Green Party says Afghan attacks will prove counter-productive

The Green Party has condemned last night’s attacks on Afghanistan, saying the offensive will be counter-productive in the fight against international terrorism.

Party spokesman John Gormley said: "The attack on Afghanistan will not solve the problem and will be entirely counter-productive, leading to a spiral of violence that could catapult us into a third world war."

He said that Ireland’s participation in the American war effort will make us a legitimate target for retaliation and he urged the government to rethink its decision to grant the US military the use of Irish airports and airspace.

Mr Gormley also said that there is no UN mandate for the attacks carried out by the US and Britain last night. He said Article 42 of the UN Charter is the only item that give such a mandate, but the US has not sought to have this article invoked.

"In our view," Mr Gormley said, "the resolution passed by the UN a few weeks ago is not an endorsement for military action and should not be interpreted as such by our government.

"Over the past number of weeks, it has become increasingly clear that Irish people are extremely apprehensive about the conduct of this war. They do not wish to see civilian casualties, nor do they want to be targets of foreign aggression."