This article, by by Sean Rayment, was originally published in the Sunday Telegraph, February 2, 2009
Marina Feasey said the price of the UK's involvement in the Afghan War would be the deaths of hundreds of "very fine young men" and she called for all British troops to be withdrawn immediately.
Her sons, Daniel, 22, a member of 59 Independent Commando Squadron Royal Engineers, and James, 21, who is serving with 29 Commando Regiment Royal Artillery, are on their first tour in Helmand, southern Afghanistan.
Mrs Feasey, who is married with four children, spoke as the latest soldier to be killed in Afghanistan was named as Corporal Daniel Nield, of S Company, 1 Rifles. The 32-year-old soldier from Cheltenham, was killed by an explosion caused by a rocket propelled grenade in a fire fight close to the town of Musa Qala, in northern Helmand.
His parents, Paula and Shelia, said: “Danny lived for the Army, and was proud to serve his country. He died doing the job he loved.”
He was the 143rd member of the armed forces to die since operations began in 2001.
In a separate development, the Tories accused the Government of failing to provide the military with the troops needed to defeat the Taliban.
Figures released by ministers in response to a parliamentary question tabled by Dr Liam Fox, the shadow defence minister, show that commanders in Afghanistan have called for reinforcement on 10 separate occasions in the two years.
The last deployment of the Theatre Reserve Battalion, based in Cyprus, took place last December when 300 extra troops were sent to southern Afghanistan to help bolster British forces fighting the Taliban.
The almost permanent deployment of the theatre reserve, which is currently composed of 700 men from the 2nd battalion the Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment, has lead to claims by Tories that commanders are short of combat troops.
Mrs Feasey, from Plymouth, Devon, said she believed that the presence of Nato troops in Afghanistan was making the security conditions there worse, and said that it was understandable that the Afghans viewed the British as invaders.
She said: "If this country was invaded we would also fight until the occupiers left. My main concern over the war is the number of lives being lost. Barely a day now passes without the death of a soldier being announced.
"I think a lot of people in this country believe the Afghans should be left to sort out their own problems. We have given enough."
Referring to last week's imprisonment of Nicky Riley, who was sentenced to 18 years in prison after failing to detonate a nail bomb in Exeter, Mrs Feasey said: "The idea that our troops are somehow keeping our streets safe by fighting in Afghanistan is nonsense.
"We are being attacked in this country because of our involvement in Afghanistan.
"MPs say that we can sleep safely in our beds at night because of what our troops are doing in Afghanistan. Well, I can tell you that none of the parents of the thousand of soldiers and marines serving in Helmand ever sleep safely.
"I constantly worry about Jamie and Dan. They call home when they can and they always say 'Everything's fine, mum,' but I can tell that it's not."
Asked whether her sons thought the British involvement in Afghanistan was worthwhile, she said: "I don't want to say what they think because I don't want to get them into trouble."
Both of Mrs Feasey's sons wanted to join the forces at 16 but she and her husband, Ken, refused to give their consent.
She continued: "They had to wait until they were 18 and at that point they both said 'We are joining the Army.' I'm proud that they are soldiers and serving Queen and Country but I just don't think that fighting in Afghanistan is serving Queen and Country."
A Ministry of Defence spokesman said: "Our commitment to Afghanistan is first and foremost about Britain's national security interest.
"Put starkly, the choice is between fighting the al-Qaeda insurgents in Afghanistan or fighting them on the streets of UK towns. That is why we have 8,000 troops in Afghanistan."
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