'This is a battle with only one outcome: our victory, not theirs'

PM makes call to arms; Nato gives mandate for action; Britain on war footing, says MoD

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Yesterday's highlights

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Leading article: Mr Blair was right

On the eve of war, a sombre Tony Blair declared yesterday that the United States, Britain and the allies would win against Osama bin Laden's terrorists and their Taliban protectors in Afghanistan.

As the Prime Minister spoke at Labour's annual conference in Brighton, Nato took the final, formal step towards war and the United Nations secretary general, Kofi Annan, confirmed that existing UN resolutions gave America the right to proceed with military action.

In a day of rapidly moving international military and political developments, Britain went onto a war-footing by stepping up internal security and planning to divert its armed forces exercising off Oman towards Afghanistan if necessary.

Mr Blair has been warned by security chiefs that Mr bin Laden's al-Qa'ida network will seek to hit back at Western targets, including London, once the air strikes on Afghanistan begin.

There were further claims of the terrorist network's attempts to launch attacks in Europe, with a French Algerian allegedly telling investigators in France that he had been recruited by a senior bin Laden aide to organise a suicide bombing of the US embassy in Paris.

In Brussels, Nato formally invoked Article 5 of its founding treaty, which holds that an attack on one member state is an attack on all. The Nato secretary general, Lord Robertson of Port Ellen, announced that the coalition had received "clear and compelling evidence" that the US atrocities were committed by people under Mr bin Laden's direct command.

Meanwhile, Afghanistan's Taliban regime offered to negotiate over the US demand that Mr bin Laden be handed over but, yet again, insisted that it must be provided with proof of his involvement in the attacks.

President George Bush rejected the idea of talks or more time, saying: "There is no timetable for the Taliban, just like there are no negotiations." He added that the US would take action at a time of its choosing.

The broad base of the coalition was underlined by reports from military sources that Russian special forces had carried out missions behind Afghan lines to locate Taliban positions. Moscow claimed that at least four of the 11 September hijackers had trained in Chechnya.

The first part of the military operations, believed to be in two phases, is imminent, sources in London and Washington said.

Mr Blair will shore up the anti-terrorist alliance with visits to Pakistan, Moscow and Oman. On Friday, he is expected to be accompanied by General Sir Charles Guthrie, the retired chief of defence staff, to meet the Pakistani leader, General Pervez Musharraf.

Donald Rumsfeld, the US Defence Secretary, is due to arrive in the Middle East today. He is to visit Saudi Arabia, Oman, Egypt and Uzbekistan.

But the region's tinderbox was set alight again last night, as armed Palestinians infiltrated a Jewish settlement in the Gaza Strip, killing two Israeli teenagers and wounding 12 others, including a baby, in the most serious breach so far of the shaky week-old truce.

In his address yesterday, Mr Blair sought to prepare the country for war. "Be in no doubt: bin Laden and his people organised this [11 September] atrocity," he said. "The Taliban aid and abet him ... They will not stop helping him. I say to the Taliban ­ surrender the terrorists or surrender power. It's your choice." He added: "This is a battle with only one outcome: our victory, not theirs"

Mr Blair acknowledged that people in Britain were "anxious, even a little frightened" about military action, which, he stressed, would not be taken "out of bloodlust".

But he continued: "Whatever the dangers of action we take, the dangers of inaction are far, far greater. The action we take will be proportionate, targeted. We will do all we humanly can to avoid civilian casualties." He pledged that the looming action would "put a trap around the regime" by eliminating the Taliban's military hardware, cutting off its finances, disrupting its supplies and targeting its troops.

Although Labour delegates gave Mr Blair a warm reception, many remained anxious about civilian casualties. "I hope he will not regard this as a mandate when all hell breaks lose," one senior Labour figure said.