Dead Taliban fighter in Afghanistan had Aston Villa tattoo

Jun 14 2009 Exclusive by Paul Bradley, Sunday Mercury

RAF radio operators, listening to the conversations from Nimrod planes flying above the lawless Afghan provinces, are previously said to have heard young Taliban fighters speaking in clear West Bromwich and Bradford accents.

A Foreign Office spokesman said: “Wherever there is any firm evidence of Brits going abroad to wage Jihad, we work with governments overseas to stop them.

“There is a long-term set of work with the governments of Pakistan and Afghanistan to look at issues of radicalisation, both in the UK and abroad.

“It is important that British Muslim communities make clear that they reject this kind of activity.”

Incredibly, brave British soldiers said they harboured no ill-feeling against British mercenaries recruited by the Taliban.

But they admitted that it was almost impossible to understand their motivation.

Bombardier Mark Leinster, of 40 Regiment Royal Artillery, who was injured during an operation that led to the death of a key Taliban leader earlier this month, said: “It’s baffling.

“Why would these people leave Britain, where you have all the freedoms of a democracy, to stop Afghan people having the same benefits that are enjoyed in the UK?

“I don’t think squaddies have any hatred for these people.

“But it’s definitely difficult to understand why they would do it.”