War on al Qaeda 'all but won'

The war against al Qaeda and Taliban fighters inside Afghanistan is "all but won", the commander of British fighting forces said today.

Speaking hours after a suicide bomber killed at least 14 people in Karachi, Pakistan, in an attack said to bear the signature of the terrorist group, Brigadier Roger Lane said: "We believe we're on the right way, that the fight against al Qaeda and Taliban in Afghanistan is all but won."

He continued: "Because as yet we have not come into contact with the enemy per se, I expect over the next few days that offensive operations akin to Operation Snipe (the British operation against al Qaeda) will start coming to an end.

"I think the general assessment is that in substantial parts of the country the need for offensive operations is beginning to dwindle."

However Labour MP Jeremy Corbyn said: "They can hardly claim this as a victory. If the Marines are coming home because there is nobody to fight it shows that either the intelligence was wrong or al Qaeda have escaped into the mountains."

US officials were much more cautious. Donald Rumsfeld, US defence secretary, said: "We are some distance from effectively finishing the task of seeing that the interim government in that country is able to survive."

Britain has had about 1,700 Royal Marines at Bagram air base since last month. The Ministry of Defence dismissed suggestions that their mission was over, saying they would stay until July. "There's still a job to be done and it's important," a spokesman said.