Britain's plan for Islamic peace force is given a cool reception

The British proposal for deploying an "Islamic peacekeeping force" in post-war Afghanistan has been received coolly by potential contributors and the United Nations and rejected by the Afghan opposition.

The outline of the plan was presented last week to Jordan's King Abdullah and the Turkish Prime Minister, Mr Bulent Ecevit, by the British Foreign Secretary, Mr Jack Straw. He said: "As a member of NATO, Turkey is the obvious candidate to lead an Islamic force." Turkey was also expected to provide most, if not all, of the troops.

Morocco, Bangladesh and Jordan were listed as possible contributors.

Mr Straw's proposal reflects the concern in the international community that Afghanistan could collapse into anarchy and chaos once the Taliban is driven from power. The opposition Northern Alliance, which is likely to figure prominently in a successor regime, carried out mass revenge killings and brutal human rights abuses after the Russians pulled out.

Ankara's councils are divided over the plan. "Turkey favours the participation of its forces in maintaining peace," said a Foreign Ministry spokesman, Mr Huseiyn Dirioz, on behalf of the politicians.

However, the press reported opposition among serving generals and the former army chief, Maj Gen Cevik Bir, came out publicly against the proposal. Bir's objection was over the negative political and social impact service in Afghanistan could have on the Turkish armed forces. After initially expressing interest, King Abdullah also voiced reservations.

Concern has been expressed by commentators elsewhere that Muslim peacekeepers could be converted to the retrograde, tribal religious ideology prevalent in Afghanistan. Peacekeepers could enter Afghanistan clean shaven and return home with beards, exporting Islamist militancy to their armies and societies.

Thousands of foreign "mujahedin", the "holy warriors" who drove the Soviet army from Afghanistan, subsequently joined Muslim forces fighting in Bosnia, Kosovo or Chechnya or raised the standard of Islamist revolt in their own countries.

Mr Lakhdar Brahimi, a former foreign minister of Algeria (another Muslim country menaced by Islamists) now the UN secretary general's representative for Afghanistan, is cool towards the prospect of deploying any "blue helmets", Muslim or otherwise. "I would like to know which countries are rushing forward to offer troops to mount an operation in Afghanistan," he stated.

He could not say whether a force led by Muslims would be more acceptable than non-Muslims to the Afghans. These things would have to be examined with great care, he told a news conference.

Dr Muhammad Jalil Shams, a former Afghan deputy foreign minister who is a spokesman for the exiled opposition, told The Irish Times: "No foreign force, whether Muslim or non-Muslim, will be accepted by the people of Afghanistan." In his view, his country's problems are the result of "foreign interference, beginning with Britain, then Russia and the US and now Pakistan. Afghans do not want to replace the Pakistanis with other foreigners," he stated.