There was something of a frenzy about the scramble for information yesterday. When the dust has settled a little after this terrible event the media will still have a very useful role to play. It is important that the Govt comes under scrutiny for the war in Afghanistan. Because it is a war, it is being reported that RoE have just changed. When the deployment was first presented to Parliament one of the roles for British troops was defensive counter insurgency. It was clearly stated that our troops would not be involved in offensive ops. Well the Op in which this brave crew were involved in was most definitely offensive in nature. Furthermore there has been a significant increase in poppy production in Afg. Has the Govt now reined back from overseeing crop eradication? If so, what the hell is this Operation all about? Neither the press nor the MoD have handled the intial reporting of this tragedy in a satisfactory manner. But it should be noted that the free press in the UK have been more impressive challenging Govt policy than the official opposition.
The MoD should immediately clear up the circumstances of this tragedy. We have all had enough spin to last a lifetime, furnish us with facts otherwise further speculation about this accident will be difficult to prevent.