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British troops end combat operations in Afghanistan

The UK has handed control of Camp Bastion in Helmand province to Afghan security forces, marking the end of a military presence in the country that spanned more than a decade and cost 453 British soldiers their lives.

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Fallon: 'British troop sacrifice gives Afghanistan a chance'

The Taliban remain in parts of Afghanistan but the country is much better position as a result of the sacrifice made by British troops, Defence Secretary Michael Fallon told ITV News.

He said: "The Taliban have not been completely eliminated. They are still there in some of the villages in North Helmand but we're leaving behind an Afghan trained security force, some 300,000 strong, army and police that are now taking on the Taliban."

He added: "There's no guarantee that Afghanistan will necessarily succeed as the kind of democracy we know in western Europe, but I think we've given it every possible chance of doing so, through the sacrifice of our troops."

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