London, August 17: A new opinion poll has found that opposition to UK’s involvement in the Afghan war has increased as the British fatalities crossed the 200 mark.
A recent survey conducted by YouGov for the Sky News revealed on Monday, that public calls for an end to Britain’s Afghan mission has strengthened, with 57 percent of respondents saying Britain should not be fighting in the war-torn country.
An earlier poll conducted by The Independent revealed that 52 per cent of British people believed that the war in Afghanistan is unwinnable and British troops should be pulled out immediately.
The survey also found that 82 percent think the British government is not doing enough to provide better support for the troops.
The figure was in stark contrast with 12 percent of respondents who said the government was supporting the British forces properly.
The poll comes as the number of British troops killed in Afghanistan since the 2001 US-led invasion reached a total of 204, passing the bloody milestone of 200 and reviving debate about the purpose and resourcing of the Afghan mission.
However, despite nationwide oppositions to the war, Prime Minister Gordon Brown once again said that Britain would not leave Afghanistan, stressing that troops were doing a “vital job”.
The premier also added that Britons must understand that the war in Afghanistan is a “sacrifice” made to make “Britain and the rest of the world” a safe place.
The British premier however failed to talks about the dire situation the war-ravaged nation has been facing ever since the US-led coalition forces invaded their country more than eight years ago
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According to UN figures, Afghan civilians remain the main victims of the notorious war which was launched to allegedly destroy the militancy and arrest militant leaders including Osama bin Laden.
The number of Afghan civilians killed either in coalition forces’ ‘counterinsurgency operations’, particularly indiscriminate air raids, or Taliban attacks has surpassed 1,000 in the first half of 2009, the UN has announced.
Britain’s mission in Afghanistan has never had massive public support but with the number of fatalities exceeding that of their forces during the Iraqi occupation, it is now becoming even more unpopular.
The increase in deaths follows the launch of ‘Operation Panther’s Claw’ against Taliban insurgents in southern Helmand province, as violence surged in Afghanistan ahead of the country’s presidential elections on Thursday.
—–Agencies