Afghanistan fighting with the Afghan Taliban inside Afghanistan fighting with the Afghan Taliban as expert inside Afghanistan fighting with the Afghan Taliban as expert advisers" "Afghan Taliban as expert advisers to them." "Afghan Taliban as expert advisers to them." "The" "Afghan Taliban as expert advisers to them." "The Afghans" "Afghan Taliban as expert advisers to them." "The Afghans also" "Afghan Taliban as expert advisers to them." "The Afghans also insist" "Afghan Taliban as expert advisers to them." "The Afghans also insist that them." "The Afghans also insist that Pakistan them." "The Afghans also insist that Pakistan intelligence was them." "The Afghans also insist that Pakistan intelligence was protecting" "Pakistan intelligence was protecting the" "Pakistan intelligence was protecting the Taliban" "Pakistan intelligence was protecting the Taliban leader, Mullah" "Pakistan intelligence was protecting the Taliban leader, Mullah Omar." "the Taliban leader, Mullah Omar." "They the Taliban leader, Mullah Omar." "the Taliban leader, Mullah Omar." "They the Taliban leader, Mullah Omar." "They know the Taliban leader, Mullah Omar." "They know where he is?" "the Taliban leader, Mullah Omar." "They know where he is?" "Of" "They know where he is?" "Of course, he" "They know where he is?" "Of course, he is in" "They know where he is?" "Of course, he is in their safe" "They know where he is?" "Of course, he is in their safe house." "They know where he is?" "Of course, he is in their safe house." "They know where he is?" "Of course, he is in their safe house." "Did they he is in their safe house." "Did they ever he is in their safe house." "Did they ever tell he is in their safe house." "Did they ever tell you he is in their safe house." "Did they ever tell you where he was he is in their safe house." "Did they ever tell you where he was when you ever tell you where he was when you were - ever tell you where he was when you were" " I told ever tell you where he was when you were" " I told them where he ever tell you where he was when you were" " I told them where he was ever tell you where he was when you were" " I told them where he was and were" " I told them where he was and they got were" " I told them where he was and they got panicked." "were" " I told them where he was and they got panicked." "Not were" " I told them where he was and they got panicked." "Not once, were" " I told them where he was and they got panicked." "Not once, not they got panicked." "Not once, not twice." "they got panicked." "Not once, not twice." "Time and they got panicked." "Not once, not twice." "Time and again." "they got panicked." "Not once, not twice." "Time and again." "Why they got panicked." "Not once, not twice." "Time and again." "Why did you twice." "Time and again." "Why did you not twice." "Time and again." "Why did you not hand over Mullah twice." "Time and again." "Why did you not hand over Mullah Omar twice." "Time and again." "Why did you not hand over Mullah Omar to twice." "Time and again." "Why did you not hand over Mullah Omar to the not hand over Mullah Omar to the Afghans?" "not hand over Mullah Omar to the Afghans?" "not hand over Mullah Omar to the Afghans?" "not hand over Mullah Omar to the Afghans?" "He not hand over Mullah Omar to the Afghans?" "He never came." "not hand over Mullah Omar to the Afghans?" "He never came." "He not hand over Mullah Omar to the Afghans?" "He never came." "He did." "Afghans?" "He never came." "He did." "At the end" "Afghans?" "He never came." "He did." "At the end of" "Afghans?" "He never came." "He did." "At the end of 2002." "Afghans?" "He never came." "He did." "At the end of" "Afghans?" "He never came." "He did." "At the end of 2 2002 I don't think so, the end of 2 2002 I don't think so, never." "the end of 2 2002 I don't think so, never." "the end of 2 2002 I don't think so, never." "You don't the end of 2 2002 I don't think so, never." "You don't think never." "You don't think he is there today?" "never." "You don't think he is there today?" "never." "You don't think he is there today?" "never." "You don't think he is there today?" "No." "never." "You don't think he is there today?" "No." "never." "You don't think he is there today?" "No." "Where do you think he today?" "No." "Where do you think he is?" "today?" "No." "Where do you think he is?" "In today?" "No." "Where do you think he is?" "In his today?" "No." "Where do you think he is?" "In his own today?" "No." "Where do you think he is?" "In his own area." "today?" "No." "Where do you think he is?" "In his own area." "today?" "No." "Where do you think he is?" "In his own area." "today?" "No." "Where do you think he is?" "In his own area." "What, today?" "No." "Where do you think he is?" "In his own area." "What, in is?" "In his own area." "What, in Afghanistan." "is?" "In his own area." "What, in Afghanistan." "Yes." "is?" "In his own area." "What, in Afghanistan." "Yes." "You think Mullah" "Afghanistan." "Yes." "You think Mullah Omar" "Afghanistan." "Yes." "You think Mullah Omar is in Afghanistan?" "Afghanistan." "Yes." "You think Mullah Omar is in Afghanistan?" "Omar is in Afghanistan?" "Yes, indeed." "Omar is in Afghanistan?" "Yes, indeed." "Omar is in Afghanistan?" "Yes, indeed." "You must" "Omar is in Afghanistan?" "Yes, indeed." "You must be the indeed." "You must be the only person who indeed." "You must be the only person who does." "indeed." "You must be the only person who does." "indeed." "You must be the only person who does." "indeed." "You must be the only person who does." "Well, only indeed." "You must be the only person who does." "Well, only person, indeed." "You must be the only person who does." "Well, only person, no." "who does." "Well, only person, no." "The who does." "Well, only person, no." "The people who does." "Well, only person, no." "The people who don't who does." "Well, only person, no." "The people who don't believe who does." "Well, only person, no." "The people who don't believe that," "The people who don't believe that, is" "The people who don't believe that, is probably" "The people who don't believe that, is probably West" "The people who don't believe that, is probably West and United" "The people who don't believe that, is probably West and United States." "is probably West and United States." "I don't is probably West and United States." "I don't think is probably West and United States." "I don't think anybody else believes" "I don't think anybody else believes that he is in" "I don't think anybody else believes that he is in Pakistan." "By" "By the" "By the end" "By the end of" "By the end of 2008 many" "By the end of 2008 many of" "By the end of 2008 many of the" "By the end of 2008 many of the Bush" "By the end of 2008 many of the Bush administration's" "By the end of 2008 many of the Bush administration's major" "By the end of 2008 many of the Bush administration's major goals" "By the end of 2008 many of the Bush administration's major goals for administration's major goals for Afghanistan administration's major goals for Afghanistan were administration's major goals for Afghanistan were in administration's major goals for Afghanistan were in reverse." "administration's major goals for Afghanistan were in reverse." "The" "Afghanistan were in reverse." "The light" "Afghanistan were in reverse." "The light military" "Afghanistan were in reverse." "The light military footprint" "Afghanistan were in reverse." "The light military footprint was light military footprint was heavier." "light military footprint was heavier. 53,000 NATO light military footprint was heavier. 53,000 NATO troops, light military footprint was heavier. 53,000 NATO troops, mostly heavier. 53,000 NATO troops, mostly American, heavier. 53,000 NATO troops, mostly American, and rising." "heavier. 53,000 NATO troops, mostly American, and rising." "Washington," "American, and rising." "Washington, once" "American, and rising." "Washington, once determined" "American, and rising." "Washington, once determined to" "American, and rising." "Washington, once determined to avoid nation once determined to avoid nation building, once determined to avoid nation building, now once determined to avoid nation building, now spending once determined to avoid nation building, now spending many" "building, now spending many billions;" "building, now spending many billions; and building, now spending many billions; and Pakistan, building, now spending many billions; and Pakistan, once building, now spending many billions; and Pakistan, once their" "billions; and Pakistan, once their friend, billions; and Pakistan, once their friend, was billions; and Pakistan, once their friend, was betraying billions; and Pakistan, once their friend, was betraying them." "billions; and Pakistan, once their friend, was betraying them." "America friend, was betraying them." "America was friend, was betraying them." "America was getting friend, was betraying them." "America was getting sucked friend, was betraying them." "America was getting sucked in friend, was betraying them." "America was getting sucked in deeper friend, was betraying them." "America was getting sucked in deeper and was getting sucked in deeper and deeper was getting sucked in deeper and deeper and was getting sucked in deeper and deeper and there was getting sucked in deeper and deeper and there seemed" "was getting sucked in deeper and deeper and there seemed no way out." "Thank" "Thank you." "Thank you." "All" "Thank you." "All eyes" "Thank you." "All eyes turned" "Thank you." "All eyes turned to" "Thank you." "All eyes turned to a new" "Thank you." "All eyes turned to a new President" "Thank you." "All eyes turned to a new President for fresh" "Thank you." "All eyes turned to a new President for fresh thinking." "Thank you." "All eyes turned to a new President for fresh thinking." "Thank you." "All eyes turned to a new President for fresh thinking." "Thank" "President for fresh thinking." "Thank you so much," "President for fresh thinking." "Thank you so much, everybody." "President for fresh thinking." "Thank you so much, everybody." "Thank you so much, everybody." "Thank you very much." "you so much, everybody." "Thank you very much." "Thank you so much, everybody." "Thank you very much." "Thank you, you so much, everybody." "Thank you very much." "Thank you, everybody." "you so much, everybody." "Thank you very much." "Thank you, everybody." "We very much." "Thank you, everybody." "We meet very much." "Thank you, everybody." "We meet at one very much." "Thank you, everybody." "We meet at one of very much." "Thank you, everybody." "We meet at one of those very much." "Thank you, everybody." "We meet at one of those defining meet at one of those defining moments, meet at one of those defining moments, a moment meet at one of those defining moments, a moment when our meet at one of those defining moments, a moment when our nation" "meet at one of those defining moments, a moment when our nation is moments, a moment when our nation is at moments, a moment when our nation is at war, moments, a moment when our nation is at war, our" "moments, a moment when our nation is at war, our country moments, a moment when our nation is at war, our country in moments, a moment when our nation is at war, our country in turmoil" "moments, a moment when our nation is at war, our country in turmoil" " He at war, our country in turmoil" " He was at war, our country in turmoil" " He was left at war, our country in turmoil" " He was left with a very at war, our country in turmoil" " He was left with a very poor at war, our country in turmoil" " He was left with a very poor hand of was left with a very poor hand of cards, was left with a very poor hand of cards, with was left with a very poor hand of cards, with very" "was left with a very poor hand of cards, with very few was left with a very poor hand of cards, with very few choices." "was left with a very poor hand of cards, with very few choices." "When cards, with very few choices." "When Mr cards, with very few choices." "When Mr Obama cards, with very few choices." "When Mr Obama came cards, with very few choices." "When Mr Obama came aboard he cards, with very few choices." "When Mr Obama came aboard he was" "Mr Obama came aboard he was immediately" "Mr Obama came aboard he was immediately faced" "Mr Obama came aboard he was immediately faced with:" "Mr Obama came aboard he was immediately faced with: be" "Mr Obama came aboard he was immediately faced with: be careful, immediately faced with: be careful, don't immediately faced with: be careful, don't lose Afghanistan." "The" "The President" "The President asked" "The President asked me to" "The President asked me to fly" "The President asked me to fly with" "The President asked me to fly with him" "The President asked me to fly with him to" "The President asked me to fly with him to California" "The President asked me to fly with him to California in" "The President asked me to fly with him to California in early" "The President asked me to fly with him to California in early March him to California in early March 2009." "After him to California in early March 2009." "After reading him to California in early March 2009." "After reading my him to California in early March 2009." "After reading my report, we 2009." "After reading my report, we then spent 2009." "After reading my report, we then spent the 2009." "After reading my report, we then spent the better part 2009." "After reading my report, we then spent the better part of then spent the better part of a couple then spent the better part of a couple of then spent the better part of a couple of hours then spent the better part of a couple of hours going" "then spent the better part of a couple of hours going through it." "couple of hours going through it." "President couple of hours going through it." "President Obama couple of hours going through it." "President Obama had asked Bruce" "President Obama had asked Bruce Riedel" "President Obama had asked Bruce Riedel to" "President Obama had asked Bruce Riedel to write" "President Obama had asked Bruce Riedel to write a no holds" "President Obama had asked Bruce Riedel to write a no holds barred" "Riedel to write a no holds barred report on" "Riedel to write a no holds barred report on the" "Riedel to write a no holds barred report on the Afghan" "Riedel to write a no holds barred report on the Afghan crisis" "Riedel to write a no holds barred report on the Afghan crisis and report on the Afghan crisis and Riedel report on the Afghan crisis and Riedel did report on the Afghan crisis and Riedel did not pull report on the Afghan crisis and Riedel did not pull his" "report on the Afghan crisis and Riedel did not pull his punches." "report on the Afghan crisis and Riedel did not pull his punches." "Riedel did not pull his punches." "Defeat" "Riedel did not pull his punches." "Defeat is" "Riedel did not pull his punches." "Defeat is what" "Riedel did not pull his punches." "Defeat is what we were" "Riedel did not pull his punches." "Defeat is what we were staring in" "Defeat is what we were staring in the" "Defeat is what we were staring in the eye two" "Defeat is what we were staring in the eye two years" "Defeat is what we were staring in the eye two years ago, the eye two years ago, catastrophic defeat the eye two years ago, catastrophic defeat in the eye two years ago, catastrophic defeat in Afghanistan the eye two years ago, catastrophic defeat in Afghanistan with" "defeat in Afghanistan with the Taliban defeat in Afghanistan with the Taliban taking defeat in Afghanistan with the Taliban taking over defeat in Afghanistan with the Taliban taking over the defeat in Afghanistan with the Taliban taking over the southern" "Taliban taking over the southern half of the" "Taliban taking over the southern half of the country" "Taliban taking over the southern half of the country and" "Taliban taking over the southern half of the country and maybe half of the country and maybe being able to half of the country and maybe being able to march half of the country and maybe being able to march on Kabul" "half of the country and maybe being able to march on Kabul at some able to march on Kabul at some point in able to march on Kabul at some point in the future able to march on Kabul at some point in the future and the" "able to march on Kabul at some point in the future and the NATO able to march on Kabul at some point in the future and the NATO alliance in the future and the NATO alliance fragmenting in the future and the NATO alliance fragmenting and" "in the future and the NATO alliance fragmenting and falling in the future and the NATO alliance fragmenting and falling apart." "in the future and the NATO alliance fragmenting and falling apart." "The fragmenting and falling apart." "The President fragmenting and falling apart." "The President ordered fragmenting and falling apart." "The President ordered his fragmenting and falling apart." "The President ordered his staff to fragmenting and falling apart." "The President ordered his staff to go" "President ordered his staff to go back" "President ordered his staff to go back to" "President ordered his staff to go back to basics." "President ordered his staff to go back to basics." "What" "President ordered his staff to go back to basics." "What exactly" "President ordered his staff to go back to basics." "What exactly were back to basics." "What exactly were America's back to basics." "What exactly were America's goals back to basics." "What exactly were America's goals and back to basics." "What exactly were America's goals and how best to" "America's goals and how best to achieve them?" "America's goals and how best to achieve them?" "A gruelling" "America's goals and how best to achieve them?" "A gruelling policy achieve them?" "A gruelling policy review achieve them?" "A gruelling policy review ensued." "It achieve them?" "A gruelling policy review ensued." "It would achieve them?" "A gruelling policy review ensued." "It would take review ensued." "It would take eight long review ensued." "It would take eight long months." "In" "In" "In" "In settings" "In settings humbler" "In settings humbler than Air Force" "In settings humbler than Air Force One," "In settings humbler than Air Force One, it" "In settings humbler than Air Force One, it was equally bleak" "One, it was equally bleak for the Prime" "One, it was equally bleak for the Prime Minister." "One, it was equally bleak for the Prime Minister." "I had" "One, it was equally bleak for the Prime Minister." "I had got" "One, it was equally bleak for the Prime Minister." "I had got to" "Prime Minister." "I had got to Cardiff" "Prime Minister." "I had got to Cardiff station" "Prime Minister." "I had got to Cardiff station and" "Prime Minister." "I had got to Cardiff station and just" "Prime Minister." "I had got to Cardiff station and just got" "Prime Minister." "I had got to Cardiff station and just got on" "Prime Minister." "I had got to Cardiff station and just got on the" "Cardiff station and just got on the train that goes" "Cardiff station and just got on the train that goes up the" "Cardiff station and just got on the train that goes up the valley, train that goes up the valley, it was train that goes up the valley, it was packed train that goes up the valley, it was packed out, and" "train that goes up the valley, it was packed out, and suddenly was packed out, and suddenly the Prime was packed out, and suddenly the Prime Minister was on was packed out, and suddenly the Prime Minister was on the" "was packed out, and suddenly the Prime Minister was on the phone." "was packed out, and suddenly the Prime Minister was on the phone." "You" "Prime Minister was on the phone." "You can't not" "Prime Minister was on the phone." "You can't not take a call" "Prime Minister was on the phone." "You can't not take a call from" "Prime Minister was on the phone." "You can't not take a call from the Prime can't not take a call from the Prime Minister." "can't not take a call from the Prime Minister." "Gordon can't not take a call from the Prime Minister." "Gordon Brown can't not take a call from the Prime Minister." "Gordon Brown wanted can't not take a call from the Prime Minister." "Gordon Brown wanted Kim" "Minister." "Gordon Brown wanted Kim Howells'" "Minister." "Gordon Brown wanted Kim Howells' assessment" "Minister." "Gordon Brown wanted Kim Howells' assessment of" "Minister." "Gordon Brown wanted Kim Howells' assessment of the" "Minister." "Gordon Brown wanted Kim Howells' assessment of the Afghan" "Howells' assessment of the Afghan government" "Howells' assessment of the Afghan government led by Hamid" "Howells' assessment of the Afghan government led by Hamid Karzai." "government led by Hamid Karzai." "Seven government led by Hamid Karzai." "Seven years government led by Hamid Karzai." "Seven years earlier, government led by Hamid Karzai." "Seven years earlier, Karzai government led by Hamid Karzai." "Seven years earlier, Karzai had been" "Seven years earlier, Karzai had been seen" "Seven years earlier, Karzai had been seen as" "Seven years earlier, Karzai had been seen as Afghanistan's" "Seven years earlier, Karzai had been seen as Afghanistan's saviour." "Seven years earlier, Karzai had been seen as Afghanistan's saviour. seen as Afghanistan's saviour." "I told seen as Afghanistan's saviour." "I told him seen as Afghanistan's saviour." "I told him that we seen as Afghanistan's saviour." "I told him that we would seen as Afghanistan's saviour." "I told him that we would find it told him that we would find it increasingly told him that we would find it increasingly difficult told him that we would find it increasingly difficult trying told him that we would find it increasingly difficult trying to" "increasingly difficult trying to argue increasingly difficult trying to argue the increasingly difficult trying to argue the case increasingly difficult trying to argue the case for increasingly difficult trying to argue the case for continued increasingly difficult trying to argue the case for continued death" "argue the case for continued death and the argue the case for continued death and the maiming argue the case for continued death and the maiming of argue the case for continued death and the maiming of our argue the case for continued death and the maiming of our young" "argue the case for