Blair: let's hold our nerve on war ; Strains show in coalition Taliban repel offensive t Pakistan issues warning FOREIGN Edition

• Published in: Independent (London, England : 1986)
• Main Author: Colin Brown, Jo Dillon and Rupert Cornwell
• Format: Newspaper Article
• Language: English
• Published: London (UK) Independent Digital News & Media 28.10.2001
• ISSN: 0951-9467

Mr [Tony Blair]'s decision to rally morale at home in almost Churchillian tones will be seen as clear evidence of alarm in Downing Street that as British troops head for the war zone, public support is being put at risk by news of civilian casualties and setbacks that have allowed the Taliban to capture and execute more prominent allies of the West in Afghanistan. Underlining the risks Gen [Pervez Musharraf] is taking by backing the US assault, an estimated 9,000 Pakistan tribesmen have set out for Afghanistan in support of the Taliban's call for help to repel the foreign attackers. Last night this makeshift force, armed with machine guns light rifles and even swords, was being blocked at the Pakistani border. Ministers are frustrated at their inability to convince the public that the bombing by "bunker-busting" bombs targeted at caves is hurting the Taliban. They privately claim that the devastation in one mountain village was caused not by stray bombs, but an underground eruption when a Taliban ammunition store exploded.