Angela Merkel rules out Afghan combat role

Chancellor Angela Merkel has defied Germany's Nato allies by refusing to commit troops to combat zones in Afghanistan.

Despite intense pressure from the United States and warnings that the dispute could lead to an irreparable split in the trans-Atlantic alliance, Mrs Merkel said that her government would not reconsider the terms of the mandate under which German soldiers are stationed in the country.

	Angela Merkel: 'Our mandate is how it is... we have no plan at the moment to go to the South'

Her comments came as three Canadian soldiers were reported to be among up to 40 people killed in the second suicide bombing in two days in the perilous south of the country, where German soldiers do not operate.

Germany's Afghan mission is governed by a parliamentary mandate that is due for renewal in the autumn.

It caps the number of troops at 3,500 and limits them to peacekeeping and reconstruction efforts in the relatively calm north.

Nato allies, including Britain, are engaged in fierce combat with the Taliban in the south and east of the country. Telegraph