continued death and the maiming of our young people and the maiming of our young people in and the maiming of our young people in Afghanistan and the maiming of our young people in Afghanistan when they" "and the maiming of our young people in Afghanistan when they were in Afghanistan when they were fighting to in Afghanistan when they were fighting to prop in Afghanistan when they were fighting to prop up in Afghanistan when they were fighting to prop up a regime that" "fighting to prop up a regime that was basically fighting to prop up a regime that was basically up fighting to prop up a regime that was basically up to fighting to prop up a regime that was basically up to its" "fighting to prop up a regime that was basically up to its eyeballs fighting to prop up a regime that was basically up to its eyeballs in was basically up to its eyeballs in corruption." "was basically up to its eyeballs in corruption." "These was basically up to its eyeballs in corruption." "These mansions corruption." "These mansions had sprung corruption." "These mansions had sprung up corruption." "These mansions had sprung up in a corruption." "These mansions had sprung up in a part corruption." "These mansions had sprung up in a part of sprung up in a part of Kabul exclusively sprung up in a part of Kabul exclusively reserved sprung up in a part of Kabul exclusively reserved for exclusively reserved for Afghanistan's" "exclusively reserved for Afghanistan's military exclusively reserved for Afghanistan's military and political" "Afghanistan's military and political elite." "Afghanistan's military and political elite." "Ordinary" "Afghanistan's military and political elite." "Ordinary Afghans" "Afghanistan's military and political elite." "Ordinary Afghans could" "Afghanistan's military and political elite." "Ordinary Afghans could only elite." "Ordinary Afghans could only wonder elite." "Ordinary Afghans could only wonder how elite." "Ordinary Afghans could only wonder how such elite." "Ordinary Afghans could only wonder how such luxuries elite." "Ordinary Afghans could only wonder how such luxuries could be wonder how such luxuries could be afforded wonder how such luxuries could be afforded on a government wonder how such luxuries could be afforded on a government wage." "In" "In early" "In early 2009" "In early 2009 one" "In early 2009 one of" "In early 2009 one of the" "In early 2009 one of the US" "In early 2009 one of the US Senators" "In early 2009 one of the US Senators overseeing" "In early 2009 one of the US Senators overseeing America's" "In early 2009 one of the US Senators overseeing America's multibillion overseeing America's multibillion dollar overseeing America's multibillion dollar investment overseeing America's multibillion dollar investment in overseeing America's multibillion dollar investment in Afghanistan dollar investment in Afghanistan confronted" "dollar investment in Afghanistan confronted Karzai dollar investment in Afghanistan confronted Karzai in dollar investment in Afghanistan confronted Karzai in the confronted Karzai in the Presidential confronted Karzai in the Presidential Palace." "confronted Karzai in the Presidential Palace." "confronted Karzai in the Presidential Palace." "The corruption" "Presidential Palace." "The corruption in" "Presidential Palace." "The corruption in the" "Presidential Palace." "The corruption in the country" "Presidential Palace." "The corruption in the country is" "Presidential Palace." "The corruption in the country is rampant." "Presidential Palace." "The corruption in the country is rampant." "Very in the country is rampant." "Very frustrating in the country is rampant." "Very frustrating to go in the country is rampant." "Very frustrating to go there year in the country is rampant." "Very frustrating to go there year in, frustrating to go there year in, year frustrating to go there year in, year out, frustrating to go there year in, year out, and frustrating to go there year in, year out, and say:" "frustrating to go there year in, year out, and say: when frustrating to go there year in, year out, and say: when is year out, and say: when is somebody to year out, and say: when is somebody to jail" "year out, and say: when is somebody to jail in year out, and say: when is somebody to jail in Afghanistan for to jail in Afghanistan for ripping off to jail in Afghanistan for ripping off the" "to jail in Afghanistan for ripping off the Afghan to jail in Afghanistan for ripping off the Afghan people?" "to jail in Afghanistan for ripping off the Afghan people?" "When to jail in Afghanistan for ripping off the Afghan people?" "When is off the Afghan people?" "When is somebody off the Afghan people?" "When is somebody connected off the Afghan people?" "When is somebody connected to off the Afghan people?" "When is somebody connected to the highest somebody connected to the highest narcotics somebody connected to the highest narcotics dealer somebody connected to the highest narcotics dealer ever somebody connected to the highest narcotics dealer ever going somebody connected to the highest narcotics dealer ever going to go to" "narcotics dealer ever going to go to jail in narcotics dealer ever going to go to jail in this narcotics dealer ever going to go to jail in this country?" "narcotics dealer ever going to go to jail in this country?" "You narcotics dealer ever going to go to jail in this country?" "You said narcotics dealer ever going to go to jail in this country?" "You said this jail in this country?" "You said this to jail in this country?" "You said this to President jail in this country?" "You said this to President Karzai jail in this country?" "You said this to President Karzai at the jail in this country?" "You said this to President Karzai at the dinner to President Karzai at the dinner table?" "to President Karzai at the dinner table?" "to President Karzai at the dinner table?" "Absolutely, to President Karzai at the dinner table?" "Absolutely, just to President Karzai at the dinner table?" "Absolutely, just like table?" "Absolutely, just like I'm saying table?" "Absolutely, just like I'm saying it to table?" "Absolutely, just like I'm saying it to you." "How table?" "Absolutely, just like I'm saying it to you." "How much table?" "Absolutely, just like I'm saying it to you." "How much longer saying it to you." "How much longer are the saying it to you." "How much longer are the Afghan saying it to you." "How much longer are the Afghan people saying it to you." "How much longer are the Afghan people and are the Afghan people and the world going to are the Afghan people and the world going to have are the Afghan people and the world going to have to are the Afghan people and the world going to have to wait to" "are the Afghan people and the world going to have to wait to see things going to have to wait to see things change here?" "This" "This is" "This is Afghan" "This is Afghan MP" "This is Afghan MP Dr" "This is Afghan MP Dr Basher," "This is Afghan MP Dr Basher, famous" "This is Afghan MP Dr Basher, famous for" "This is Afghan MP Dr Basher, famous for giving most" "This is Afghan MP Dr Basher, famous for giving most of" "This is Afghan MP Dr Basher, famous for giving most of his" "This is Afghan MP Dr Basher, famous for giving most of his salary to" "This is Afghan MP Dr Basher, famous for giving most of his salary to the for giving most of his salary to the poor." "for giving most of his salary to the poor." "In for giving most of his salary to the poor." "In 2004 he for giving most of his salary to the poor." "In 2004 he resigned for giving most of his salary to the poor." "In 2004 he resigned as poor." "In 2004 he resigned as Karzai's poor." "In 2004 he resigned as Karzai's plans poor." "In 2004 he resigned as Karzai's plans minister in" "Karzai's plans minister in protest at" "Karzai's plans minister in protest at the" "Karzai's plans minister in protest at the epic" "Karzai's plans minister in protest at the epic scale" "Karzai's plans minister in protest at the epic scale of" "Karzai's plans minister in protest at the epic scale of corruption." "at the epic scale of corruption." "Karzai at the epic scale of corruption." "Karzai offered at the epic scale of corruption." "Karzai offered to at the epic scale of corruption." "Karzai offered to let at the epic scale of corruption." "Karzai offered to let him at the epic scale of corruption." "Karzai offered to let him host at the epic scale of corruption." "Karzai offered to let him host a new" "Karzai offered to let him host a new anti-corruption department" "Karzai offered to let him host a new anti-corruption department but" "Karzai offered to let him host a new anti-corruption department but only anti-corruption department but only he anti-corruption department but only he agreed anti-corruption department but only he agreed if he anti-corruption department but only he agreed if he could anti-corruption department but only he agreed if he could start" "anti-corruption department but only he agreed if he could start a new he agreed if he could start a new Cabinet." "What" "What was" "What was his response?" "So" "So you" "So you left the" "So you left the government?" "So you left the government?" "I left" "So you left the government?" "I left the government." "So you left the government?" "I left the government." "In" "So you left the government?" "I left the government." "In August" "So you left the government?" "I left the government." "In August 2009, the government." "In August 2009, Karzai the government." "In August 2009, Karzai stood the government." "In August 2009, Karzai stood for re-election." "the government." "In August 2009, Karzai stood for re-election." "Voting" "Karzai stood for re-election." "Voting is" "Karzai stood for re-election." "Voting is underway" "Karzai stood for re-election." "Voting is underway in" "Karzai stood for re-election." "Voting is underway in Afghanistan's is underway in Afghanistan's election." "is underway in Afghanistan's election." "Corruption, is underway in Afghanistan's election." "Corruption, fraud, election." "Corruption, fraud, apathy and election." "Corruption, fraud, apathy and threats election." "Corruption, fraud, apathy and threats of election." "Corruption, fraud, apathy and threats of attacks and threats of attacks from the Taliban." "and threats of attacks from the Taliban." "and threats of attacks from the Taliban." "The and threats of attacks from the Taliban." "The allegations and threats of attacks from the Taliban." "The allegations of" "Taliban." "The allegations of vote-rigging" "Taliban." "The allegations of vote-rigging and" "Taliban." "The allegations of vote-rigging and fraud have been vote-rigging and fraud have been ringing vote-rigging and fraud have been ringing across vote-rigging and fraud have been ringing across the vote-rigging and fraud have been ringing across the plains of ringing across the plains of Afghanistan." "ringing across the plains of Afghanistan." "The ringing across the plains of Afghanistan." "The Presidential" "Afghanistan." "The Presidential election election was wreathed in corruption." "Ballot boxes were election was wreathed in corruption." "Ballot boxes were stuffed election was wreathed in corruption." "Ballot boxes were stuffed with election was wreathed in corruption." "Ballot boxes were stuffed with false" "Ballot boxes were stuffed with false papers." "The" "Ballot boxes were stuffed with false papers." "The campaigns" "Ballot boxes were stuffed with false papers." "The campaigns of" "Ballot boxes were stuffed with false papers." "The campaigns of both papers." "The campaigns of both frontrunners papers." "The campaigns of both frontrunners were papers." "The campaigns of both frontrunners were implicated." "papers." "The campaigns of both frontrunners were implicated." "Karzai frontrunners were implicated." "Karzai won frontrunners were implicated." "Karzai won a second frontrunners were implicated." "Karzai won a second term frontrunners were implicated." "Karzai won a second term in frontrunners were implicated." "Karzai won a second term in office, but frontrunners were implicated." "Karzai won a second term in office, but for won a second term in office, but for the won a second term in office, but for the West won a second term in office, but for the West it meant" "won a second term in office, but for the West it meant five won a second term in office, but for the West it meant five more won a second term in office, but for the West it meant five more years" "the West it meant five more years with a the West it meant five more years with a partner the West it meant five more years with a partner who the West it meant five more years with a partner who had" "the West it meant five more years with a partner who had become a with a partner who had become a liability." "with a partner who had become a liability." "And with a partner who had become a liability." "And whose with a partner who had become a liability." "And whose state with a partner who had become a liability." "And whose state of with a partner who had become a liability." "And whose state of mind liability." "And whose state of mind was also liability." "And whose state of mind was also ringing liability." "And whose state of mind was also ringing alarm bells." "was also ringing alarm bells." "President was also ringing alarm bells." "President Karzai was also ringing alarm bells." "President Karzai said to was also ringing alarm bells." "President Karzai said to me was also ringing alarm bells." "President Karzai said to me several" "President Karzai said to me several times" "President Karzai said to me several times that" "President Karzai said to me several times that he" "President Karzai said to me several times that he suspected" "President Karzai said to me several times that he suspected the" "President Karzai said to me several times that he suspected the British times that he suspected the British Army times that he suspected the British Army was times that he suspected the British Army was involved times that he suspected the British Army was involved in" "times that he suspected the British Army was involved in the drugs" "Army was involved in the drugs trade in" "Army was involved in the drugs trade in Helmand," "Army was involved in the drugs trade in Helmand, otherwise we" "Army was involved in the drugs trade in Helmand, otherwise we could have in Helmand, otherwise we could have ended in Helmand, otherwise we could have ended it." "in Helmand, otherwise we could have ended it." "He in Helmand, otherwise we could have ended it." "He was in Helmand, otherwise we could have ended it." "He was sure in Helmand, otherwise we could have ended it." "He was sure that in Helmand, otherwise we could have ended it." "He was sure that if we ended it." "He was sure that if we really wanted ended it." "He was sure that if we really wanted to, ended it." "He was sure that if we really wanted to, we could really wanted to, we could defeat the really wanted to, we could defeat the Taliban in really wanted to, we could defeat the Taliban in Helmand" "really wanted to, we could defeat the Taliban in Helmand and we were the Taliban in Helmand and we were choosing the Taliban in Helmand and we were choosing to keep the Taliban in Helmand and we were choosing to keep the" "the Taliban in Helmand and we were choosing to keep the fighting choosing to keep the fighting going in order choosing to keep the fighting going in order to choosing to keep the fighting going in order to give choosing to keep the fighting going in order to give us an" "in order to give us an excuse to be there. in order to give us an excuse to be there." "I mean, in order to give us an excuse to be there." "I mean, that's there." "I mean, that's an extraordinary there." "I mean, that's an extraordinary paranoia." "there." "I mean, that's an extraordinary paranoia." "Afghanistan extraordinary paranoia." "Afghanistan was extraordinary paranoia." "Afghanistan was beginning extraordinary paranoia." "Afghanistan was beginning to extraordinary paranoia." "Afghanistan was beginning to look extraordinary paranoia." "Afghanistan was beginning to look like extraordinary paranoia." "Afghanistan was beginning to look like just was beginning to look like just another was beginning to look like just another tin pot was beginning to look like just another tin pot dictatorship." "In" "In America," "In America, on" "In America, on 1st" "In America, on 1st December" "In America, on 1st December 2009, the" "In America, on 1st December 2009, the President" "In America, on 1st December 2009, the President announced" "In America, on 1st December 2009, the President announced the" "In America, on 1st December 2009, the President announced the results the President announced the results of his the President announced the results of his long-awaited the President announced the results of his long-awaited Afghan the President announced the results of his long-awaited Afghan review." "of his long-awaited Afghan review." "I want of his long-awaited Afghan review." "I want to of his long-awaited Afghan review." "I want to speak to you of his long-awaited Afghan review." "I want to speak to you tonight want to speak to you tonight about our want to speak to you tonight about our effort in want to speak to you tonight about our effort in Afghanistan want to speak to you tonight about our effort in Afghanistan and" "want to speak to you tonight about our effort in Afghanistan and the our effort in Afghanistan and the strategy our effort in Afghanistan and the strategy that our effort in Afghanistan and the strategy that my our effort in Afghanistan and the strategy that my administration" "strategy that my administration will pursue strategy that my administration will pursue to strategy that my administration will pursue to bring this strategy that my administration will pursue to bring this war strategy that my administration will pursue to bring this war to a" "pursue to bring this war to a successful conclusion." "pursue to bring this war to a successful conclusion." "After pursue to bring this war to a successful conclusion." "After years successful conclusion." "After years of successful conclusion." "After years of drift, successful conclusion." "After years of drift, America successful conclusion." "After years of drift, America seemed successful conclusion." "After years of drift, America seemed to successful conclusion." "After years of drift, America seemed to set successful conclusion." "After years of drift, America seemed to set its of drift, America seemed to set its compass." "It was of drift, America seemed to set its compass." "It was getting of drift, America seemed to set its compass." "It was getting out of compass." "It was getting out of Afghanistan." "compass." "It was getting out of Afghanistan." "But compass." "It was getting out of Afghanistan." "But not compass." "It was getting out of Afghanistan." "But not before compass." "It was getting out of Afghanistan." "But not before having" "Afghanistan." "But not before having one" "Afghanistan." "But not before having one last crack at" "Afghanistan." "But not before having one last crack at the Taliban." "Afghanistan." "But not before having one last crack at the Taliban." "If one last crack at the Taliban." "If I did one last crack at the Taliban." "If I did not one last crack at the Taliban." "If I did not think that the one last crack at the Taliban." "If I did not think that the security of did not think that the security of the United States did not think that the security of the United States and the did not think that the security of the United States and the safety" "the United States and the safety of the the United States and the safety of the American people the United States and the safety of the American people were the United States and the safety of the American people were at" "the United States and the safety of the American people were at stake in the American people were at stake in Afghanistan, the American people were at stake in Afghanistan, I would the American people were at stake in Afghanistan, I would gladly" "the American people were at stake in Afghanistan, I would gladly order" "Afghanistan, I would gladly order every single" "Afghanistan, I would gladly order every single one" "Afghanistan, I would gladly order every single one of" "Afghanistan, I would gladly order every single one of our" "Afghanistan, I would gladly order every single one of our troops home every single one of our troops home tomorrow." "every single one of our troops home tomorrow." "To every single one of our troops home tomorrow." "To reverse every single one of our troops home tomorrow." "To reverse the every single one of our troops home tomorrow." "To reverse the Taliban's tomorrow." "To reverse the Taliban's momentum, tomorrow." "To reverse the Taliban's momentum, the tomorrow." "To reverse the Taliban's momentum, the Generals tomorrow." "To reverse the Taliban's momentum, the Generals told tomorrow." "To reverse the Taliban's momentum, the Generals told the momentum, the Generals told the President there momentum, the Generals told the President there would need to momentum, the Generals told the President there would need to be" "President there would need to be a military surge." "President there would need to be a military surge." "The" "President there would need to be a military surge." "The President" "President there would need to be a military surge." "The President sent military surge." "The President sent another military surge." "The President sent another 30,000 troops military surge." "The President sent another 30,000 troops to war." "military surge." "The President sent another 30,000 troops to war." "This another 30,000 troops to war." "This has another 30,000 troops to war." "This has taken another 30,000 troops to war." "This has taken the another 30,000 troops to war." "This has taken the total number another 30,000 troops to war." "This has taken the total number of another 30,000 troops to war." "This has taken the total number of troops has taken the total number of troops in has taken the total number of troops in Afghanistan has taken the total number of troops in Afghanistan to has taken the total number of troops in Afghanistan to 142,000." "has taken the total number of troops in Afghanistan to 