600 Brit Troops Rescue Mission

As Taliban close in on Kabul...

- Chris Hughes

Britain is sending 600 troops into Kabul to save more than 2,000 embassy staff and others from the clutches of the Taliban.

Last night the feared militants had advanced to within 95 miles of the Afghan capital.

By yesterday they had taken 11 major cities across the country, including strategically important Ghazni, despite fierce resistance.

Heavy fighting was reported in the Taliban’s former heartland Kandahar, Afghanistan’s second city.

As the country teeters on the point of collapse, troops from the UK’s 16th Air Assault Brigade – including Paras, logisticians and medics – will back up 170 personnel already on the ground.