Fascinating insights into the controversial conflict in Afghanistan formed the meaty subject matter tackled on the opening night of this year’s Ilkley Literature Festival.

Pioneering ITN broadcaster Sandy Gall was the star attraction of Friday’s launch, addressing a sell-out King’s Hall crowd about the origins and potential solutions to the country’s armed struggle.

As one of the first western journalists to have reported from the frontline in the war-torn nation during the 80s, when Afghanistan was fighting for its freedom against Soviet invaders, Gall became immersed in the region’s culture.

Indeed, so touched was he by the plight of its people, he, his wife and two daughters have spent many years raising thousands of pounds to fund artificial limbs and other vital medical supplies for more than 20,000 amputees, who suffered their horrific injuries as a direct result of the battles raging in their homeland.

Touching on Osama bin Laden’s insurgency in the mountainous region of Tora Bora, Gall gave some candid answers to questions about the Allied role in the war against Taliban terrorists, laying much of the blame at the feet of a “corrupt” Afghan government and the ill-fated mission to overthrow Saddam Hussein in Iraq.

But his harshest criticisms were reserved for the “dubious influence” of Pakistan in the conflict, with Gall criticising its military rulers for their “duplicitous” role in allegedly helping fund terrorists and for providing a safe haven for bin Laden before he was eventually killed.

“They have a very big blot on their copybooks”, he claimed. “Pakistan double-crossed the Allies, funding many of the terrorist training camps.”

Nevertheless, Gall firmly believes the Taliban should be allowed to have a say in the future of their country, but as to UK involvement, he added: “It would be a big mistake to say the job is too difficult and simply leave.”

As to his own career, Gall was adamant the role of the journalist has become increasingly difficult due to the many sources of media information in the world today. “I wouldn’t want to be working now when you can be contacted all the time by a producer, interfering with you doing your job!

“It was pretty scary in my day when a bomb dropped near you as you were reporting, but it was more about nerves when presenting the news in the studio. But as Terry Wogan once said to me: ‘It’s only TV Sandy!’”