Meeting the Taliban

After filming British troops in Helmand Province for Fighting the Taliban', Sean Langan meets the Taliban fighters who intend to defeat them and the Islamic fighters who are waging the wider war - global jihad. In a show of strength and in defiance of nearby British forces, the Taliban gather in large numbers in the open to explain to Langan how Helmand is under their control and how they believe the British are out-numbered and out of their depth. Langan carries out extensive interviews with their commanders, their soldiers, and even one of their teenage suicide bombers. Travelling deep into the mountains, on the border with Pakistan, Langan meets the Islamic fighters who are part of Osama bin Laden's terrorist network. In Islamic militant camps he interviews fighters who say they have links with Arab fighters and al-Qaeda and those that claim to have plotted to blow up planes last summer with liquid explosives. Travelling with British forces and the Taliban down south, and with Islamic fighters and American troops on the border with Pakistan, Langan's films bring all sides of the war into focus, and reveal why the West is at risk of losing the war in Afghanistan. “His (Sean Langan) film is not only extraordinary but also gives a totally different view on the war in Afghanistan to the one you see on the news.” The Guardian “Dispatches did an important public service when that wonderful, slightly gonzo television reporter Sean Langan went with nonchalant bravery to watch the long-running war in Afghanistan.” The Daily Telegraph “Langan shows the chaos and boredom, pointlessness, fear and exhaustion, as well as the banter and tea breaks.” The Guardian “If these brave, fascinating and nerve-wracking films are anything to go by, the stern rhetoric of the war on terrorism masks a distinctly threadbare reality.” Financial Times “Journalists often make the job of reporting under life-threatening conditions look rather to easy, but it is to this film’s credit that Sean Langan looks genuinely petrified as he attempts to make contact with the Taliban in Afghanistan.” The Daily Telegraph

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