British troops in Basra are being urged to return to the front line and help their Iraqi counterparts in the battle against insurgents after two bombs in as many days left eight people dead and many more wounded. BritainÂ’s forces, however, insisted that the explosions were isolated incidents and the overall situation in Basra had become much calmer since they withdrew from their last stronghold inside the oil-rich city at the start of the month. The latest bombing took place on Wednesday evening near the main gate of a Sunni mosque in the town of Abu al-Khaseeb, about 12 miles (20km) south of Basra, killing three Shia guards and two Sunni worshippers, police said. Five other prayer-goers were injured.
The attack came one day after a suicide car bomb exploded outside the police headquarters in Basra, leaving three police trainees dead and 17 wounded. Most policemen in the city are Shia Arabs. Colonel Abdul Kareem el-Zaydee, the main police spokesman in Basra, said he feared an upsurge of al-Qaeda attacks. “Perhaps al-Qaeda members have now come to Basra,” Colonel Zaydee told The Times.
Colonel Zaydee did not blame the spike in violence on the departure of British forces from the city. Instead, he said that the problem was infighting by politicians in Basra and Baghdad along with the influence of neighbouring countries. At the same time, the Iraqi police officer said: “The British military should support the Iraqi security forces and not just stay at their airport base.”
His appeal, which was echoed by other officials in the southern capital, poses a quandry for the 5,500-strong British military contingent, now based at Basra airport, a few miles outside the city. Britain hopes that the situation in Basra will stay calm and allow the force to be reduced and eventually withdrawn once Iraqi security forces are strong enough to take over control of the province. But until then Britain remains responsible for security in the province and if necessary would have to go back into the city to reinforce Iraqi security forces or take on militias or insurgents.