142,000." "What has taken the total number of troops in Afghanistan to 142,000." "What you in Afghanistan to 142,000." "What you do in Afghanistan to 142,000." "What you do today, you in Afghanistan to 142,000." "What you do today, you are going to in Afghanistan to 142,000." "What you do today, you are going to have to do today, you are going to have to live do today, you are going to have to live with do today, you are going to have to live with that" "do today, you are going to have to live with that shit do today, you are going to have to live with that shit for the do today, you are going to have to live with that shit for the next" "live with that shit for the next ten, live with that shit for the next ten, 20, live with that shit for the next ten, 20, 30 plus live with that shit for the next ten, 20, 30 plus years." "live with that shit for the next ten, 20, 30 plus years." "ten, 20, 30 plus years." "This President ten, 20, 30 plus years." "This President decided ten, 20, 30 plus years." "This President decided that once ten, 20, 30 plus years." "This President decided that once in," "President decided that once in, he was" "President decided that once in, he was in all" "President decided that once in, he was in all the way" "President decided that once in, he was in all the way and that" "President decided that once in, he was in all the way and that he was in all the way and that he needed was in all the way and that he needed to was in all the way and that he needed to give" "was in all the way and that he needed to give our was in all the way and that he needed to give our commanders was in all the way and that he needed to give our commanders in needed to give our commanders in Afghanistan the" "needed to give our commanders in Afghanistan the troops needed to give our commanders in Afghanistan the troops they needed to give our commanders in Afghanistan the troops they felt" "Afghanistan the troops they felt necessary" "Afghanistan the troops they felt necessary in order" "Afghanistan the troops they felt necessary in order to" "Afghanistan the troops they felt necessary in order to turn" "Afghanistan the troops they felt necessary in order to turn the necessary in order to turn the situation necessary in order to turn the situation around." "necessary in order to turn the situation around." "necessary in order to turn the situation around." "necessary in order to turn the situation around." "For the first situation around." "For the first time we situation around." "For the first time we had, if situation around." "For the first time we had, if you situation around." "For the first time we had, if you like, situation around." "For the first time we had, if you like, the situation around." "For the first time we had, if you like, the end time we had, if you like, the end state quantified time we had, if you like, the end state quantified in time we had, if you like, the end state quantified in military" "time we had, if you like, the end state quantified in military terms." "state quantified in military terms." "Up state quantified in military terms." "Up until state quantified in military terms." "Up until then we state quantified in military terms." "Up until then we had state quantified in military terms." "Up until then we had just state quantified in military terms." "Up until then we had just been" "Up until then we had just been increasing," "Up until then we had just been increasing, bit" "Up until then we had just been increasing, bit by" "Up until then we had just been increasing, bit by bit," "Up until then we had just been increasing, bit by bit, with" "Up until then we had just been increasing, bit by bit, with never increasing, bit by bit, with never any increasing, bit by bit, with never any clue of increasing, bit by bit, with never any clue of when" "increasing, bit by bit, with never any clue of when enough was any clue of when enough was going to be any clue of when enough was going to be enough." "any clue of when enough was going to be enough." "The any clue of when enough was going to be enough." "The Americans any clue of when enough was going to be enough." "The Americans decided be enough." "The Americans decided that be enough." "The Americans decided that to be enough." "The Americans decided that to secure be enough." "The Americans decided that to secure Helmand be enough." "The Americans decided that to secure Helmand 30,000 troops that to secure Helmand 30,000 troops were needed." "that to secure Helmand 30,000 troops were needed." "The that to secure Helmand 30,000 troops were needed." "The most that to secure Helmand 30,000 troops were needed." "The most Britain that to secure Helmand 30,000 troops were needed." "The most Britain could were needed." "The most Britain could supply were needed." "The most Britain could supply was were needed." "The most Britain could supply was 10,000." "were needed." "The most Britain could supply was 10,000." "If were needed." "The most Britain could supply was 10,000." "If the were needed." "The most Britain could supply was 10,000." "If the Americans supply was 10,000." "If the Americans hadn't supply was 10,000." "If the Americans hadn't gone supply was 10,000." "If the Americans hadn't gone into supply was 10,000." "If the Americans hadn't gone into Helmand, hadn't gone into Helmand, there would have hadn't gone into Helmand, there would have been hadn't gone into Helmand, there would have been a strategic hadn't gone into Helmand, there would have been a strategic defeat" "would have been a strategic defeat for would have been a strategic defeat for the British Army?" "would have been a strategic defeat for the British Army?" "would have been a strategic defeat for the British Army?" "would have been a strategic defeat for the British Army?" "Well, for the British Army?" "Well, there would have for the British Army?" "Well, there would have been for the British Army?" "Well, there would have been an for the British Army?" "Well, there would have been an inability for the British Army?" "Well, there would have been an inability to for the British Army?" "Well, there would have been an inability to get would have been an inability to get our would have been an inability to get our strategic would have been an inability to get our strategic objectives would have been an inability to get our strategic objectives secured" "our strategic objectives secured because our strategic objectives secured because the our strategic objectives secured because the force levels because the force levels required were because the force levels required were beyond because the force levels required were beyond us." "That's because the force levels required were beyond us." "That's not, were beyond us." "That's not, I think, quite were beyond us." "That's not, I think, quite the were beyond us." "That's not, I think, quite the same were beyond us." "That's not, I think, quite the same as were beyond us." "That's not, I think, quite the same as a strategic defeat quite the same as a strategic defeat for quite the same as a strategic defeat for the British quite the same as a strategic defeat for the British Army." "quite the same as a strategic defeat for the British Army." "It's for the British Army." "It's a strategic for the British Army." "It's a strategic defeat for NATO for the British Army." "It's a strategic defeat for NATO but strategic defeat for NATO but the British strategic defeat for NATO but the British Army would strategic defeat for NATO but the British Army would have strategic defeat for NATO but the British Army would have done" "strategic defeat for NATO but the British Army would have done its strategic defeat for NATO but the British Army would have done its job" "British Army would have done its job magnificently." "British Army would have done its job magnificently." "British Army would have done its job magnificently." "The" "British Army would have done its job magnificently." "The purpose of the magnificently." "The purpose of the surge magnificently." "The purpose of the surge is magnificently." "The purpose of the surge is to magnificently." "The purpose of the surge is to clear ground held magnificently." "The purpose of the surge is to clear ground held by magnificently." "The purpose of the surge is to clear ground held by the surge is to clear ground held by the Taliban." "surge is to clear ground held by the Taliban." "surge is to clear ground held by the Taliban." "surge is to clear ground held by the Taliban." "Smoking!" "Oh" "Oh yeah," "Oh yeah, baby." "Oh yeah, baby." "Love" "Oh yeah, baby." "Love you." "Oh yeah, baby." "Love you." "Do" "Oh yeah, baby." "Love you." "Do it" "Oh yeah, baby." "Love you." "Do it right." "Oh yeah, baby." "Love you." "Do it right." "Check?" "Oh yeah, baby." "Love you." "Do it right." "Check?" "Oh yeah, baby." "Love you." "Do it right." "Check?" "The" "Oh yeah, baby." "Love you." "Do it right." "Check?" "The Americans" "Oh yeah, baby." "Love you." "Do it right." "Check?" "The Americans want right." "Check?" "The Americans want to hand right." "Check?" "The Americans want to hand over right." "Check?" "The Americans want to hand over the right." "Check?" "The Americans want to hand over the whole of right." "Check?" "The Americans want to hand over the whole of Afghanistan hand over the whole of Afghanistan to hand over the whole of Afghanistan to Afghan hand over the whole of Afghanistan to Afghan security forces hand over the whole of Afghanistan to Afghan security forces by" "hand over the whole of Afghanistan to Afghan security forces by 2015, to Afghan security forces by 2015, when the to Afghan security forces by 2015, when the surge was to Afghan security forces by 2015, when the surge was announced" "to Afghan security forces by 2015, when the surge was announced the when the surge was announced the British Foreign when the surge was announced the British Foreign Secretary when the surge was announced the British Foreign Secretary and" "British Foreign Secretary and his special" "British Foreign Secretary and his special envoy" "British Foreign Secretary and his special envoy thought" "British Foreign Secretary and his special envoy thought this" "British Foreign Secretary and his special envoy thought this was special envoy thought this was wildly ambitious." "special envoy thought this was wildly ambitious." "We special envoy thought this was wildly ambitious." "We asked wildly ambitious." "We asked a very senior wildly ambitious." "We asked a very senior Afghan wildly ambitious." "We asked a very senior Afghan minister wildly ambitious." "We asked a very senior Afghan minister how long wildly ambitious." "We asked a very senior Afghan minister how long the senior Afghan minister how long the Afghan senior Afghan minister how long the Afghan authorities senior Afghan minister how long the Afghan authorities would senior Afghan minister how long the Afghan authorities would stay" "senior Afghan minister how long the Afghan authorities would stay in" "Afghan authorities would stay in Helmand" "Afghan authorities would stay in Helmand after" "Afghan authorities would stay in Helmand after we" "Afghan authorities would stay in Helmand after we left." "Afghan authorities would stay in Helmand after we left." "The" "Afghan authorities would stay in Helmand after we left." "The Foreign" "Helmand after we left." "The Foreign Secretary," "Helmand after we left." "The Foreign Secretary, David" "Helmand after we left." "The Foreign Secretary, David Miliband," "Helmand after we left." "The Foreign Secretary, David Miliband, was" "Secretary, David Miliband, was expecting" "Secretary, David Miliband, was expecting an answer" "Secretary, David Miliband, was expecting an answer three" "Secretary, David Miliband, was expecting an answer three years, six expecting an answer three years, six years, expecting an answer three years, six years, you expecting an answer three years, six years, you know," "expecting an answer three years, six years, you know, however expecting an answer three years, six years, you know, however long it years, you know, however long it took, years, you know, however long it took, and" "years, you know, however long it took, and the answer years, you know, however long it took, and the answer from years, you know, however long it took, and the answer from this" "took, and the answer from this minister, took, and the answer from this minister, very took, and the answer from this minister, very close took, and the answer from this minister, very close to" "took, and the answer from this minister, very close to President minister, very close to President Karzai, minister, very close to President Karzai, knows Helmand minister, very close to President Karzai, knows Helmand very" "minister, very close to President Karzai, knows Helmand very well, minister, very close to President Karzai, knows Helmand very well, his" "Karzai, knows Helmand very well, his answer" "Karzai, knows Helmand very well, his answer with a" "Karzai, knows Helmand very well, his answer with a broad grin" "Karzai, knows Helmand very well, his answer with a broad grin was:" "Karzai, knows Helmand very well, his answer with a broad grin was: 24 answer with a broad grin was: 24 hours, answer with a broad grin was: 24 hours, Foreign answer with a broad grin was: 24 hours, Foreign Secretary." "answer with a broad grin was: 24 hours, Foreign Secretary. 24 hours." "hours, Foreign Secretary. 24 hours." "The hours, Foreign Secretary. 24 hours." "The Americans hours, Foreign Secretary. 24 hours." "The Americans say hours, Foreign Secretary. 24 hours." "The Americans say that hours, Foreign Secretary. 24 hours." "The Americans say that since hours, Foreign Secretary. 24 hours." "The Americans say that since then" "The Americans say that since then there has been" "The Americans say that since then there has been much" "The Americans say that since then there has been much progress" "The Americans say that since then there has been much progress from there has been much progress from a $12 billion a there has been much progress from a $12 billion a year there has been much progress from a $12 billion a year training" "$12 billion a year training programme" "$12 billion a year training programme yet their" "$12 billion a year training programme yet their building programme yet their building an Afghan programme yet their building an Afghan army programme yet their building an Afghan army and police programme yet their building an Afghan army and police force" "Afghan army and police force whose cost" "Afghan army and police force whose cost neither" "Afghan army and police force whose cost neither they" "Afghan army and police force whose cost neither they nor the" "Afghan army and police force whose cost neither they nor the Afghans cost neither they nor the Afghans can cost neither they nor the Afghans can sustain." "cost neither they nor the Afghans can sustain." "Corruption cost neither they nor the Afghans can sustain." "Corruption and can sustain." "Corruption and drug taking can sustain." "Corruption and drug taking are can sustain." "Corruption and drug taking are still can sustain." "Corruption and drug taking are still endemic, can sustain." "Corruption and drug taking are still endemic, even can sustain." "Corruption and drug taking are still endemic, even while taking are still endemic, even while on guard taking are still endemic, even while on guard duty." "taking are still endemic, even while on guard duty." "Ultimately, taking are still endemic, even while on guard duty." "Ultimately, as long on guard duty." "Ultimately, as long as the on guard duty." "Ultimately, as long as the Afghan on guard duty." "Ultimately, as long as the Afghan government on guard duty." "Ultimately, as long as the Afghan government lacks as the Afghan government lacks legitimacy as the Afghan government lacks legitimacy with as the Afghan government lacks legitimacy with the as the Afghan government lacks legitimacy with the overwhelming legitimacy with the overwhelming majority," "legitimacy with the overwhelming majority, its legitimacy with the overwhelming majority, its security forces legitimacy with the overwhelming majority, its security forces may majority, its security forces may not majority, its security forces may not be able" "majority, its security forces may not be able to majority, its security forces may not be able to hold majority, its security forces may not be able to hold the Taliban not be able to hold the Taliban at bay." "not be able to hold the Taliban at bay." "At not be able to hold the Taliban at bay." "At the end of the not be able to hold the Taliban at bay." "At the end of the day, if you bay." "At the end of the day, if you are bay." "At the end of the day, if you are going bay." "At the end of the day, if you are going to bay." "At the end of the day, if you are going to follow are going to follow a counter-insurgency are going to follow a counter-insurgency strategy, are going to follow a counter-insurgency strategy, you counter-insurgency strategy, you must be" "counter-insurgency strategy, you must be true counter-insurgency strategy, you must be true to counter-insurgency strategy, you must be true to its counter-insurgency strategy, you must be true to its precept." "counter-insurgency strategy, you must be true to its precept." "One of must be true to its precept." "One of the must be true to its precept." "One of the principal must be true to its precept." "One of the principal precepts must be true to its precept." "One of the principal precepts is must be true to its precept." "One of the principal precepts is in a the principal precepts is in a counter-insurgency the principal precepts is in a counter-insurgency you are the principal precepts is in a counter-insurgency you are only counter-insurgency you are only as good as the" "counter-insurgency you are only as good as the government good as the government you represent and good as the government you represent and serve, good as the government you represent and serve, and good as the government you represent and serve, and in this" "good as the government you represent and serve, and in this case it's and serve, and in this case it's the government and serve, and in this case it's the government of Afghanistan." "and serve, and in this case it's the government of Afghanistan." "That and serve, and in this case it's the government of Afghanistan." "That is government of Afghanistan." "That is why government of Afghanistan." "That is why the government of Afghanistan." "That is why the Americans government of Afghanistan." "That is why the Americans say government of Afghanistan." "That is why the Americans say that government of Afghanistan." "That is why the Americans say that US troops why the Americans say that US troops will why the Americans say that US troops will only why the Americans say that US troops will only be why the Americans say that US troops will only be withdrawn" "why the Americans say that US troops will only be withdrawn from why the Americans say that US troops will only be withdrawn from combat will only be withdrawn from combat by will only be withdrawn from combat by 2015 will only be withdrawn from combat by 2015 if" "will only be withdrawn from combat by 2015 if the will only be withdrawn from combat by 2015 if the Afghans will only be withdrawn from combat by 2015 if the Afghans are will only be withdrawn from combat by 2015 if the Afghans are capable" "by 2015 if the Afghans are capable by by 2015 if the Afghans are capable by then by 2015 if the Afghans are capable by then of by 2015 if the Afghans are capable by then of taking by 2015 if the Afghans are capable by then of taking over;" "by 2015 if the Afghans are capable by then of taking over; not by 2015 if the Afghans are capable by then of taking over; not so, by 2015 if the Afghans are capable by then of taking over; not so, the" "by then of taking over; not so, the British." "In" "In May" "In May last" "In May last year" "In May last year Britain" "In May last year Britain got" "In May last year Britain got a new" "In May last year Britain got a new leader." "In May last year Britain got a new leader." "Like" "In May last year Britain got a new leader." "Like the" "In May last year Britain got a new leader." "Like the President, leader." "Like the President, the Prime Minister leader." "Like the President, the Prime Minister says leader." "Like the President, the Prime Minister says he leader." "Like the President, the Prime Minister says he too leader." "Like the President, the Prime Minister says he too will" "Prime Minister says he too will withdraw" "Prime Minister says he too will withdraw combat" "Prime Minister says he too will withdraw combat forces" "Prime Minister says he too will withdraw combat forces by" "Prime Minister says he too will withdraw combat forces by 2015. withdraw combat forces by 2015." "I believe withdraw combat forces by 2015." "I believe the withdraw combat forces by 2015." "I believe the country needs to believe the country needs to know there believe the country needs to know there is an believe the country needs to know there is an end point believe the country needs to know there is an end point to all" "believe the country needs to know there is an end point to all of there is an end point to all of this." "there is an end point to all of this." "So there is an end point to all of this." "So from there is an end point to all of this." "So from 2015 there will there is an end point to all of this." "So from 2015 there will not be this." "So from 2015 there will not be troops this." "So from 2015 there will not be troops in this." "So from 2015 there will not be troops in anything like this." "So from 2015 there will not be troops in anything like the this." "So from 2015 there will not be troops in anything like the numbers troops in anything like the numbers there troops in anything like the numbers there are troops in anything like the numbers there are now troops in anything like the numbers there are now and" "troops in anything like the numbers there are now and crucially there are now and crucially they will there are now and crucially they will not there are now and crucially they will not be there are now and crucially they will not be in a combat" "there are now and crucially they will not be in a combat