British Prime Minister Gordon Brown is defending his country's mission
in Afghanistan, after eight British soldiers were killed in a 24-hour
period.
In a letter to British lawmakers, Mr. Brown said despite recent
casualties, British military commanders in Afghanistan are succeeding
in their objectives. He said the course being undertaken is the right
one.
Earlier on Saturday, British Foreign Minister David Miliband said
Britain will not be safe until it has established security in
Afghanistan. He said British troops in Afghanistan are fighting for the
"future of Britain," adding that the border area between Afghanistan
and Pakistan has been used to launch deadly attacks on his country and
the United States.
Eight British soldiers were killed Friday in separate incidents in
Afghanistan. The casualties bring Britain's death toll in Afghanistan
to 184, five more than the number of British deaths in the Iraq war.
More than 8,000 British troops are fighting in the southern Afghan
province of Helmand, alongside thousands of U.S. Marines in a major
offensive against Taliban militants.
Elsewhere in southern Afghanistan, the interior ministry said Saturday
that Afghan police and U.S.-led coalition forces killed 19 suspected
militants in two separate clashes in the Charchino district of Uruzgan
province.
Separately, officials say four Afghan security guards were killed in an insurgent attack in Ghazni province on Saturday.