Britain's Prince William, his wife, Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry leave a Christmas Day morning service
IN PHOTO: Britain's Prince William, his wife, Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry leave a Christmas Day morning service at the church on the Sandringham Estate in Norfolk, eastern England, December 25, 2014. REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth Reuters/Stefan Wermuth

Eight months pregnant Kate Middleton was joined by husband Prince William together with Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip to honour servicemen and women who died in Afghanistan, including the veterans who fought during the conflict. The Queen and the Prime Minister are the one who lead the commemoration service on Friday, March 13, as it marks the end of the 13th year combat operations in the country.

The service was celebrated with the families of the some of the 453 British soldiers who were killed during the war at St. Paul’s Cathedral in London. Prince Harry, who served two tours during the campaign, was also there together with Prince Charles and wife Camilla Parker-Bowles.

Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip were the last couple to arrive and the group of royals were led to their seats by Bishop Chartress and the Archbishop of Cantebury Justin Welby. The Dean of St. Paul, the Very Reverend Dr David Ison led the prayer and thanked the commitment of the brave servicemen and women and prayed for the people and leaders of Afghanistan.

The commemoration comes after an interview with Tony Blair who admitted that he can’t foresee how long the struggle in Afghanistan would last. He revealed that nobody understood the depth of the problem and the scale of it and how much the country needs for a “comprehensive strategy” to deal with it.

"I always felt that it was right and justified that we were there in Afghanistan, that we were fighting both to remove the Taliban and then to try and stabilise the country," former prime minister Tony Blair told Forces TV in an interview. "But there is nothing that's really possible to say that could provide true consolation for family of someone who has lost their life."

Afghanistan Prime Minister also paid tribute to those who fought to free Afghanistan and honoured the bravery and sacrifice of British servicemen and women. Now the terrorist threat of the country has been substantially reduced as they slowly building the Afghan forces to take control of the country’s security.

For questions/comments regarding the article, you may e-mail the writer at rornos.IBTimes@gmail.com.

RELATED STORIES