role." "there are now and crucially they will not be in a combat role." "Unlike will not be in a combat role." "Unlike the will not be in a combat role." "Unlike the American will not be in a combat role." "Unlike the American President, will not be in a combat role." "Unlike the American President, however, the American President, however, the Prime the American President, however, the Prime Minister the American President, however, the Prime Minister intends the American President, however, the Prime Minister intends to" "the American President, however, the Prime Minister intends to withdraw" "Prime Minister intends to withdraw from" "Prime Minister intends to withdraw from combat" "Prime Minister intends to withdraw from combat by" "Prime Minister intends to withdraw from combat by 2015 whether or from combat by 2015 whether or not Afghan from combat by 2015 whether or not Afghan forces from combat by 2015 whether or not Afghan forces can from combat by 2015 whether or not Afghan forces can prevent Al-Qaeda" "Afghan forces can prevent Al-Qaeda returning" "Afghan forces can prevent Al-Qaeda returning to" "Afghan forces can prevent Al-Qaeda returning to Afghanistan," "Afghan forces can prevent Al-Qaeda returning to Afghanistan, even returning to Afghanistan, even though that returning to Afghanistan, even though that has returning to Afghanistan, even though that has always returning to Afghanistan, even though that has always been" "returning to Afghanistan, even though that has always been the though that has always been the justification though that has always been the justification for though that has always been the justification for our though that has always been the justification for our soldiers" "though that has always been the justification for our soldiers dying justification for our soldiers dying there." "justification for our soldiers dying there." "REPORTER:" "justification for our soldiers dying there." "REPORTER:" "If justification for our soldiers dying there." "REPORTER:" "If the there." "REPORTER:" "If the assessment at the there." "REPORTER:" "If the assessment at the end there." "REPORTER:" "If the assessment at the end of there." "REPORTER:" "If the assessment at the end of 2014 is that at the end of 2014 is that Afghanistan hasn't at the end of 2014 is that Afghanistan hasn't been at the end of 2014 is that Afghanistan hasn't been hardened" "Afghanistan hasn't been hardened against" "Afghanistan hasn't been hardened against the" "Afghanistan hasn't been hardened against the return" "Afghanistan hasn't been hardened against the return of" "Afghanistan hasn't been hardened against the return of Al-Qaeda, against the return of Al-Qaeda, might against the return of Al-Qaeda, might that deadline against the return of Al-Qaeda, might that deadline have against the return of Al-Qaeda, might that deadline have to slip?" "might that deadline have to slip?" "No, might that deadline have to slip?" "No, the might that deadline have to slip?" "No, the deadline is a might that deadline have to slip?" "No, the deadline is a deadline" "No, the deadline is a deadline and it" "No, the deadline is a deadline and it won't slip." "No, the deadline is a deadline and it won't slip." "We" "No, the deadline is a deadline and it won't slip." "We have" "No, the deadline is a deadline and it won't slip." "We have paid a very, it won't slip." "We have paid a very, very it won't slip." "We have paid a very, very large it won't slip." "We have paid a very, very large price it won't slip." "We have paid a very, very large price in it won't slip." "We have paid a very, very large price in terms of it won't slip." "We have paid a very, very large price in terms of the very large price in terms of the number very large price in terms of the number of very large price in terms of the number of young men" "very large price in terms of the number of young men and very large price in terms of the number of young men and indeed some number of young men and indeed some young number of young men and indeed some young women" "number of young men and indeed some young women that number of young men and indeed some young women that we've number of young men and indeed some young women that we've lost number of young men and indeed some young women that we've lost in" "young women that we've lost in Afghanistan." "young women that we've lost in Afghanistan." "Now young women that we've lost in Afghanistan." "Now over young women that we've lost in Afghanistan." "Now over 360 people." "I" "Afghanistan." "Now over 360 people." "I think if you are" "Afghanistan." "Now over 360 people." "I think if you are going" "Afghanistan." "Now over 360 people." "I think if you are going to" "Afghanistan." "Now over 360 people." "I think if you are going to maintain think if you are going to maintain public think if you are going to maintain public support and think if you are going to maintain public support and backing think if you are going to maintain public support and backing for" "public support and backing for had a we public support and backing for had a we are public support and backing for had a we are doing public support and backing for had a we are doing - for what we" "public support and backing for had a we are doing - for what we are we are doing - for what we are doing, we are doing - for what we are doing, it's we are doing - for what we are doing, it's important to" "we are doing - for what we are doing, it's important to give we are doing - for what we are doing, it's important to give people doing, it's important to give people a clear" "doing, it's important to give people a clear idea doing, it's important to give people a clear idea that doing, it's important to give people a clear idea that there is an end doing, it's important to give people a clear idea that there is an end to" "a clear idea that there is an end to this." "a clear idea that there is an end to this." "There a clear idea that there is an end to this." "There are a clear idea that there is an end to this." "There are lots a clear idea that there is an end to this." "There are lots of this." "There are lots of domestic political this." "There are lots of domestic political reasons this." "There are lots of domestic political reasons why this." "There are lots of domestic political reasons why the Prime political reasons why the Prime Minister has political reasons why the Prime Minister has selected political reasons why the Prime Minister has selected that political reasons why the Prime Minister has selected that option" "Minister has selected that option and we have" "Minister has selected that option and we have committed" "Minister has selected that option and we have committed ourselves as and we have committed ourselves as the British and we have committed ourselves as the British Army and we have committed ourselves as the British Army to the British Army to deliver against at" "the British Army to deliver against at that the British Army to deliver against at that timeline." "the British Army to deliver against at that timeline." "the British Army to deliver against at that timeline." "Whether or not the British Army to deliver against at that timeline." "Whether or not it at that timeline." "Whether or not it turns out to at that timeline." "Whether or not it turns out to be at that timeline." "Whether or not it turns out to be an absolute at that timeline." "Whether or not it turns out to be an absolute timeline turns out to be an absolute timeline or turns out to be an absolute timeline or a more turns out to be an absolute timeline or a more conditions-based turns out to be an absolute timeline or a more conditions-based approach" "or a more conditions-based approach nearer or a more conditions-based approach nearer the or a more conditions-based approach nearer the time, or a more conditions-based approach nearer the time, we shall find or a more conditions-based approach nearer the time, we shall find out." "or a more conditions-based approach nearer the time, we shall find out." "nearer the time, we shall find out." "Ah, nearer the time, we shall find out." "Ah, so nearer the time, we shall find out." "Ah, so it's nearer the time, we shall find out." "Ah, so it's not" "Ah, so it's not an absolute commitment" "Ah, so it's not an absolute commitment then?" "Ah, so it's not an absolute commitment then?" "That" "Ah, so it's not an absolute commitment then?" "That we will" "Ah, so it's not an absolute commitment then?" "That we will get commitment then?" "That we will get out commitment then?" "That we will get out of combat commitment then?" "That we will get out of combat operations, out of combat operations, irrespective out of combat operations, irrespective of out of combat operations, irrespective of conditions irrespective of conditions on the ground?" "irrespective of conditions on the ground?" "irrespective of conditions on the ground?" "irrespective of conditions on the ground?" "It's ground?" "It's certainly the intention." "ground?" "It's certainly the intention." "ground?" "It's certainly the intention." "The intention, ground?" "It's certainly the intention." "The intention, yes, ground?" "It's certainly the intention." "The intention, yes, but intention." "The intention, yes, but things could intention." "The intention, yes, but things could change?" "intention." "The intention, yes, but things could change?" "intention." "The intention, yes, but things could change?" "intention." "The intention, yes, but things could change?" "Well, intention." "The intention, yes, but things could change?" "Well, things things could change?" "Well, things could things could change?" "Well, things could always things could change?" "Well, things could always change." "things could change?" "Well, things could always change." "Things could always change." "Things change weekly could always change." "Things change weekly in could always change." "Things change weekly in politics, could always change." "Things change weekly in politics, in could always change." "Things change weekly in politics, in strategic weekly in politics, in strategic issues." "weekly in politics, in strategic issues." "For weekly in politics, in strategic issues." "For some weekly in politics, in strategic issues." "For some time, weekly in politics, in strategic issues." "For some time, Britain's issues." "For some time, Britain's special issues." "For some time, Britain's special representative issues." "For some time, Britain's special representative to special representative to Afghanistan had special representative to Afghanistan had been special representative to Afghanistan had been arguing special representative to Afghanistan had been arguing the" "Afghanistan had been arguing the only way" "Afghanistan had been arguing the only way out" "Afghanistan had been arguing the only way out was" "Afghanistan had been arguing the only way out was to start" "Afghanistan had been arguing the only way out was to start talking" "Afghanistan had been arguing the only way out was to start talking to only way out was to start talking to the Taliban." "Last" "Last summer," "Last summer, Sir Sherard" "Last summer, Sir Sherard Cowper-Coles" "Last summer, Sir Sherard Cowper-Coles attended" "Last summer, Sir Sherard Cowper-Coles attended a summit" "Cowper-Coles attended a summit at chequers" "Cowper-Coles attended a summit at chequers hosted" "Cowper-Coles attended a summit at chequers hosted by David" "Cowper-Coles attended a summit at chequers hosted by David Cameron." "Cowper-Coles attended a summit at chequers hosted by David Cameron." "chequers hosted by David Cameron." "Stabilising chequers hosted by David Cameron." "Stabilising Afghanistan chequers hosted by David Cameron." "Stabilising Afghanistan isn't" "Stabilising Afghanistan isn't a question of" "Stabilising Afghanistan isn't a question of pumping" "Stabilising Afghanistan isn't a question of pumping in" "Stabilising Afghanistan isn't a question of pumping in more and" "Stabilising Afghanistan isn't a question of pumping in more and more question of pumping in more and more troops question of pumping in more and more troops or question of pumping in more and more troops or training question of pumping in more and more troops or training up" "question of pumping in more and more troops or training up a vast troops or training up a vast national troops or training up a vast national army troops or training up a vast national army to troops or training up a vast national army" "troops or training up a vast national army to troops or training up a vast national army to garrison troops or training up a vast national army to garrison the national army to garrison the country;" "national army to garrison the country; it's national army to garrison the country; it's creating, national army to garrison the country; it's creating, arriving country; it's creating, arriving at a political" "country; it's creating, arriving at a political settlement country; it's creating, arriving at a political settlement and a political settlement and then using a political settlement and then using military a political settlement and then using military force" "a political settlement and then using military force to a political settlement and then using military force to underpin using military force to underpin that settlement using military force to underpin that settlement but not using military force to underpin that settlement but not to deliver" "that settlement but not to deliver it." "that settlement but not to deliver it." "that settlement but not to deliver it." "The simple that settlement but not to deliver it." "The simple conclusion that settlement but not to deliver it." "The simple conclusion that that settlement but not to deliver it." "The simple conclusion that we it." "The simple conclusion that we came it." "The simple conclusion that we came to it." "The simple conclusion that we came to is that it." "The simple conclusion that we came to is that most it." "The simple conclusion that we came to is that most insurgencies came to is that most insurgencies down came to is that most insurgencies down history came to is that most insurgencies down history and came to is that most insurgencies down history and around" "came to is that most insurgencies down history and around the came to is that most insurgencies down history and around the world down history and around the world have ended down history and around the world have ended in two" "down history and around the world have ended in two ways:" "down history and around the world have ended in two ways: one down history and around the world have ended in two ways: one with have ended in two ways: one with some military have ended in two ways: one with some military success," "have ended in two ways: one with some military success, but have ended in two ways: one with some military success, but secondly, some military success, but secondly, with some military success, but secondly, with some" "some military success, but secondly, with some political some military success, but secondly, with some political process with some political process and solution as with some political process and solution as well." "with some political process and solution as well." "The solution as well." "The new Prime Minister solution as well." "The new Prime Minister decided solution as well." "The new Prime Minister decided it solution as well." "The new Prime Minister decided it was solution as well." "The new Prime Minister decided it was time solution as well." "The new Prime Minister decided it was time to solution as well." "The new Prime Minister decided it was time to take" "Minister decided it was time to take political" "Minister decided it was time to take political risks" "Minister decided it was time to take political risks to start" "Minister decided it was time to take political risks to start talking" "Minister decided it was time to take political risks to start talking to political risks to start talking to the Taliban." "political risks to start talking to the Taliban." "Last political risks to start talking to the Taliban." "Last February the Taliban." "Last February Washington the Taliban." "Last February Washington agreed." "the Taliban." "Last February Washington agreed." "Something the Taliban." "Last February Washington agreed." "Something they" "Washington agreed." "Something they had" "Washington agreed." "Something they had previously" "Washington agreed." "Something they had previously opposed." "Washington agreed." "Something they had previously opposed." "The had previously opposed." "The Americans had previously opposed." "The Americans say had previously opposed." "The Americans say a Taliban had previously opposed." "The Americans say a Taliban team," "Americans say a Taliban team, including an" "Americans say a Taliban team, including an aide" "Americans say a Taliban team, including an aide to" "Americans say a Taliban team, including an aide to the including an aide to the leader, Mullah including an aide to the leader, Mullah Omar, including an aide to the leader, Mullah Omar, are including an aide to the leader, Mullah Omar, are now" "including an aide to the leader, Mullah Omar, are now engaged including an aide to the leader, Mullah Omar, are now engaged in" "Mullah Omar, are now engaged in exploratory talks." "Completely" "Completely eliminate" "Completely eliminate any" "Completely eliminate any collateral" "Completely eliminate any collateral damage." "Completely eliminate any collateral damage." "Clear" "Completely eliminate any collateral damage." "Clear to" "Completely eliminate any collateral damage." "Clear to fire." "Completely eliminate any collateral damage." "Clear to fire." "Shoot" "Completely eliminate any collateral damage." "Clear to fire." "Shoot again." "damage." "Clear to fire." "Shoot again." "One more." "1, 1, 2," "1, 2, 3, 1, 2, 3, 4," "1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6," "1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 guys." "1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 guys." "Two 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 guys." "Two guys 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 guys." "Two guys running 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 guys." "Two guys running away." "1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 guys." "Two guys running away." "1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 guys." "Two guys running away." "Whilst running away." "Whilst American officials are running away." "Whilst American officials are talking running away." "Whilst American officials are talking to running away." "Whilst American officials are talking to the officials are talking to the Taliban, officials are talking to the Taliban, American officials are talking to the Taliban, American Special Forces officials are talking to the Taliban, American Special Forces are" "Taliban, American Special Forces are also seeking" "Taliban, American Special Forces are also seeking out" "Taliban, American Special Forces are also seeking out and" "Taliban, American Special Forces are also seeking out and killing" "Taliban, American Special Forces are also seeking out and killing many also seeking out and killing many individual also seeking out and killing many individual Taliban commanders." "In" "In a typical" "In a typical 90-day" "In a typical 90-day unit" "In a typical 90-day unit special" "In a typical 90-day unit special units" "In a typical 90-day unit special units killed" "In a typical 90-day unit special units killed or" "In a typical 90-day unit special units killed or targeted" "In a typical 90-day unit special units killed or targeted 260 units killed or targeted 260 leaders." "units killed or targeted 260 leaders." "units killed or targeted 260 leaders." "It is units killed or targeted 260 leaders." "It is said units killed or targeted 260 leaders." "It is said only units killed or targeted 260 leaders." "It is said only this leaders." "It is said only this relentless leaders." "It is said only this relentless pressure leaders." "It is said only this relentless pressure will leaders." "It is said only this relentless pressure will persuade relentless pressure will persuade the relentless pressure will persuade the Taliban to relentless pressure will persuade the Taliban to negotiate relentless pressure will persuade the Taliban to negotiate seriously." "the Taliban to negotiate seriously." "The the Taliban to negotiate seriously." "The Taliban the Taliban to negotiate seriously." "The Taliban say the Taliban to negotiate seriously." "The Taliban say the the Taliban to negotiate seriously." "The Taliban say the only the Taliban to negotiate seriously." "The Taliban say the only outcome" "The Taliban say the only outcome will be" "The Taliban say the only outcome will be yet" "The Taliban say the only outcome will be yet more" "The Taliban say the only outcome will be yet more attacks" "The Taliban say the only outcome will be yet more attacks directed" "The Taliban say the only outcome will be yet more attacks directed at will be yet more attacks directed at coalition will be yet more attacks directed at coalition forces." "." "On" "On a moonless" "On a moonless night" "On a moonless night last" "On a moonless night last month" "On a moonless night last month American" "On a moonless night last month American Special Forces" "On a moonless night last month American Special Forces set" "On a moonless night last month American Special Forces set course" "American Special Forces set course for Pakistan." "American Special Forces set course for Pakistan." "Their" "American Special Forces set course for Pakistan." "Their target:" "for Pakistan." "Their target:" "Osama Bin for Pakistan." "Their target:" "Osama Bin Laden, for Pakistan." "Their target:" "Osama Bin Laden, the for Pakistan." "Their target:" "Osama Bin Laden, the man for Pakistan." "Their target:" "Osama Bin Laden, the man the for Pakistan." "Their target:" "Osama Bin Laden, the man the Taliban" "Bin Laden, the man the Taliban leadership" "Bin Laden, the man the Taliban leadership still" "Bin Laden, the man the Taliban leadership still revere as" "Bin Laden, the man the Taliban leadership still revere as the leadership still revere as the leader of leadership still revere as the leader of the leadership