Death toll brings war into focus

The spiralling death toll among British forces in Afghanistan dominates the front pages.

"Our Darkest Day in War on Taliban," says the Daily Mail, which warns that pressure is mounting on Gordon Brown to improve support to front-line troops.

"Horror in Afghanistan - 10 days, 15 dead," says The Sun.

The Independent carries a poignant image of the coffin of a fallen serviceman draped in the union jack arriving at RAF Lyneham on Friday.

'Bloodiest day'

The Guardian also focuses on the effects of the Afghanistan conflict.

On its front page, it carries a picture of the cortege of five British soldiers killed this month in Afghanistan under the headline, "The Bloodiest Day".

The Times explains that the escalating loss of life is due largely to what it describes as the Taliban's "mastery of the makeshift bomb".

It says improvised devices have made every foot and vehicle patrol a "potentially lethal last journey".

Government failure

In its leader, The Times says the conflict in Afghanistan is in danger of sinking into a quagmire in a similar vein to the "disastrous military campaign" in Vietnam 40 years ago.

"The failures in the campaign have been on the home front: the British Government has been dilatory and uncertain in making the case for the war," the paper opines.

The Sun accused "armchair generals" of wasting a fortune on poor equipment.

It said that Gordon Brown needed to do whatever it takes to defeat the Taliban, including sending in more troops and providing them with better helicopters and tougher vehicles.

Calling it quits?

"Back our troops - or pull them out" demands the Daily Mail in its comment page.

If the fight in Helmand is not "an essential battle for our civilisation" then Gordon Brown should seriously consider a strategy for withdrawal, it argues.

This view was echoed by The Daily Express.

"In a war of attrition, such as is presently being fought, victory will not be achieved, but heavy losses will certainly be sustained. Our brave soldiers deserve far better than that," it says.