Soldiers' death rekindles Polish debate on Afghanistan

Dec 24, 2011, 15:46 GMT

Warsaw - Five Polish soldiers killed in Afghanistan were buried on Christmas Eve amid a renewed debate on Poland's involvement in the Asian country's conflict against Taliban insurgents.

The opposition liberal Palikot's Movement party has called for Poland to immediately withdraw from the war-torn country.

'It should have been done long ago,' party head Janusz Palikot said after the deaths were first reported.

The Democratic Left Alliance, another opposition group, has also said Poland should re-think its role in Afghanistan.

'The death of five of our soldiers is another reason why this mission should be ended,' said Janusz Zemke, a member of the European Parliament.

The ruling and the main opposition Law and Justice party have both stressed that Poland must follow NATO's plans of a withdrawal by 2014, saying that any decision to pull out should not be made in the heat of emotion.

Polish commentators have argued that the Taliban, who have claimed responsibility for the deaths, had timed their attack to coincide with the Christmas season in a bid to further erode support for the war in the strongly Catholic European nation.

Wednesday's roadside bombing resulted in the biggest single day death toll for Poland's contingent since its deployment in Afghanistan.

Funeral ceremonies were held in the home towns of the soldiers and were attended by high-ranking military officials.

Poland has some 2,500 soldiers stationed in Afghanistan as part of the NATO-led mission, which it joined in 2002.

The latest attack has raised Poland's overall death toll in Afghanistan to 36.

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