still revere as the leader of the Islamic leadership still revere as the leader of the Islamic Jihad" "leader of the Islamic Jihad against the leader of the Islamic Jihad against the infidel leader of the Islamic Jihad against the infidel invaders." "On" "On nights" "On nights like this" "On nights like this one," "On nights like this one, we can" "On nights like this one, we can say to" "On nights like this one, we can say to those" "On nights like this one, we can say to those families" "On nights like this one, we can say to those families who have lost to those families who have lost loved to those families who have lost loved ones to those families who have lost loved ones to to those families who have lost loved ones to Al-Qaeda's" "to those families who have lost loved ones to Al-Qaeda's terror:" "loved ones to Al-Qaeda's terror:" "justice has been loved ones to Al-Qaeda's terror:" "justice has been done." "I" "I couldn't" "I couldn't be" "I couldn't be more" "I couldn't be more proud." "It has" "I couldn't be more proud." "It has been" "I couldn't be more proud." "It has been a long" "I couldn't be more proud." "It has been a long ten years." "The" "The Americans" "The Americans may" "The Americans may have" "The Americans may have removed Bin" "The Americans may have removed Bin Laden from the" "The Americans may have removed Bin Laden from the scene," "The Americans may have removed Bin Laden from the scene, but" "The Americans may have removed Bin Laden from the scene, but what" "The Americans may have removed Bin Laden from the scene, but what of" "Laden from the scene, but what of his" "Laden from the scene, but what of his original" "Laden from the scene, but what of his original objectives?" "Laden from the scene, but what of his original objectives?" "The his original objectives?" "The objective his original objectives?" "The objective of his original objectives?" "The objective of September his original objectives?" "The objective of September 11th his original objectives?" "The objective of September 11th was his original objectives?" "The objective of September 11th was to objective of September 11th was to goad objective of September 11th was to goad the objective of September 11th was to goad the United objective of September 11th was to goad the United States" "objective of September 11th was to goad the United States into objective of September 11th was to goad the United States into invading goad the United States into invading Afghanistan." "goad the United States into invading Afghanistan." "Then goad the United States into invading Afghanistan." "Then they could goad the United States into invading Afghanistan." "Then they could destroy" "Afghanistan." "Then they could destroy an American" "Afghanistan." "Then they could destroy an American army" "Afghanistan." "Then they could destroy an American army in" "Afghanistan." "Then they could destroy an American army in Afghanistan, an American army in Afghanistan, shatter an American army in Afghanistan, shatter our an American army in Afghanistan, shatter our will an American army in Afghanistan, shatter our will at home" "an American army in Afghanistan, shatter our will at home and an American army in Afghanistan, shatter our will at home and lead shatter our will at home and lead the shatter our will at home and lead the United States" "shatter our will at home and lead the United States and shatter our will at home and lead the United States and allies shatter our will at home and lead the United States and allies to the United States and allies to get out of" "the United States and allies to get out of the the United States and allies to get out of the Islamic the United States and allies to get out of the Islamic world." "Bin" "Bin Laden" "Bin Laden did" "Bin Laden did provoke" "Bin Laden did provoke the" "Bin Laden did provoke the longest" "Bin Laden did provoke the longest war" "Bin Laden did provoke the longest war in" "Bin Laden did provoke the longest war in America's" "Bin Laden did provoke the longest war in America's history" "Bin Laden did provoke the longest war in America's history and" "Bin Laden did provoke the longest war in America's history and the war in America's history and the financial war in America's history and the financial cost war in America's history and the financial cost has war in America's history and the financial cost has become" "financial cost has become unsustainable, financial cost has become unsustainable, never mind financial cost has become unsustainable, never mind the financial cost has become unsustainable, never mind the human unsustainable, never mind the human toll." "." "They" "They are" "They are going" "They are going to" "They are going to say" "They are going to say that" "They are going to say that we" "They are going to say that we kill" "They are going to say that we kill your" "They are going to say that we kill your women" "They are going to say that we kill your women and" "They are going to say that we kill your women and your children, your women and your children, and that's your women and your children, and that's not your women and your children, and that's not true." "your women and your children, and that's not true." "So your women and your children, and that's not true." "So what your women and your children, and that's not true." "So what about your women and your children, and that's not true." "So what about the that's not true." "So what about the coalition's that's not true." "So what about the coalition's war that's not true." "So what about the coalition's war objectives?" "that's not true." "So what about the coalition's war objectives?" "They coalition's war objectives?" "They say they coalition's war objectives?" "They say they have coalition's war objectives?" "They say they have dismantled coalition's war objectives?" "They say they have dismantled Al-Qaeda's coalition's war objectives?" "They say they have dismantled Al-Qaeda's base they have dismantled Al-Qaeda's base in they have dismantled Al-Qaeda's base in Afghanistan, they have dismantled Al-Qaeda's base in Afghanistan, but they have dismantled Al-Qaeda's base in Afghanistan, but it has" "they have dismantled Al-Qaeda's base in Afghanistan, but it has been in Afghanistan, but it has been remantled in Afghanistan, but it has been remantled across the in Afghanistan, but it has been remantled across the border" "remantled across the border in Afghanistan." "remantled across the border in Afghanistan." "We remantled across the border in Afghanistan." "We have remantled across the border in Afghanistan." "We have not remantled across the border in Afghanistan." "We have not succeeded" "Afghanistan." "We have not succeeded yet" "Afghanistan." "We have not succeeded yet in" "Afghanistan." "We have not succeeded yet in ensuring" "Afghanistan." "We have not succeeded yet in ensuring that" "Afghanistan." "We have not succeeded yet in ensuring that Al-Qaeda" "Afghanistan." "We have not succeeded yet in ensuring that Al-Qaeda cannot yet in ensuring that Al-Qaeda cannot return here." "yet in ensuring that Al-Qaeda cannot return here." "Ten yet in ensuring that Al-Qaeda cannot return here." "Ten years yet in ensuring that Al-Qaeda cannot return here." "Ten years ago return here." "Ten years ago we thought we return here." "Ten years ago we thought we could get return here." "Ten years ago we thought we could get in and return here." "Ten years ago we thought we could get in and out thought we could get in and out quickly." "thought we could get in and out quickly." "Today, thought we could get in and out quickly." "Today, we thought we could get in and out quickly." "Today, we are thought we could get in and out quickly." "Today, we are still quickly." "Today, we are still struggling quickly." "Today, we are still struggling to quickly." "Today, we are still struggling to build quickly." "Today, we are still struggling to build an quickly." "Today, we are still struggling to build an Afghan struggling to build an Afghan government struggling to build an Afghan government that can struggling to build an Afghan government that can stand struggling to build an Afghan government that can stand on" "struggling to build an Afghan government that can stand on its struggling to build an Afghan government that can stand on its own government that can stand on its own two feet." "government that can stand on its own two feet." "And government that can stand on its own two feet." "And now we government that can stand on its own two feet." "And now we are government that can stand on its own two feet." "And now we are losing two feet." "And now we are losing patience. two feet." "And now we are losing patience." "I think two feet." "And now we are losing patience." "I think no two feet." "And now we are losing patience." "I think no one two feet." "And now we are losing patience." "I think no one really patience." "I think no one really understood, patience." "I think no one really understood, perhaps patience." "I think no one really understood, perhaps still no patience." "I think no one really understood, perhaps still no one understood, perhaps still no one really understood, perhaps still no one really does understood, perhaps still no one really does understand, understood, perhaps still no one really does understand, the" "understood, perhaps still no one really does understand, the scale really does understand, the scale of the really does understand, the scale of the challenge really does understand, the scale of the challenge we've really does understand, the scale of the challenge we've taken" "really does understand, the scale of the challenge we've taken on really does understand, the scale of the challenge we've taken on in the challenge we've taken on in Afghanistan." "the challenge we've taken on in Afghanistan." "We the challenge we've taken on in Afghanistan." "We would never the challenge we've taken on in Afghanistan." "We would never in the challenge we've taken on in Afghanistan." "We would never in the" "Afghanistan." "We would never in the 19th" "Afghanistan." "We would never in the 19th century" "Afghanistan." "We would never in the 19th century have" "Afghanistan." "We would never in the 19th century have created a" "Afghanistan." "We would never in the 19th century have created a colony, 19th century have created a colony, run 19th century have created a colony, run it for" "19th century have created a colony, run it for five or ten 19th century have created a colony, run it for five or ten years," "19th century have created a colony, run it for five or ten years, and run it for five or ten years, and then run it for five or ten years, and then said:" "run it for five or ten years, and then said: it's over to run it for five or ten years, and then said: it's over to you run it for five or ten years, and then said: it's over to you now." "run it for five or ten years, and then said: it's over to you now." "But then said: it's over to you now." "But that's then said: it's over to you now." "But that's really then said: it's over to you now." "But that's really what then said: it's over to you now." "But that's really what our then said: it's over to you now." "But that's really what our so-called that's really what our so-called strategy that's really what our so-called strategy in Afghanistan that's really what our so-called strategy in Afghanistan is." "that's really what our so-called strategy in Afghanistan is." "If that's really what our so-called strategy in Afghanistan is." "If it's strategy in Afghanistan is." "If it's going strategy in Afghanistan is." "If it's going to strategy in Afghanistan is." "If it's going to take strategy in Afghanistan is." "If it's going to take 30 years strategy in Afghanistan is." "If it's going to take 30 years to strategy in Afghanistan is." "If it's going to take 30 years to stabilise going to take 30 years to stabilise Afghanistan, going to take 30 years to stabilise Afghanistan, let the going to take 30 years to stabilise Afghanistan, let the Afghans" "going to take 30 years to stabilise Afghanistan, let the Afghans go" "Afghanistan, let the Afghans go through" "Afghanistan, let the Afghans go through those" "Afghanistan, let the Afghans go through those three years" "Afghanistan, let the Afghans go through those three years of through those three years of stabilisation, through those three years of stabilisation, because we will through those three years of stabilisation, because we will never stabilisation, because we will never do it." "stabilisation, because we will never do it." "We stabilisation, because we will never do it." "We have stabilisation, because we will never do it." "We have not stabilisation, because we will never do it." "We have not 30 stabilisation, because we will never do it." "We have not 30 years stabilisation, because we will never do it." "We have not 30 years but stabilisation, because we will never do it." "We have not 30 years but just do it." "We have not 30 years but just three years do it." "We have not 30 years but just three years to do it." "We have not 30 years but just three years to get it do it." "We have not 30 years but just three years to get it finally do it." "We have not 30 years but just three years to get it finally right." "three years to get it finally right." "The three years to get it finally right." "The armies three years to get it finally right." "The armies of three years to get it finally right." "The armies of the three years to get it finally right." "The armies of the international" "The armies of the international coalition" "The armies of the international coalition are" "The armies of the international coalition are all" "The armies of the international coalition are all heading" "The armies of the international coalition are all heading for" "The armies of the international coalition are all heading for the coalition are all heading for the exits." "Next" "Next week we" "Next week we tell" "Next week we tell the inside story" "Next week we tell the inside story of" "Next week we tell the inside story of the" "Next week we tell the inside story of the bloody" "Next week we tell the inside story of the bloody five-year" "Next week we tell the inside story of the bloody five-year battle for of the bloody five-year battle for Helmand, of the bloody five-year battle for Helmand, with of the bloody five-year battle for Helmand, with unique of the bloody five-year battle for Helmand, with unique access" "of the bloody five-year battle for Helmand, with unique access to the" "Helmand, with unique access to the Generals" "Helmand, with unique access to the Generals and" "Helmand, with unique access to the Generals and front line" "Helmand, with unique access to the Generals and front line troops who" "Generals and front line troops who have" "Generals and front line troops who have had" "Generals and front line troops who have had to fight it." "This programme contains very strong language" "We was massively stretched at the time." "Massively hard pushed." "We were meeting force for force, small arms, rockets." "BULLETS RICOCHET" "He knew he was dying." "He's one of the bravest blokes I've ever had the pleasure of working with." "We'd hit them again and again and again." "We killed 24 guys that day." "The battle for Helmand has cost thousands of Afghan and hundreds of British lives." "There are ghosts of them all over the place." "You never really forget them." "You can't possibly forget them." "I don't think a day goes by when I don't think of them." "We've just had some incoming fire from that side..." "'I've been reporting from Afghanistan for more than 20 years." "'In this film, I'm going to look behind the headlines 'of Britain's bloody five-year campaign in Helmand.'" "But did it really have to be this tough?" "Were the objectives set by the generals and politicians realistic?" "The gap between policy-making and its subsequent implementation was far too wide." "We've muddled through." "This is the story of how Britain "muddled" from one plan to another." "Yes, it was a stretch, a risk." "But we're paratroopers, we're British soldiers, that's what we do." "The story of how the nation was not prepared to pay the price for success." "Shit!" "I asked on a daily, weekly, basis for more troops, more helicopters." "We could not cede pieces of ground to the insurgent the way we had done there." "The British force in Helmand was under-resourced." "But most of all, it's the story of those who had to face the consequences of a war that others had not thought through." "Roughly a hundred men holding a defensive position in the most hostile town, in the most hostile country in the world." "We came in via Chinooks with some intense manoeuvring, which was quite good." "We de-bussed off the Chinook and it was then we came under contact." "RAPID GUNFURE" "Helmand - the summer of 2006." "16 Air Assault Brigade is in action." "The intensity of the fighting took us by surprise, not least because the intelligence told us there wouldn't be Taliban when we arrived." "We took a major weight of fire." "Being my first experience, I thought it was a lot of fire!" "They were throwing grenades over the wall, which were landing within metres of us." "It was an absolute miracle not one of us even got hit." "Heavy firepower was often needed to support the troops." "Fucking hell!" "Fucking hell, boys!" "RPG!" "We was in a compound with a small archway, which was no more than three feet high, and now there was fire coming through the archway." "We were sending fire back through." "At my command!" "The commander said, "If you haven't got a wife or children, follow me."" "Looking back, it's just a funny thing." "To move a step further would have been suicidal." "We literally dived on the floor and crawled back through the hole." "They usually found themselves overstretched and outnumbered." "We didn't want to retreat, so we just...we carried on fighting." "And in the end, a couple of Apaches came and an A10 Thunderbolt." "INDISTINCT SPEECH" "That pretty much obliterated what was left of the enemy and now we were able, in the end, to withdraw in absolute silence, under no enemy contact." "The primary mission was meant to be reconstruction." "So how did Britain end up at war?" "INDISTINCT" "Things looked very different when going to Afghanistan was first considered." "If you look at the situation at the end of 2004, when the decision to deploy south-east was taken, things were pretty good." "There was virtually no violence in Helmand." "By then, Britain had been at war in Iraq for more than 18 months." "The public didn't like it." "And when the government suggested sending even more troops to Iraq, the generals pushed their own alternative." "What I can say, remembering conversations with those people at the time, is that they defined this mission in opposition to Iraq." "They saw this place, by contrast, as a chance to involve those forces in a different, new and exciting mission." "The generals got their way." "The British Government announced a mission to develop Helmand, saying it would only fight if it absolutely had to." "We would be perfectly happy to leave in three years' time without firing one shot, because our mission is to protect the reconstruction." "In one of the poorest parts of the world, people could certainly use the help, and it was hoped the Afghans would welcome it." "I think there was a naivety on a sort of corporate level that people felt we were going to go into Afghanistan and hand out bread and milk and deliver development and reconstruction." "Brigadier Butler had already commanded the Special Air Service in Afghanistan and would now lead the 1st Brigade into Helmand." "He points to intelligence failures." "I think in some ways there was simply insufficient information to develop a long-term strategy for Afghanistan based on the knowledge which we had in 2005." "Helmand Province." "23,000 square miles of mountains, desert and farmland." "It's half the size of England." "The province was well known only for opium poppies, supplying 40% of the world's heroin." "There was a whole series of people who just simply did not want us there." "The warlords from the former regime, the narco criminals who were making hundreds of millions of pounds out of the opiate industry, and then the Taliban themselves." "So those three very powerful groups were always going to react to our presence." "So in April 2006 the initial elements of 16 Air Assault Brigade began arriving here at Camp Tombstone, which at the time was a rather lonely outpost of the US Special Forces in the desert in Helmand Province." "For the first couple of months we were patrolling in soft hats a fairly sort of unaggressive posture and the real aim was just to get in to the local town and the surrounding areas, speak to the locals and identify tasks that could be fulfilled by aid agencies, NGO's for reconstruction." "Of the nearly 3,800 personnel first sent, the majority were engineers and support troops." "They were there to build the Camp Bastion base and develop the main centres, Lashkar Gar and Gereshk." "Only about a quarter of the people who went out on that initial deployment were the three Para Battle Group, the combat infantry but very soon after they got here they realised they were walking into a maelstrom." "The trouble started in the northern valleys, volatile opium country where armed groups of the drug lords, insurgents and tribesmen went on the offensive." "These attacks in Now Zad, Mushakala and Sangin were challenging our very authority and reason for being there." "The Paras started to fight back." "But that exposed the reality that Butler faced competing missions fighting the insurgents versus bolstering the Afghan Government through good deeds." "By mid-June the crisis had focused at a place where opium trading, insurgency, and hatred of outsiders came together in their most violent form." "The northern district, Sangin." "Tribesmen killed dozens of the district governor's supporters and the police." "And so Helmand's Governor demanded the British do something." "Their mission was to maintain security in Helmand." "if they were not deploying their troops to those districts to the north we may lost those districts." "Both he and President Karzai said if you're not prepared to fight and if you're not prepared to protect our flag and protect our