Terror threat to Britain will grow if West neglects Afghanistan, previous boss of MI6 warns

The threat to the UK from terrorist groups like al Qaeda will grow if allies turn their back on Afghanistan after troops withdraw, Sir Alex Younger, the previous head of MI6, has warned.

The former spy chief said it would be an “enormous mistake” to neglect the country as happened back in 1989 when an earlier intervention by the then Soviet Union ended.

Sir Alex, a veteran of the fight against terrorism following the 11 September attacks on America in 2001, predicted the most likely outcome for Afghanistan now is civil war between a resurgent Taliban and the US and UK-backed Afghan government.

Sir Alex, 57, who retired as chief of the Secret Intelligence Service (SIS) last September, gave his thoughts on Afghanistan as a 20-year intervention by the US, Britain and other NATO allies ends.

Photo: Afghan security officials patrol on highway in Helmand, Afghanistan. EPA-EFE/WATAN YAR

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