LONDON: A Conservative MP in the UK who praised Afghanistan’s “transformation” under the Taliban has apologized, saying he “got it wrong,” the BBC reported on Thursday. On July 17, Tobias Ellwood, chair of the Defence Select Committee, posted a video on Twitter from Afghanistan’s Helmand province, where he praised the use of solar panels and the decline of opium poppy farming. He also encouraged the UK government to “re-engage” with Afghanistan’s Taliban rulers and open the British Embassy in the country as a way to improve women’s rights. But in a subsequent TV interview following days of criticism, Ellwood said he had “got it wrong” and had deleted the clip. He described the days since posting the video as his “most miserable” as an MP. “It’s important to put your hand up and acknowledge errors, however well intentioned,” he said. “I stand up, I speak my mind. I try and find solutions especially on the international stage, and I’m very, very sorry that my reflection of my visit could have been much better worded and have been taken out of context.” In the clip, Ellwood also complimented the Taliban security forces, saying corruption had fallen and the country was experiencing a level of peace not seen since the 1970s. In another Twitter video responding to the criticism, he acknowledged that women’s rights were under threat in Afghanistan, adding: “Again, I am sorry for my wording and I hope this places my thinking into context.” A range of MPs, including some from Ellwood’s own party, have criticized him over the Afghanistan clip. Conservative MP Mark Francois, a fellow member of the Defence Select Committee, labeled the video “utterly bizarre.” Francois said Ellwood “made no mention of the fact that the Taliban was still attempting to identify and kill Afghan citizens who helped our armed forces, and also made no specific mention of the fact that young girls in Afghanistan don’t even have the right to go to school under that government,” The Independent reported. Fawzia Koofi, the first-ever female deputy speaker of the Afghan parliament, told the BBC that Ellwood’s clip demonstrated his ignorance of the reality of women’s lives in her country.