people, why are you here?" "The British now faced a critical decision." "keeping the Afghan government flag flying meant defending Sangin with British troops." "Everyone was involved, from me to my brigade commander, to especially the Afghan Governor at the time and certainly the UK government." "Implementing the decision to act rested with Colonel Tootal." "Although we never really had the resources to do it in the way that I would have wanted to, then the logic was sound and we'd been asked to do something." "After 20 minutes of deliberation, he agreed to do it." "Yes, it was a stretch, yes, it was a risk, but, we're paratroopers, we're British soldiers, that's what we do, and that's exactly what we did." "They were equipped only for a brief mission north." "Our kit was packed for exactly that - three to four days." "Really, really minimal stuff." "As soon as they arrived they tried to fortify the local government HQ or District Centre." "We were filling cardboard boxes with rubble and building up defences just basically out of anything you could." "Filling up 24-hour ration boxes." "we just made do with what was there, which wasn't a lot." "What do you want us firing into?" "Same place, mate!" "It started off maybe a couple of times a day and then it sort of increased to, you know, seven, eight times a day into the night as well." "It was just constant contacts of three, four, five times a day they were trying to hit us either by small arms, rockets or mortars." "We had a couple of times when we they had actually tried to storm the place." "They had the idea that they were going to try and take the camp, which was never going to happen." "It was pretty much a shootout." "So they learnt a harsh lesson that night." "We were meeting force with force." "So if they come at us with small arms, rockets, whatever, we'll meet them with that." "But we're better." "They fired a rocket, killing a couple of guys from the signals unit." "And an Afghan interpreter." "These were the first casualties." "It sort of hit home to everyone you know this isn't a joke, this is real." "They were cut off in the Sangin District Centre." "There's a building." "A double door, red door." "To the left of that you've got an open doorway." "In there." "The deal was that we would go there for 96 hours." "We actually spent a total of 95 days there fighting every day." "Being besieged in Sangin was bad enough." "but Colonel Tootal's remaining combat troops were also sent to garrison other northern centres " "Now Zad and Musa Qala." "Having established what were soon called Platoon Houses across a broad expanse of the province, the British realised how hard it would be to defend them all." "We were pretty much surrounded by the Taliban at the time we was running low on food and water." "So we pretty much had to ration everything - including ammunition." "Each of these bases had just a few score Paras, Royal Irish Rangers or Ghurkhas." "As they fought off attacks day and night." "this struggle obliterated the bigger picture." "Leave it there, get the missile!" "We didn't appreciate that they would focus around the district centres." "They were acting as breakwaters." "Reacting to a series of crises had become a strategy." "So what happened in many of these places was that only a very small area could come under the influence of the troops that were up here, while all around them, the insurgents moved." "The soldiers nicknamed their enemy Terry Taliban." "But they faced a mixture of gunmen hired by the drug lords, hardcore jihadists and local farmers." "The regular Taliban were employing what we termed as the ten dollar Taliban." "They pay them ten dollars, give them a weapon to come and hit us with and I think a lot of them were on drugs as well cos when they did get hit a lot of them didn't fall." "They just kept firing." "We poked the hornet's nest and they came out biting." "We didn't have enough people on the ground." "We was massively stretched at the time." "There was one battle group to pretty much cover the whole of Helmand." "I asked on a daily, weekly basis for more troops, more capability, more helicopters." "I remember saying to the Chief of Defence Staff in 2006 on one of his visits that we needed probably a division size " "10,000 troops to achieve what we'd set out to do." "We increased the size of our deployed forces in Afghanistan as rapidly as we could given the fact that we were trying to balance" "Afghanistan, Iraq and the overall pressure on the British military." "Some small scale reinforcements were sent, but they were trying to hold an area half the size of England with little over 1,000 combat soldiers." "Now you've got some 30,000 NATO troops holding a roughly similar area, but it shows the scarcity of resources and the stretch that we faced, that we held that ground with about 1,200 men." "Horribly outnumbered, they could only hold on by calling in air power and artillery." "The insurgents needled the British into laying waste to areas they'd been sent to protect." "We acknowledged that there was more destruction than construction going on in the places we were trying to help." "build and bring security in governance." "Some of his men even question what good it all did." "Ah, fucking zero." "Zero." "We demonstrated to the insurgents that we weren't going to take a beating." "We certainly weren't going to withdraw from that area." "but in terms of bringing bringing reconstruction and development to the area, clearly not a huge amount was achieved, simply because of the efforts of the insurgents to thwart that." "The Kajaki Dam and power plant was one of the most important places in Helmand." "It was here that deep flaws in Britain's operation would be exposed." "Despite its value," "Colonel Tootal only had a few dozen men to secure the dam." "On the morning of September 6th they launched an operation." "The idea was to send out a sniper team to intercept some insurgents who were manning an illegal check point and they came down the slope and through the valley there down below." "I heard the explosion, I mean... ..so I knew, I knew straightaway that that was a mine." "Sgt Pearson's team had wandered into an old Russian minefield, and he went to rescue them in the minefield." "Almost as soon as the incident had started, the troops on the ground quite rightly identified the need for a winch-equipped Black Hawk helicopter." "However we were then told that wasn't available." "The British didn't have any in the inventory." "Took my foot, slipped off, whatever, off a rock and put it in the sand and stood straight on a mine." "and my left leg was gone straight away." "I knew exactly what I'd done and I got blown up a bit, spun round, landed and lifted my leg to see what was gone, and see that was gone at roughly boot height, cos my top lace was still attached to my leg " "Well, the remainder of my leg." "A third mine detonated just beside myself and Mark Wright caught a lot of that." "Mark would keep moral up - he'd be shouting at us and then we'd be having a laugh and a joke, and one of the lads," "Dave Prosser, it turned out it was his birthday, so we managed to sing Happy Birthday for him." "But while the search for a suitable helicopter went on, men were bleeding to death." "Eventually we got the two Black Hawk helicopters." "Three, almost three-and-a-half hours after we'd asked for them." "And did exactly what we needed them to do, they air lifted the casualties out by winching some very brave American paramedics into the minefield." "And then Mark shouted to me," ""If I die, tell Gillian, my uncle, my family that I love them."" "And I just shouted back, "Shut up Mark," ""this time next week we're going to be back in the pub!"" "Cos you don't want to hear something like that." "When I eventually got winched up, it was after Mark, and I looked beside me and Mark was there and I was like, thank Christ that's over." "Mark Wright died of his wounds on the way to Bastion." "He's definitely one of the, if not THE bravest bloke I've ever had the pleasure of working with." "The one thing that was the most emotional thing in a very emotional tour, that stood out for me was as we filed out of the make-shift chaplain tent," "Mark's best friend, Corporal Lee Parker, stopped and ruffled his hair." "We always rip each other." "My best mate, Peter he came to visit me." "I'd just been moved out of intensive care, he visited me, gave me a parrot and an eye-patch and a copy of Runners Weekly which I thought was a touch." "Later that evening, attacks on Sangin and then Musa Qala led to even more casualties." "Their only hope of survival was evacuation by helicopter." "But every time they went in to pick up the wounded they ran the very real risk of being shot down." "During that day the Para Battle Group lost three soldiers killed and suffered 18 wounded." "But because of what they went through that day, commanders increasingly asked themselves about whether the risks of losing one of those helicopters, could still be run." "My biggest concern was losing one of the very few Chinook troop carrying helicopters, particularly if it had 50 or 60 soldiers as well as the crew and they could have been lost in a heartbeat." "Losing a helicopter would put the whole Helmand operation at risk." "The Paras simply couldn't hold on everywhere." "and as is now revealed, London felt the risks in Musa Qala were too high." "So while in London you don't interfere with commanders on the ground, in this particular case I certainly did intervene and I certainly did say, you've got to get us out of Musa Qala." "The British made a face-saving deal." "they agreed to withdraw if the local leaders promised to keep the Taliban out of Musa Qala." "The local commander was unhappy," "Karzai was unhappy, everybody was unhappy, save for the insurgents." "it was an unfortunate deal." "They withdrew in civilian trucks." "They weren't armoured." "Although we trusted the elders, we didn't trust the Taliban." "The guys found it quite stressful for them." "Some of the younger guys couldn't understand the situation." "We lost three people and loads injured." "But it certainly didn't sit well with some of the guys." "The deal held for a few months but in February 2007 the Taliban had returned and set up a shadow Helmand government in Musa Qala." "We could not cede pieces of ground to the insurgent the way we had done there." "It was a bold move to stick those platoons out but it was, in retrospect, not the smartest of tactics, simply because you didn't have the force to back it up." "But sustaining a deployment that was not in the long term operational interests of the mission, just because you didn't want to get a bit of egg on your face would have been insane." "But a chorus of armchair criticisms started too and we heard some of that." "Had they dealt out too much destruction?" "Had they seriously alienated the very people that Britain was trying to win over?" "Towards the end of 2006, The Royal Marines replaced the Paras." "That was where the fire was coming from." "The Government did send 700 additional infantry and a few more helicopters." "Adopting their own new tactic, the commandos formed mobile groups." "to seek out guerrilla bands before they could attack the district centres." "They went where they knew the enemy were waiting." "a tactic they called "advancing to ambush"." "Halfway between the large tree!" "Many of them loved it, because the Afghans would give them a stand up fight." "The commandos' tour finished with fresh claims of hundreds of Taliban killed." "It was unclear if they'd regained the initiative." "and their successors certainly thought they had a better solution." "The British used six-month tours so twice every year new commanders adopted new tactics for THEIR new mission in Helmand." "It meant that the policy meandered around, so when three Commando Brigade arrived, leaving behind their dagger, they wanted to get moving again." "They felt the paratroopers were too fixed in those platoon houses and district centres." "12 Brigade then arrived and they were moving all right, up and down the province, but their own commander described the effects as being like mowing the grass." "They'd cut down the enemy and move on so the insurgents would just return, as nobody stayed to stop them." "Then six months later, a new brigade arrived with its own ideas and aims." "General McNeill, commanduing all NATO forces in Afghanistan, found the year long US Army tours more effective." "I thought the six-months tour did not work in the favour of the operational concepts and tactical concepts that the British military had in Helmand." "I stand by that." "The commandos were followed by 12 Brigade, among them the Queen's Company, Grenadier Guards" "Sergeant Major Glen Snazle was filmed in 2007 when they were deployed to knock the Afghan Army into shape." "He soon discovered some Afghan soldiers or ANA, when given a gun, were more of a threat to their own side, than the enemy." "Going out on a morning patrol, one of the ANA soldiers shot himself through the foot which subsequently shot a dog ricocheted off the wall and nearly shot some of our guys." "And that's what we were up to on a daily basis with the ANA." "The Grenadiers pushed the Afghan Army in the toughest classroom - combat." "And they adopted another new approach, challenging the insurgents where most of them lived - in the lush, irrigated, land, the so called "green zone"." "When you go in the green zone there's a feeling of vulnerability." "There was a lot of vegetation a lot of cover from view." "It was just a myriad of irrigation ditches and a lot of compounds were dotted around the area." "You almost feel like the enemy have got eyes on you but you haven't got eyes on them." "That's enemy fire above us." "We came under contact." "It was heavy contact and it it went on through the day." "Two more casualties!" "Two more!" "If you've never been in a contact before the first time you come under contact it really is exhilarating." "Just the fact that you're within inches at times of losing your life... ertainly puts it in perspective." "Get out of that back blast!" "We've got enemy in the hedge line 100 metres forward there..." "You don't see the Taliban." "They're very clever, they box clever." "They're hard to locate." "They were very cunning." "We'd been in contact for about 12 hours and one of the Afghan soldiers stood completely in the open." "A round struck the base of his magazine." "..just missing him and missing the rest of the guys in the area and he just looked at us and laughed." "We haven't got enough ammunition to fire bursts like that." "The ANA in the field were very different." "Some were very good, some were very poor, some were regular drug users, some weren't." "We need to start bringing in new supplies of water, food and especially ammunition." "Get them all up and tight in on this line." "OK, that's the contact." "GUNFIRE" "Someone's fired an RPG about 200m to our front." "We're a bit pinned down for the moment." "We kept progressing trying to clear compounds." "We had to bring in mortars we had to bring in artillery and we bought in attack helicopters." "We bought in fast air as well." "The busiest day I've had." "Probably the biggest day I've had in my career since I've been in it - in terms of contacts." "They don't know how many they've killed, but joke that the insurgents almost seem to embrace death." "They're the kind of people that believe when they die they're going to wake up with 27 virgins." "You know?" "So how can you fight against someone like that who doesn't give a shit?" "It's like as soon as I die I'd be going back to Tottenham, I'd run at the bullets!" "Casualties almost become part and parcel of the operation." "The memories never go away and the hardest thing about it, I think, is seeing subsequent troops suffering the same casualties and the same statistics and loss of limbs and deaths." "They was on a patrol and he got shot through the neck." "I was looking forward to coming back but I didn't want to come back to my friend's funeral." "Guardsman Daryl Hickey was killed at the age of 27." "Britain's death toll now reached 73." "I've been with Icky since I joined the Queen's Company, 4½ years ago but he always helped us..." "He was a really nice person, got on well." "It's not going to be nice going home without him." "Throughout 2007 attempts were made to get back on the front foot, to take the war to the enemy." "but doing that spread the pain to more and more people." "Up near the Kajaki Dam, war had turned a thriving bazaar into a ghost town." "The people went and they've still not come back, which is very hard to reconcile with the aim of waging a campaign to benefit people here." "Official UN figures are almost certainly an underestimation but even they indicate nearly 9,000 Afghan civilians have been killed nationwide since 2007, the vast majority at the hands of insurgents." "But British forces have been responsible for some." "In May 2008 British mortars fired smoke to protect a patrol that was about to be ambushed in the Kajaki hills." "A young girl called Shabia who was young, seven, seven years of age, who was accidentally killed by... by a mortar round which was fired, by a British mortar." "Um, you know it was absolutely tragic, it was not fired haphazardly it was fired in defence of other British soldiers." "I'm still affected by it now because the last thing" "I want anybody to think is that I'm going to come here to this country and, and my legacy will be the destruction of the country or the people here." "It was an awful day, truly awful day." "The reality of what is euphemistically called "collateral damage"" "became more and more apparent at the highest levels." "In Autumn 2007, Brigadier Mackay, the new British commander, arrived." "He was highly dubious of his predecessors' focus on bombs, bullets and bodies." "Killing the enemy in large numbers as satisfying as it might be is not necessarily gonna allow you to win through and succeed." "Any focus on body count is a sort of corrupt measure of effectiveness." "What it really meant was putting the prime emphasis on winning people over and subordinating everything you did to the aim of securing and influencing the population." "And meeting Brigadier Mackay here in this garden in early 2008, he was quite evangelical about it." "We were pretty clear from the outset that the population was gonna be the prize and everything that we did was going to be in support of that population." "First impressions were that we as an army hadn't evolved its thinking, either intellectually or conceptually." "So he approached General Petraeus, author of a new US counter insurgency manual, an approach credited with pulling Iraq back from the brink." "It was coherent it was up to date, it was full of ideas." "I just thought it was a very, very good document for its time and so we used that as the basis for our counter insurgency doctrine." "The new approach put winning the population at the centre of everything." "But the insurgents had to be defeated before civilian lives could be improved, which meant going on the offensive." "It was summarised as - Clear, Hold, Build." "For too long, the British had done just the "clear" part of that." "I wasn't going to be drawn into clearing unless I could definitely hold and I wasn't gonna clear and hold unless I could definitely build." "These American ideas shaped Brigadier Mackay's planning for a big operation to restore British pride and re-take Musa Qala." "I was pretty insistent that we wouldn't... bomb any part of Musa Qala, we didn't put any artillery rounds into Musa Qala." "Because I wanted a town that was up and running as soon as we'd got into it." "Brigadier Mackay deployed overwhelming force - thousands of British troops secured the town, an American Airborne battalion fought their way in, before allowing Afghan troops the symbolic finale." "Those scenes we had where, em, an Afghan Soldier climbed the tower in the middle of Musa Qala to remove the Taliban flag and plant the Afghan flag were hugely important." "Mackay's population focused tactics had worked - the locals voted with their feet and returned to a town that was largely intact." "But the insurgent tactics evolved as well as the British ones." "Their weapon of choice was the deadly IED or Improvised Explosive Device - a homemade bomb, often packed with shrapnel." "They were a constant hazard to every patrol, where any suspicious hole or rock in the road might hide explosives forcing a dangerous process of investigation and disposal." "IEDs killed 80 British troops in 2009 - three-quarters of the total fatalities." "Sangin was IED central, accounting for half the incidents in Helmand." "In the summer of 2009 part of the garrison was 9 Platoon, C Company 2 Rifles." "Corporal Jonathan Horne was the father of two children." "Rifleman Daniel Simpson had an eight-month old son." "They were joined by Riflemen James Backhouse and Joe Murphy." "On 10th July, they went on a dawn patrol in Sangin." "Once we'd headed down the alleyway I was in the back section... ..and I heard the dreaded sound of a large blast." "We're starting to see the bodies of riflemen." "Rifleman James Backhouse had been killed outright." "At this stage we also realised that we were coming under small arms fire from the enemy." "A secondary device went off, which was larger, and louder than the first one." "At this stage three more people died instantly " "Corporal Jonathan Horne," "Rifleman Daniel Simpson and Rifleman Murphy." "We identified them through what they were wearing." "Rifleman William Aldridge died later of his wounds, making him the fifth fatality." "Three other British soldiers perished within 24 hours, a total of eight making it the worst day in the campaign." "Was Britain still trying to hold too much ground with too few soldiers?" "And that really opened up the whole issue once more about just how many troops was GB willing and able to commit to securing Helmand?" "We had got to about the limit of our sustainable deployed force." "It wasn't sufficient even for Helmand let alone more widely across the south." "We may well have had to withdraw." "We would certainly have had to take a different approach." "In four years of campaigning the British had more than doubled their force - it was approaching ten thousand - and spent billions." "But