From the Telegraph: The devastating terrorist attacks that took place in New York and Washington eight years ago today are the reason why our troops are still in Afghanistan. Initially they were sent, along with American and other Nato forces, to track down Osama bin Laden and destroy al-Qaeda’s bases, an outcome that required the defeat of the Taliban, who had turned the country into a launch pad for international jihad . . .

the risks of allowing the Taliban to regain control in Afghanistan are as great as ever: were that to happen, insurgents in nuclear-armed Pakistan would step up their efforts to supplant the government in Islamabad.

It is disheartening that eight years on from 2001, the Taliban remains undefeated, bin Laden may still be alive, and the corrupt handling of the recent elections in Afghanistan has severely damaged the credibility of Nato’s aims. But as that tragic day showed, the enemy is both real and deadly.