http://www.kuna.net.kw/home/Story.aspx?Language=en <http://www.kuna.net.kw/home/Story.aspx?Language=en&DSNO=910836> &DSNO=910836 Blair defends military action in Afghanistan LONDON, Oct 5 (KUNA) -- British Prime Minister Tony Blair Thursday defended military action in Afghanistan after fears were raised about its humanitarian effects.
Challenged on a report that more than 90,000 people had been displaced by the ongoing conflict, the Prime Minister insisted things had been worse under the former Taliban regime. Speaking in No 10 Downing Street after holding talks with his Finnish counterpart Matti Vanhanen, Blair told journalists "Sure there are people in Afghanistan who are suffering as a result of the fighting that's taking place. But they suffered a lot more under the Taliban." Blair added that the NATO mission in Afghanistan was "absolutely critical for global security," and was backed by a UN resolution. "We do not want al Qaida and Taliban back in power in Afghanistan, using it as a training ground for terrorism around the world," he emphasized. The report from the UN refugee agency yesterday said the heavy fighting in southern Afghanistan recently had driven some 90,000 people from their homes. The largest figure bring the total number of displaced persons in the area to about 200,000, according to the UN. NATOs International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) has just taken over responsibility for eastern provinces from the United States, to add to its duties in the north, south and west. Blair thanked the Prime Minister of Finland, who currently holds the EU presidency, for that countrys contribution to the force in Afghanistan. The British leader also stressed his belief that the international community should be willing to intervene again in similar situations if required. He said "Because of the way the world is today and because of this global terrorist threat, it is important that we have the capability and also the political will to go into places like Afghanistan and sort things out." Asked if other NATO countries should have a bigger role in operations such as Afghanistan, Blair replied "It is always for each individual member of NATO to decide how they contribute." [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] -------------------------- Want to discuss this topic? Head on over to our discussion list, [EMAIL PROTECTED] -------------------------- Brooks Isoldi, editor [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.intellnet.org Post message: osint@yahoogroups.com Subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] *** FAIR USE NOTICE. This message contains copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. OSINT, as a part of The Intelligence Network, is making it available without profit to OSINT YahooGroups members who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information in their efforts to advance the understanding of intelligence and law enforcement organizations, their activities, methods, techniques, human rights, civil liberties, social justice and other intelligence related issues, for non-profit research and educational purposes only. We believe that this constitutes a 'fair use' of the copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law. If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use,' you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/osint/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/osint/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
