The Ministry of Defence is to deny British soldiers who have fought in Afghanistan since 2001 the right to wear a Nato campaign medal.
A total of 58 have been killed and 148 wounded in action against Taliban insurgents in the most intensive combat since the Korean War.
However, the MoD says its troops will not be allowed to wear the alliance medal because the campaign is already covered by a UK Operational Service Medal and would contravene rules drawn up by the civil service Honours and Awards Committee.
Canadians, Americans, Dutch and Estonian soldiers fighting by their British comrades' side have already been permitted to wear the medal.
The decision also goes against previous permissions for UK service personnel to wear Nato medals for peacekeeping tours in the Balkans.
An MoD spokeswoman said yesterday: "We greatly value the work of our armed forces serving on operations in Afghanistan, which is why those serving at least 30 days in theatre receive the Operational Service Medal (Afghanistan).
"The honours system in the UK does not allow more than one medal to recognise the same period of service in order to protect the value of the British medal that has been awarded."
Brigadier Allan Alstead, a former commander of 51st Highland Brigade and a Malaya veteran, said: "It beggars belief that a group of civil servants who have probably never heard a shot fired in anger can treat serving soldiers and veterans so shabbily.
"Perhaps the committee members might benefit from some operational battle experience in Afghanistan or Iraq on the pay of a private soldier. That might make them more sympathetic."
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