the governor of Helmand since 2008 feels positive results have been distinctly limited." "General Petraeus was the author of the counterinsurgency strategy and had switched his attentions to Afghanistan." "Let's make no mistake about it" " The Taliban had the momentum, broadly speaking, in Afghanistan until probably sometime last fall." "The British force in Helmand was under-resourced, make no mistake but I will leave that to the British leadership, both military and civilian to decide how much it was under-resourced." "American generals decided a major reinforcement was needed in Helmand, putting the Brits in the back seat." "Some had been saying it for years." "It actually began with me." "I began to express to the leadership of the USA that this was an under resourced force in manoeuvre forces, flying machines and intelligence." "That did not change until, I'd say...2010." "The American decision to surge was part of a broader strategy." "They wanted to turn back the insurgency, stand up a larger Afghan army and then leave." "In order to do that they were sending in many more troops, 20,000 in Helmand alone." "It would lead to a radical reorganisation on the ground." "What we wanted to do in Helmand was literally just clean up the battlefield geometry." "British forces up here, British forces here, marines over here..." "I didn't get a sense of coherence." "We're going to clean it up in what I think is a much more coherent and sensible deployment of the forces." "For the British this meant a painful process - handing over Garmsir and the northern towns they had fought, bled and died to hold since 2006." "One place above all others symbolised that sacrifice " "Sangin, where 124 British troops have now given their lives." "No soldier likes to back away from a tough fight, no question about it." "There was a lot of blood and treasure invested in there and I think that is why the UK forces wanted to see it through to the end." "But I made a decision to move UK forces from Sangin." "So on 22nd Sept 2010 the Royal Marines handed it over to the US Marines..." "Who went on the offensive." "EXPLOSIONS" "Yeah!" "Sucks for you, you motherfucker!" "It was a decision we made to take the fight to the enemy." "And that's why we're pressing him and pressuring him everywhere that we can." "They followed the new counterinsurgency tactics." "Stage one was the clear - removing the insurgents to allow the hold and then the build but the clearance phase was often violent." "Jesus came down and punched the earth." "This is life in Afghanistan." "This is how the US Marines dealt with Sangin's Pharmacy Road where IEDs killed five British riflemen in one day." "That was a mosque." "To protect themselves from the IED threat the US Marines had levelled 100 yards on either side of the Pharmacy Road." "The destruction of civilian property has to weighed against the threat that you're facing." "They are trained properly to look at all options, to consider the ones that will protect the force, while at the same time, doing the least amount of damage and only if that damage is absolutely military necessary." "What we wanted to ensure our soldiers did was first protect the population." "That's our core mission here, is to take care of those civilians, not to do harm to them but also to protect our own forces and you have to find that right balance there." "The Sangin handover meant all the British troops were now concentrated in the populated centre." "Exactly what they were meant to do in 2006." "Three years on, the surge meant the returning Grenadier Guards could now focus more than 1,000 troops on just one district, Nad-e Ali." "And they tried to push out facing all sorts of difficulties in this close country and establish new bases, clear roads and they did it in a series of operations or pulses." "But before the Guards could hold and build in Nad-e Ali... ..they had to clear the insurgents out." "And that meant a fight." "What the fuck was that?" "!" "We arrived to, quite literally, a hail of rounds coming in and a lot of rounds going back out from the vehicles." "And the base was just like something you'd seen in training." "Every guy stood tall on the walls firing off every weapon system they'd pretty much got." "And what's your sniper call sign?" "What's his estimation on how far he'll be able to see in the next two hours with increased visibility?" "Captain Young led the Grenadiers' recce platoon in one of the clearance operations." "We'd see them pick up their weapons and from there we'd watch them go to the firing point." "When they got to a point where we wanted to hit them and we thought it was safe and that the population weren't going to have any ricochet any hazards, then we kill that individual." "We'll identify them picking up their weapons and using snipers we'd hit them." "We extracted 24 hours later." "Though numbers are always vulgar, we killed a large number of guys that day." "Two commanders and we killed 24 guys." "But it was never numbers - it never is in Afghanistan." "You could kill one you could kill 1000 - it doesn't mean anything." "It's all about the psychological aspect, that sowing the seed of doubt or fear so that they will spread stories about you." "Following these deadly clearance operations, the Guards now had so many troops in Nad-e Ali that they could set out to hold and then build effectively." "Throughout 2010, a series of operations swamped the district, pushing the insurgents further out but never removing them completely." "Get down!" "Get down!" "Fucker!" "We've stopped our call sign firing." "It seems the engagement has ceased." "I think this will be looked on in hindsight as one of the defining moves in the campaign." "It released a lot of the pressure on Nad-e Ali because we were able to displace the insurgents." "Now a year later, we went to see if the forces have been able to hold the district." "British troops still say they're making good progress in the area of central Helmand which they now control." "And to all intents and purposes, they are smothering the insurgency here." "But have they been able to build and bring any real benefit to the ordinary Afghans?" "It seems peaceful enough in the bazaar but is this normality just superficial?" "Quite a few of the people I've greeted with as-salamu alaykum have not replied to me and generally I take that as a bad sign." "Either they don't wish to be seen interacting with westerners or they may actually be actively hostile." "But there are changes." "Two years ago, this was an army base but now it's gone back to being a school." "While Afghan women now have a clinic to visit - something unheard of under the Taliban." "Last year, the British government announced that its combat operations would end by 2015." "When the British troops leave, the areas they hold will be taken over by the Afghans." "We've joined this joint operation between the Royal Irish Rangers and Afghan security forces as their mission continues to clear more areas." "Their objective - to push in to one of the last Taliban-influenced sections of Nad-e Ali." "This is the biggest air assault operation this battle group has conducted so far." "People are keen for it." "They're really, really up for it." "We're going to start from south to north and try and clear out as much Taliban as we can from that area." "We're going out on an operation with hundreds of Afghan and British troops to try and grow the area under their control even further." "British and American helicopters are used to carry the assault in." "Twice as many for this one operation as the British had for the whole province in 2006." "Flooding the area led to no resistance or casualties." "And if casualties are the criterion of success, this brigade returned home in April this year with around half the losses of the one in Helmand the year before." "We're going to have a shifty round the compounds around us." "Can one of you please tie the dog up?" "And put all the women into one room?" "Britain came here in 2006 to develop Helmand." "But for every pound spent on reconstruction, UK PLC has spent 12 pounds on the war." "Nine billion in all." "Having set out to tame a province half the size of England," "Britain's footprint has now been reduced to an area the size of Kent." "And for all the killing, solutions will require non-military answers to Afghan's insurgency." "Anybody who believes we can kill them all, that's simply not going to happen." "What we have to do is push and kill enough of them, do enough reconstruction that it ignites developmental fires within the Afghans, create enough space that the Afghan army and police can develop." "Afghan forces will take over from the British in 2015." "One of the hardest things for those who've sacrificed so much in Helmand is the knowledge that the judgement about whether it was all worth it, will now hinge upon the Afghans." "It really requires the Afghans to deliver a much better performance, whether that's in policing or the way they govern these districts, than they've shown at any time up to now." "Otherwise these gains could easily be squandered." "So what do those who've fought during the five years of combat, when hundreds of British lives have been lost, now think about the battle for Helmand?" "I don't really see that us being out there is keeping terrorism off the streets of Britain, to be honest." "I think if anything it's stirring up a hornets' nest and it'll actually bring terrorism to the streets of Britain." "The tour has had such a profound impact on me, my personality because you lose close friends and a lot of guys got injured, physically and mentally." "A couple of times I've forgotten that I've actually lost my leg but there's other days where I can't get the leg on." "I was just wheelchair bound." "So each day's different." "If you look at the situation on the ground today compared to what it was in 2006 when I was there, it's just a staggering improvement." "It looks to me as if we can be cautiously optimistic." "I do think it's worth us being there." "Equally, I think it's worth doing it better than we do." "The gap between policy-making and its subsequent implementation was far too wide." "We've muddled through." "Next week, Lyse Doucet takes a journey away from the battlefield to show a more surprising side of Afghanistan - the country she's grown to love." "Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd" "E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk" "This is a country that's known war for 30 years." "That may be how you know Afghanistan." "I've been coming here for much of that time - and there's another country, too." "Everyone who matters seems to have gone through here - emperors, explorers, conquerors..." "and just the curious." "There's just something about this country and its people that captures the imagination and interest." "I always say, no-one comes to Afghanistan once." "I'm on a journey through a land I've grown to love - a place that continues to amaze." "I wouldn't have expected the head of the Islamic shrine to be riding a buzkashi horse." "'You'll never know who you'll meet.' Well, you're the only Japanese sushi chef in Afghanistan!" "Well, they allege that you're involved in the drugs trade, that you're the main power broker, they even allege that you support the Taliban." "Are you proud to be Afghan?" "Oh, yeah, why not?" "I'm Afghani!" "'I'm going on a journey to take you beyond the headlines.'" "My journey begins in the far north of Afghanistan, in the bustling city of Mazar-i-Sharif." "It's the day before the first day of spring, the first day of the new year" " Nawrooz." "Afghans travel from across this country to be here to celebrate this ancient Persian tradition." "The Taliban banned Nawrooz as un-Islamic, but it's a very Afghan time, one of their most festive holidays." "'Security is tight.'" "TRANSLATION:" "You're not worried about security?" "Look at the police, look at the police!" "Look at the check!" "They're everywhere." "You have to admire their courage - people bringing their families here, driving for hours to reach" "Mazar-i-Sharif - they know about the threats, they see the security, but they've lived in a country which has been at war for some 30 years, so they get used to it and they get on with life." "They want it to change, but they're not going to let it get in the way of a good celebration." "And what better way to celebrate the new year than with one of the much-loved traditions of the north?" "Buzkashi - that means goat-grabbing." "It's Afghanistan's oldest sport, its national game." "Two teams fight over the carcass of a headless goat." "They have to grab it, gallop free of everyone else, then drop it in a chalked circle." "'I found myself sitting next to Babrak Noorzai, a young economist.'" "Buzkashi has a wide range of fans." "Why do you think Afghans like it so much?" "It's quite a unique sport." "Buzkashi is the traditional game of Afghanistan." "And mostly in this region, especially in the north, people like the horses, riding the horses - that's the reason they like it so much." "Some Afghans say they would like Buzkashi to be an Olympic sport." "Everything is possible!" "If it's part of the Olympics, then Afghan, they will like that very much." "That would mean countries all over the world would have to play it - do you think they would?" "Maybe they might bring slight changes or slight...corrections!" "I think Afghans like it the way it is." "It's very rough, and everyone...!" "THEY LAUGH No, the rules of the game will be the same." "There's no rules, is there?" "Yes, there is." "'Buzkashi used to have hundreds of riders, no teams, no written rules." "It's a bit more organised now." "'But some still call it the world's wildest game." "'It's not a sport for women, although Western women are given the status of special guests.'" "I came to my first Buzkashi game right at this very place more than 20 years ago, when the communists were ruling Afghanistan - do you think it's changed at all?" "The games are not changing - it's the same game." "Maybe only the regime has changed." "'In the midst of the melee, I spotted a familiar face." "'What was a cleric from Mazar's most famous shrine doing on the playing field?" "'" "I wouldn't have expected the head of the Islamic shrine to be riding a buzkashi horse." "How many years have you been playing buzkashi?" "Maybe more than 25 years." "What do you need to be a good buzkashi rider?" "Afarin, congratulations!" "Buzkashi used to be the game of choice for rival warlords - the rich own the horses, they host the match." "Today's teams are sponsored by big business, but it doesn't change the spirit." "It's almost like an Afghan election - one team said they won, and then the other team came in and said no, they didn't win, they didn't go all the way to the end of the field." "The disputes raged." "One team declared a boycott." "I decided it was time for me to go too." "New Year's Day dawned." "More than 100,000 people had turned out." "Just look at all the crowds - they've been queuing up since early this morning." "Everyone wants to be at the shrine for this greatest of days in the Afghan calendar." "A lot of people, a lot of security and a lot of anticipation." "Mazar-i-Sharif means "noble shrine", and this is it." "'In this Muslim nation, the day begins at the exquisite 'blue-tiled shrine of Hazrat Ali, the Prophet Muhammad's son-in-law.'" "He's believed to be buried here in this sacred place." "Just look at the birds - they have this belief here that if a brown bird comes in and joins the white birds, then within 40 days, that bird will also be white." "A place where the faithful believe prayers are answered, and on Nawrooz, wishes are made." "Even at that young age, they hope for good for the people, good for the country." "Nawrooz mubarak - happy new year." "In a country where much has been lost, Afghans hold onto their traditions." "They never fail to honour old friends." "That means a warm welcome from Basir Babai on Afghan national TV." "So much for keeping a low profile." "The last time I was here it was a snow storm in Mazar-i-Sharif, so it's lovely to come when the sun is shining and we all hope it's the start of a shining year for Afghanistan." "Nawrooz mubarak." "Nawrooz mubarak." "Afghans across the country are watching this." "This is the moment." "The raising of the Janda, the Islamic banner, heralds the start of a new year." "But it's much more than that." "Legend has it, if this banner is raised in one smooth pull, it will be a good year." "No wonder they put it in the hands of the strongest men." "You can just feel the excitement here and the anticipation and relief when the Janda went up in one smooth motion." "Look at the people - they're actually climbing over the fence, look at them, they want to go and touch the flag." "That's how much it matters to them." "In a country where good news is rare, Afghans can be forgiven for holding onto that." "We hope that the Janda is an omen for the new year." "Look at the crowd - it's full of doves and papers cascading, wishing everyone a happy new year." "What an extraordinary day." "There's such an open feeling in Mazar-i-Sharif." "It's the wide avenues with the open shops." "You see more women on the streets here." "The sense that it's safe to stroll on a warm spring day." "Mazar-i-Sharif, it has got security." "It's a good city for young people like you?" "For everyone." "Really?" "Yeah." "No fighting, no explosions." "My father, he says, if you need carpet, a low price I will give for you, if you want." "Really?" "If he's a good carpet seller, he will give me a high price!" "'I've always loved carpet shopping, even if I'm just looking." "'You never know what will turn up.' 9/11 one..." "Twin Towers..." "Who buys this one?" "The tourists." "The Afghans tell many of their stories in the carpets that they weave." "These are the carpets that were woven during the decade-long Soviet occupation of their country - millions of Afghans were forced out of the country - and suddenly, instead of flowers and birds and faces and lovely intricate designs being woven into the carpets," "you had the Kalashnikov rifles, the tanks, the grenades." "You know, a country - look - covered with military vehicles, and suddenly this became the story of Afghanistan woven right into their carpets." "It's a story still glorified by those whose own history is woven through it." "Like General Atta Mohammad Noor." "In the '80s, he was one of the Mujahideen who waged jihad until the Soviet army was forced to retreat." "'He's still fighting - to keep fit." "'At 6am, this is how Governor Atta starts the day.'" "OK." "'Maybe not the best decision." "'Governor Atta is not a man who likes to lose.'" "You have more practice." "22 years old, fighting." "How many years were you in the jihad, like that, in those conditions?" "'How life has changed.'" "'Most Afghans would find a lot of this unbelievable.'" "Your poster is everywhere." "There's more posters of you than President Karzai." "'No wonder the president is wary of the ambitious man they call King of the North." "'For now, Governor Atta is trying to transform this city into a modern hub - 'there's even a theme park and an underground shopping centre.'" "I came here when it was just a hole in the ground." "The governor says the wants to build the Dubai of Afghanistan - let's see what it looks like." "Were you really thinking of Dubai?" "You wanted a Dubai here?" "This is your big dream." "'Many here support their governor." "'But some say he's using his power to get rich, 'that he does business like a warlord, even though he looks like a CEO.'" "You showed us your city and you want to be seen as a builder, a governor, but a lot of people still call you a warlord." "Good luck, see you again!" "OK!" "Have a nice day!" "Thank you." "You too." "An American delegation is waiting." "More often than not, they're turning to men they call "can-do warlords"" "to get the job done." "Afghans want to reach for something new and better." "But the path to a brighter future is being made by people from a darker past." "And so to the west, to a city where centuries of history have left their mark." "I've always loved coming to Herat - they call it Afghanistan's cultural capital." "Minarets from the 15th century almost form a gateway to this ancient city." "It lies along centuries-old trade routes at the crossroads of the Middle East and Asia." "'At moments, I can almost feel I'm in Iran, with all the Persian influences.'" "You see it in the stonework, on this lane of booksellers, and you also see it in the style." "The latest from Tehran - many Herati women wear Iranian chadors." "Why are you wearing this chador and not the burka?" "Do you wear burka as well?" "No." "'But there's so much the women can't control." "'Some told me, in whispers, they'd prefer the kind of coat I'm wearing - 'their husbands wouldn't let them." "'And yet, for all that, there is some light in the darkness.'" "Look at the sparkle in Afghan women's lives - but there's no way they can wear that in public." "This is for the private world, for their husbands, for their families." "This is what they wear to Afghan weddings when they're just mainly with the women." "Glitter, glamour - don't think that their lives are just drab and black." "So much is still taboo here, and yet look at the rickshaws - is love in the air?" "Every one of them is emblazoned with words of love or images of hearts." "Who could take issue with that?" "Everyone wants to be loved." "In Herat, you can even hire someone to say sweet nothings." "I went to meet the master flatterer, Jamal Uddin." "How you describe what you do?" "Why do you think... people need a person like you to make them happy?" "'Then the master flatterer was absorbed in his trade." "'With a few quick scribbles, he reveals the art of the impromptu.'" "'Was I flattered?" "'Perhaps." "It was all a lovely echo of the old Persian royal courts." "'In Herat, you often feel you are stepping back in time - 'no more so than at the ancient Citadel." "'Herat is home to some of the greatest jewels of Afghan history." "'It's hoping to be given the status of a World Heritage Site, and this is the centrepiece." "'It was in danger of crumbling into the ground, 'but archaeologists like Daoud Sediq are working to save it.'" "Such an important part of Afghanistan's heritage - why is it, for