Six British soldiers have been wounded in a series of attacks against a military base in the southern Iraqi city of Basra.

One soldier was said to have been seriously injured in the attacks last night on the Basra Palace camp, which came under fire three times from a mixture of mortars, rockets and small arms. Five others received less serious injuries. The Ministry of Defence said four of the soldiers were evacuated to a field hospital for treatment while two were treated at their base.

The casualties occurred as Britain's most senior commander in Iraq said that he expected UK forces to remain in the country throughout 2007 and possibly into 2008.

Lieutenant General Graeme Lamb, deputy commander of the multinational force in Iraq, was asked how long he envisaged British troops staying in Iraq during a news conference conducted by video-link from the Pentagon in Washington.

"Do I see ourselves being here throughout 2007? Yes," he said.

"Do I see that commitment being carried on to 2008? That will be for discussion among this sovereign government, my government, our part in the coalition and the like."

General Lamb's answer differs from repeated suggestions made by the Prime Minister and the Defence Secretary, Des Browne, that the British presence in Iraq will be substantially reduced by the end of the year, with nearly all combat duties being carried out by Iraqi soldiers.

Last week Tony Blair said that British soldiers in Basra were planning to hand control of the province over to the Iraqi authorities in the coming weeks.

Britain currently has 6,200 soldiers in Iraq, mostly in the south, General Lamb said today. There have been reports that as many as 3,000 troops could be withdrawn by the end of May.

General Lamb shrugged off suggestions from American journalists that British forces had been defeated in Basra, which despite a calmer three years than that experienced by Baghdad, has nonetheless been dogged by occasional outbreaks of mob violence and systematic infiltration of its police by Shia militias and death squads.

"I don’t think we’re defeated in any sense," he said, before conceding: "Things are difficult. This is hard pounding, I don’t doubt that in any sense."

"But I do see every reason for optimism. It took you 11 years to write your constitution and we’re still trying to write ours."

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