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A lucky escape: How David Cameron was almost shot down by a Taliban rocket

David Cameron came close to being assassinated at the hands of the Taliban on his last trip to Afghanistan, it emerged yesterday.

Military sources revealed that insurgents armed with shoulder launched rockets knew which helicopter to target when the Prime Minister visited a base in Helmand province.

Intercepted communications by the militants referred to the desire to shoot down the Chinook carrying the 'Big Commander'.

The trip was aborted after Nato spies overheard a Taliban unit near the base talking about shooting down the helicopter, with a second call shortly afterwards that referred to a VIP in the area.

Now an urgent review has been launched into the Prime Minister's security on visits to war zones.

Downing Street officials played down the incident when Mr Cameron made his first trip to the warzone in June, but the Mail has learned that the Taliban came much closer to killing the Prime Minister than has previously been disclosed.

A senior source said:'There were two helicopters and they were planning to shoot at the second one, which was carrying the Prime Minister.

'Either they got lucky or they knew which helicopter to hit. The fear is that they knew which aircraft to hit. No one is taking any chances. There is a major security review.'

Since the incident was first reported, leaked military documents – published by the Wikileaks website – have revealed that Taliban insurgents are armed with heat-seeking missiles capable of shooting down coalition aircraft, something previously denied by Nato officials.

At the time, military officials said the Prime Minister's helicopter turned away from the forward base near Lashka Ghar when it was less than 10 minutes away.

In fact, it can now be disclosed that the aircraft was close to coming into range of a shoulderlaunched missile.

'It was a much closer thing than anyone said at the time,' the source admitted.

Officials believe that publicity before Mr Cameron's trip gave the Taliban time to prepare for the assassination bid and piece together intelligence from their supporters in the Afghan military and police.

By the time Mr Cameron visited the frontline soldiers, he had already conducted a televised news conference with Afghan President Hamid Karzai, which alerted militants to his presence.

Senior commanders at the Ministry of Defence have called for changes in the Prime Minister's security plans when he next visits British troops.

Senior Army officers want to prevent Mr Cameron from putting his life at risk by conducting photo opportunities in the war zone.

The generals want to impose a news blackout on trips by the Prime Minister to Afghanistan until they have ended – a move resisted by Downing Street aides.

'There has to be a compromise,' one senior Tory said. When Defence Secretary Liam Fox travelled Afghanistan last month, details of his visit were only released after he left the country.

On his last visit, Mr Cameron only flew south to Camp Bastion in Helmand province after breaking the news blackout on his presence.

The trip to the forward operating base was the last major event on his schedule. He then stayed overnight at Bastion.

'In future, he is likely to do the frontline stuff first, and his arrival in country not advertised until he is out of harm's way,' a military official said.

Last night a Downing Street spokesman said: 'We do not comment on security issues.'

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1306564/David-Camerons-lucky-escape-shot-Taliban-rocket.html#