you, so important to preserve the Citadel?" "The Citadel was originally erected by Alexander the Great, so the core of the Alexander the Great Citadel is still here on the foundation, on the hill - so that was why it was very important for everyone." "It's been literally a battlefield - the Soviets when they occupied Afghanistan, they used it as an ammunition dump." "When you found it to restore it, it must have been ruins." "Exactly - in very bad condition." "There was a lot of destruction, ruin and even ammunition." "Land mines?" "Yes, absolutely - we collected a lot." "But...none of them are dangerous?" "Er, there is - the mining team came many times here and they clean up the mines." "Wow." "'Battles raged through the centuries from these ramparts." "'Genghis Khan laid it to waste.'" "But a modern battle rages now in the shadow of the Citadel's ancient walls." "Developers are trying to conquer what's left of the crumbling old town." "And in places, they're winning." "This is mud houses, very important houses." "What happened here?" "There is a mega destruction here, many houses destroyed, and they are going to build a new concrete market here." "A modern market?" "Market." "When you see this gaping hole, how does that make you feel?" "It's really painful for me." "This is very important archaeology here, and they destroy everything." "Does this happen a lot?" "Absolutely." "Everywhere." "It's almost like mud-brick house by mud-brick house, Herat could be destroyed." "I think so." "This is like a cancer." "'It's a cancer that has spread elsewhere in the country." "'But you really feel it here.'" "But if parts of Herat are dying, others are full of life." "Of course, in this traditional Muslim society, this isn't a place of nightclubs." "In this cultural capital, I found another kind of night life." "It's poetry night." "Afghans have written and recited their stories in verse for hundreds of years, enhanced by the grace of the Persian language." "Traditional Herati music magnifies the mood." "The doyen of the night is 83-year-old Fedayee Herawi, a poet since the age of 12." "You have written poems during the communist era, Mujahideen, Taliban, Karzai..." "It's a rare treat to be where Afghan women take the stage as equals and speak what's in their heart." "Does it give you a kind of freedom, to be able to express yourself in your poetry?" "'In this moment, it did feel good, as if everything was somehow possible.'" "That the future, like these poems, was full of promise." "Even if, when you're ten years old, you still need a bit of help." "Across this oldest of Afghan cities, I found the oldest of human desires - to rise above daily cares to seek what's beautiful and sweet, to celebrate what it means to be Afghan." "'But that's harder in other places.'" "And one of the hardest places is the most contested - Kandahar, in the south." "But the road is too dangerous." "'The only way I could get there was by air.'" "'I was heading there with anticipation and apprehension." "'In recent years, I was told it was just too dangerous to visit..." "'..despite tens of thousands of foreign troops there." "'But to understand Afghanistan you have to go to Kandahar - 'heartland of the nation's biggest tribe, the Pashtuns, 'birthplace of the Taliban.'" "Thank you very much." "'So our moves were carefully planned.'" "When any foreigner comes to Kandahar, they say, well, who's waiting for you?" "You have to have some on waiting for you here, the city is just too dangerous." "Who's waiting for us?" "Well, armoured vehicles belonging to to the man they regard as, well, the main power broker, the King of Kandahar now, Ahmad Wali Karzai, he's the half-brother of President Karzai." "'I've known his family for years - his people are looking after us." "'You never know what a day in Kandahar will bring." "'When the communists were in power, I still met their Mujahideen enemies right in the centre of the city." "'When I came to Ahmad Wali Karzai's wedding here, a gunman opened fire on the President." "'Now the government says it's in charge, but the Taliban are still here." "'Kandahar feels very much on edge - it is." "'Foreigners don't usually walk the streets - it's just too dangerous." "'But with local guards watching my back, it was worth the risk to talk to Afghans about their city.'" "When you're on the streets, do you feel safe?" "We want to save ourselves, our country, our people, by our own hand." "If you cut our hands we cannot save the country." "Our hands is...both sides " "Taliban and Americans, both." "Scared of both?" "Well, everyone we talked to says it's too dangerous on the streets of Kandahar." "They're fearful, and we also have this rule, we shouldn't be anywhere longer than 15 or 20 minutes, so we're also going to leave this neighbourhood, too." "So we took refuge in an unexpected place." "Kandahar is home to dozens of body-building gyms - it's popular all over the country." "This one belongs to one of the country's most famous body builders, Mohammad Gul Lalai." "I love what you have on your back - what does it say?" "Oh, thank you!" "Yes!" "Proud to be Afghan!" "Proud to be Afghan!" "Yes." "Are you proud to be Afghan?" "Yes, why not?" "Really?" "What is it, when you make yourself strong, you're making yourself strong as an Afghan?" "Yeah, yeah, an Afghan." "Well, I'm sure Afghanistan is proud of you as well." "Thank you very much." "The gym is plastered with pictures of Mohammad in his prime - not only did he win the Mr Kandahar title, he was also Mr Afghanistan." "Although showing off your muscles wasn't so easy when Taliban set the rules." "You could wear what you're wearing now?" "Yeah, the upper body." "But I wondered what they'd make of the poster boy for Afghan bodybuilders, the American action star turned politician." "You go to any of the hundreds of gyms, you'll see Arnold Schwarzenegger in his prime, which was a few decades ago, beaming down at you with of course his body exposed." "You want to be like Arnold?" "He looks like Afghan?" "Arnold Schwarzenegger looks like an Afghan?" "Did he come to visit Afghanistan, Arnold?" "No, no." "He has not come to visit." "Maybe now that he's not governor, he can come." "Yes, yes." "Very good." "But even here, I couldn't stay for long." "On the streets outside, unpredictable Kandahar had struck again " "I found myself in the midst of a military operation." "US soldiers nervously scanned the streets, traffic was blocked, tension mounted." "Sorry, why is all the traffic blocked, what happened today?" "Er, we've got a vehicle down over there, a wheel came off it, so we're trying to stop the traffic from coming through so we can get the..." "Trying to fix the wheel on your vehicle?" "We're trying to get it hooked up so we can tow it out." "Is this a security...?" "Yeah." "You're worried about it." "Yeah, we don't want a bunch of traffic going through when we're trying to hook up and get out." "All this, over a broken wheel?" "!" "When something like this happens you see people get nervous, the Afghans are nervous, the foreign forces are nervous, this is the kind of town where assassinations happen, suicide bombers, I mean, you've got" "this kind of a target here for too long, you're creating a real risk for yourself and for the Afghans here." "Not everyone is complaining about the US presence here." "Some Afghans, with connections and contracts, are getting rich." "20 minutes outside the city, in the secure perimeter of the US military airbase, a mini town is springing up to cater for the influx of foreign contractors and troops." "Billions are being spent to fight the Taliban and win the war for Afghan hearts and minds - it's a good life in this bubble." "What are the most popular ones?" "Er, American movie, er, Indian movie, everything." "What do you like?" "Er, like, Van Damme, Arnold..." "Arnold Schwarzenegger?" "Yeah." "Now I like Arnold, Van Damme, best movie too much, I see always." "USA movies, very good." "You guys are shopping?" "Yeah, we live just down here." "Oh, look at that accent!" "English!" "Yeah." "Where are you from?" "Lincolnshire." "Lincolnshire!" "And you?" "Florida, United States." "Florida!" "And you're going shopping here?" "This is like Beverly Hills, huh?" "I don't want to go home, I'm going to stay here for years, I want to work here for as long as I can." "You want to stay here as long as you can?" "Yeah, I've learned more here than I did at school in the UK, than I did working in the UK." "I've met all these great people from all round the world - much better to be here than in England." "It's a dream come true?" "Yeah, it is actually - for me, it is, I love it here." "Life is good if you're a contractor making money behind the barriers." "For now, it's a boom town." "We left the safety of the American bubble to go into another one - of the man keeping an eye on us here." "Just look at the security as we enter the compound of Ahmad Wali Karzai." "Concrete barriers, HESCO barriers, armed men - this is a man with a lot of enemies." "Look at how full it is, packed with people." "It's like this every day - they come from all over the province and beyond." "There he is now, he's either on the phone a lot or talking to people a lot, that's essentially what he does." "Hello, Ahmad Wali." "Nice to see you." "How are you?" "How've you been?" "I'm fine, thank you very much." "'He's Kandahar's most powerful man - with the tribal and political connections to get any job done." "'And in the room with him there were ex-Taliban, and who knows, possibly future Taliban." "'And the people caught in the middle." "They were working as a day labourer, which is, the coalition, the Americans, are paying them a salary, so they were going to the work in the morning, and the Taliban stopped them to make example of them." "It's been two weeks this happened, two weeks ago." "Two weeks ago, their ears were cut off." "Shocking, but sadly, all too part of life here." "Ahmad Wali invited me to lunch for a chance to catch up." "You must have threats against you - it's the most heavily-secured place in Kandahar." "This is for, erm, for the big attacks, like, suicide attacks." "As you know, there was two major suicide attacks on me, on my office." "Are there still threats against you now?" "Every day." "It's Taliban or..." "Of course." "Criminals, drug traffickers...?" "Taliban, Taliban." "It's all Taliban?" "Mm-hmm." "Ahmad Wali has also been the target of many accusations - some call him the problem in Kandahar, not the solution." "I'm a little off the media." "Why, because you came under so many accusations you have to respond to all the time?" "Because when I was down here last year with President Karzai and General McChrystal, the top commander at the time, you remember, there was all the talk about they were going to put pressure on you." "Yea, this is, erm, it's over." "Why, because you proved...?" "No, I'm the same, I've done nothing different." "Mmm." "What do you think it was?" "It was mostly unproven allegations which was making things bad." "Well, they allege that you're involved in the drugs trade, they allege that you're the main power broker, they even allege that you support the Taliban." "Yeah." "But you know what they say - there's no smoke without fire." "Well, that's in the past." "There's an old Afghan proverb that says whoever controls Kandahar controls Afghanistan." "No-one ever seems to win for long." "Today, it's safe enough for traditional wrestling - but only just." "Moments like this are little victories." "That's how life is measured here, with no real certainty about who, in the end, will come out on top." "Until now, this trip has taken me to Afghanistan's great cities." "But leaving Kandahar, I headed to the centre, to a village called Paicotal." "80% of Afghans live in rural areas like this, eking out a meagre existence." "The further you get from the city centre, the hubs, this is what it's like." "You feel like you're going back in time." "There are no roads, the houses are mud brick, people pretty well live like they've always lived." "There's no electricity, there's no running water." "After several hours of driving, the car could go no further on this road." "If I wanted to travel as most Afghans do, I would need some donkeys - and, of course, a guide." "We were soon on our way, despite a hesitant start." "Are we going the right way?" "Afghans have a really good sense of direction, though." "Timing, they're not so good." "When we left they said it was about 40 minutes riding on donkeys." "40 minutes later they said, "Well, another hour."" "And then an hour later it was, another hour and a half." "Finally, after five hours I made it to the village." "But weariness was swept away by the warmth of a traditional welcome." "Afghans say it doesn't matter how big your house is, it's how big your heart is." "Paicoatal, nestling in the foothills of the Koh-i-Baba mountains, is home to around 70 families." "They don't have much." "The nearest school and clinic are hours away on foot." "Young men have to leave to find paid labour." "This is what life under the poverty line looks like." "Anwar Hussain is the malik, or head man." "They say even the bread isn't good here - they would love to have bread made of wheat - instead it's made of barley." "Life expectancy in Afghanistan is around 45 years." "Around half the children are malnourished." "It's hard to fathom how they endure such gruelling lives." "It's easier to talk when we gather, as women, on our own." "What do you think about the world outside Afghanistan, what is it like?" "For all the distance between their life and mine, there was still a space for girls to share a giggle." "What do you do for entertainment, for fun?" "At moments like this, you feel a shared humanity, no matter how different our lives." "But I'm leaving this village - they will stay, in lives that are, for the most part, determined from the day of birth." "Paicotal will never make the news, but our next stop has" " Bamiyan." "For nearly 2,000 years, pilgrims and poets flocked here to marvel at two stone Buddhas hewn from the mountainside." "They were carved when Bamiyan was an important centre for Buddhism, hundreds of years before the birth of Islam." "Then in 2001, the Taliban condemned them as idols, an affront to Islam." "Afghans lost one of their most precious relics - so did the world." "But now the people of Bamiyan want the world to come back to visit." "It's absolutely fantastic they actually have a tourism office here in Bamiyan." "I think it's the only one in Afghanistan." "You can see we're going through all these back alleys to try and find the tourist office - and the roads aren't so good, either!" "This road is terrible!" "Once I found the office, there was another surprise." "I'd met Gul Hussein two years ago when he was studying to be a tour guide in Bamiyan." "And there was more to come." "Oh, ski boots!" "Look at all the ski boots!" "A lot of people go skiing here?" "!" "Yeah." "Who goes skiing?" "Afghans?" "Afghans and internationals." "Really?" "Extraordinary." "This is, after all, a country of mountains - but how do you get here when there are no commercial flights and the main road from Kabul isn't safe?" "But that wasn't stopping Gul Hussein's dream." "If we talk about all of Afghanistan, it's difficult." "But when we come to talk about Bamiyan, in Bamiyan it's no problem," "Bamiyan is peace province." "So how many tourists have you had this winter?" "This winter for skiing" "I had two, er, real tourists - one was from Australia, one was from UK." "Two REAL tourists." "Yeah." "The last time I saw you, you talked about your dream, which was..." "Which was tour company!" "To make a tour company!" "Yeah." "So, my hope that one day my company should be famous for all Afghanistan, not for only Bamiyan." "To help improve those statistics, I decided to be the third and last tourist of the season." "With the snows all but gone, we had to walk to one of the furthest peaks." "Fortunately, the Afghan ski lift was working - that's the donkey." "Ghaffar, my driver, gave it a go, reminding me of Afghans' fearlessness and enthusiasm." "Way to go, Ghaffar!" "These Afghan boys tagged along with us, taking to the slopes with whatever they can find at home." "The littlest is sliding down the slopes in his mother's shoes." "Look at that - a bit of wood, a rubber boot, a bit of metal." "Tell me, Asif, why you like skiing so much." "What does it feel like when you're out there skiing?" "May this county give him the peace and prosperity just enough to make him a ski champion some day." "If tourism is to work, they'll need a few good hotels - there are some, but none quite like the Silk Road." "It's not just the location, it's the owners." "Moursal?" "Hi, how are you?" "SHE LAUGHS" "Salam aleikum!" "Aleikum Salam." "I've known Moursal for years - she first came here as a journalist." "It's still so amazing to see you here." "Is it?" "Yes." "Why?" "Well, you're the only Japanese sushi chef in Afghanistan." "I train some of the more" "Afghan women - two lady, I trained." "So I'm working with them." "And I'm very happy to be teaching for the Afghans, to helping them to more develop." "Moursal, I have to say that every time I see you, you seem a little bit more Afghan." "Is it?" "Yes!" "I hope, I want to keep it for, like, fooling ladies." "I'm still Japanese." "Really?" "Yeah." "But a little Afghan of course, yeah." "I love here, I love Afghanistan, I'm living here, yeah." "Moursal fell in love with this country on her first visit in the '80s." "She came back to report after the attacks of September 11th and found more than a story." "But then you also fell in love with an Afghan..." "Yes, it is." "Sabour." "Yes, you know, if 9/11 is not happening, so nothing is happening, you know?" "I change my life for 9/11." "Are you Muslim now?" "I am Muslim." "Oh, you had to convert to get married?" "Yes, it is." "But it's not very good Muslim, little bit lazy Muslim." "Husband hated me some time, you know?" "Yeah, but I try my best, yeah." "As long as God knows you're trying, Moursal, and that your husband knows you're trying." "Moursal invited me to stay for dinner - how could I refuse?" "Well, it's delicious." "But what's also delicious is to see a Panjshiri eating Japanese food." "Yeah!" "What did your family say, Sabour?" "Because in Afghanistan, you don't marry a person, you marry the family, you marry into the culture..." "I couldn't help but smile - a Japanese married to an Afghan from Panjshir eating sushi in Bamiyan with a Canadian." "A lovely way to end the evening." "It was the last day of my trip before heading back to Kabul." "But I couldn't leave Bamiyan without making one last stop." "No matter how many times you see these empty niches, they still take your breath away." "And every time I come to Bamiyan, no matter where I am in this valley, you feel the presence of these Buddhas." "Abbas, a student I'd met years ago, is now a tour guide here." "I'll show you some interesting things." "This is Buddha feet, you can see here." "But what a pity destroyed by the Taliban army in 2001." "But you know, you look, and to think, it was the world's largest standing Buddha." "So it was so important to the world's heritage, to Afghanistan's heritage." "Yeah." "Around here it was the Buddhism temples." "For Buddhists at that time it was so holy place." "'But in the Taliban's extreme creed, all this was sacrilege and had to be destroyed." "'Surprisingly, the evidence is still here.'" "I will show to you some fragment of the dynamite." "They fired, they used bullets, they used artillery pieces..." "Artillery pieces, yes." "Like a fuse." "Oh, a fuse." "It took a long time to destroy them." "One month." "One month?" "Yeah, one month." "Those were very dark days." "Yes, so dark days." "Terrible." "'The best way to get a real feel for these colossal Buddhas 'is to climb the rough stairway hewn out of bare rock.'" "I've stopped counting." "We've done a lot, more to come." "'It was well worth it.'" "Buddha statue..." "'From here, the valley seemed so serene, 'so peaceful." "But even here, in this most hopeful of places," "'I still found fear about what lies ahead.'" "At night you go home and you worry that the war will come again, the Taliban will come back?" "Yeah, maybe." "But you will stay here with your Buddhas, you're not going to leave Afghanistan?" "Maybe, yes, maybe, no." "Maybe when Taliban comes to Bamiyan, capture me and kill me - because they thinking we are connecting with foreigners, but this is my select." "Because new generation, they are thinking, we should improve our country." "Bamiyan is a place where Afghans can find space to dream - but dreams quickly run into limits here." "Bamiyan can only realise its promise if the rest of Afghanistan does, too." "Kabul - journey's end, a city bursting with life, bursting at its seams." "I arrived in the capital with a feeling of happiness, to have made a wonderful journey." "But it was a feeling soon tinged with sadness, as bad news came through." "'Reports from Mazar-i-Sharif say that some of those killed were beheaded...'" "'At least nine people have been killed in the southern city of Kandahar...'" "'..attacked a NATO base in the western city of Herat...'" "Violence had been only a short distance behind on my trip." "Not long after I left Mazar-i-Sharif, the UN compound was stormed by a mob, Kandahar saw multiple suicide bombings, even peaceful Herat came under attack." "I wanted to spend my last hours in Afghanistan at one of my favourite places, the old Royal Palace on the edge of the city." "I remember it in its prime, a magnificent building overlooking Kabul." "But like so much here, years of conflict have taken a terrible toll." "An Afghan friend once told me this palace seemed to be weeping tears for the country and its people." "There is something about Afghanistan and I've seen it again on this journey - it's Afghans with their sense of pride and honour, great sense of humour, sense of self..." "There's this Afghan-ness about this place." "And on this journey I've seen so much that is good and bright and strong, but there's also this long shadow of the war." "And there are moments when you hold your breath, knowing that all that's so bright could just become dark again." "Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd" "E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk"