French resolve tested after Afghan ambush kills 10

A daring Taliban attack on French troops near Kabul is a "wake-up call" for the international community.

An armoured vehicle carrying French soldiers heads toward the battle in Surobi yesterday.

KABUL // A daring Taliban attack on French troops near the Afghan capital that killed 10 soldiers and wounded 21, was a "wake-up call" for the international community that the insurgents were gaining in strength and audacity, analysts said. The Taliban ambushed the troops while they patrolled the district of Sarobi on Monday. A major battle ensued and the fighting was still reported to be continuing nearly 24 hours after the first attack. News of the deaths came amid growing fears that the insurgency is spreading across the country and becoming ever more lethal and dangerous to society. The scale of the attack provoked a quick response from Nicolas Sarkozy, the French president, who immediately reiterated his backing for the war. "My determination is intact. France is determined to continue the struggle against terrorism for democracy and freedom. The cause is just," Mr Sarkozy said. He announced he would immediately travel to the country. The Taliban have stepped up their insurgency this year, killing foreign soldiers at rates higher than in Iraq. Monday's bloodshed came after the militants ambushed a reconnaissance patrol from three sides, roughly 60km east of the capital. Air support was then called in to rescue the units. France has 1,670 troops in Afghanistan as part of the Nato-led ISAF force, but until this week it had suffered just 12 fatalities. The loss was the worst suffered by the French army in a single incident since 58 paratroops were killed by a suicide bomber in Lebanon in 1983 and the worst in combat with enemy forces since the Algerian war that ended in 1962, according to Reuters. Speaking from Paris, the executive director of one leading think tank described the ambush as "a wake-up call" for Mr Sarkozy's government. Emmanuel Reinert, of the Senlis Council, said there was "incredible denial" among the international community when it came to the Taliban's growing strength. "It's about time to acknowledge that the situation has reached breaking point," he said. The Senlis Council has published a number of reports on the insurgency. This summer it claimed the Taliban control more than half of Maidan Wardak, a province bordering Kabul. Mr Reinert said Monday's attack had unfortunately proved the group was right to warn that the militants are closing in on the capital. "It shows the moral support they get from the population," he said, adding many Afghans now believed the Taliban would "be in power sooner or later". In the eastern province of Khost yesterday, a wave of fighters tried to storm Camp Salerno, a US base near the Pakistan border. Seven militants were killed, six of them suicide bombers, ISAF said. It was the second attack on the camp in as many days. The first killed 10 Afghan civilians and wounded 13 more. [e-mail]