Brits' hygiene attacked

A United States commander has criticised British troops in Helmand province in Afghanistan, attacking everything from their gathering of intelligence to their personal hygiene, the Times reports.

The unnamed Marine commander claimed British Forces spent insufficient time living among the Afghan people, were not posted for long enough, had too many bases and suffered too many non-battle injuries.

The confidential briefing also suggested that the British military "are cautious about the enemy and overestimate their strength".

The Times said the commander maintained: "Your standards of personal hygiene and field discipline aren't good enough."

The Ministry of Defence said troops were aware that good personal "field hygiene" was important. It was "nonsense" to suggest that British hygiene was worse than American standards.