|
Troops flex muscle in Taliban stronghold
|
View this Thread in Original format
| EvilTree |
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/serv...y/National/home
| quote: |
Troops flex muscle in Taliban stronghold
Confidence-building operation the largest since Canadians arrived in Kandahar
JEFF SALLOT
From Friday's Globe and Mail
Ottawa — Hundreds of Canadian troops have moved deep into Taliban insurgent territory north of Kandahar, Afghanistan, as an early show of force, defence officials in Ottawa say.
The troops, fresh to the Afghan theatre of operations, are trying to quickly establish freedom of movement over a wide swath of territory and to flush out Taliban fighters.
The Canadian units, accompanied by Afghan government forces, are also trying to win the confidence and support of local villagers who might be able to help identify Taliban hideouts, the officials say.
The operation began several days ago, but was kept under wraps for security reasons until yesterday when embedded reporters with The Canadian Press and the CBC were able to report the activities of the two companies from the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry.
The Canadian soldiers are patrolling in light-armoured vehicles. U.S. helicopter gunships provide air cover as needed.
This is the largest Canadian operation since troops began arriving in Kandahar province last month, replacing U.S. forces.
A key part of the counterinsurgency strategy is to win the confidence -- and even friendship, if possible -- of the local population. Thus in every village the units participate in sit-down sessions, or shuras, with the elders.
Army Captain Trevor Greene was critically wounded at one such shura when a man hit him in the head with an axe.
The operation is being run from a forward base some distance from the main Canadian base at the city of Kandahar. It is scheduled to continue for most of March.
Over the past month, Canadian troops have encountered ambushes, including rockets, roadside bombs and the axe attack in the mountainous region north of Kandahar.
The ongoing violence has forced Canadians to pay more attention to their country's beefed-up mission in Afghanistan, General Rick Hillier, Chief of the Defence Staff, said.
"Last week they really did wake up to this mission and what you are doing here," Gen. Hillier said during a chat with troops taking part in the Canadian-run provincial reconstruction team in Kandahar.
"I've been telling them for some time, but people don't really listen to words."
Canada's top soldier paid a visit to the team after meeting with Kandahar's governor and used the opportunity to rally the troops.
"You've had a tough week or so, I know. You have a tough mission, I know that, too," he said, referring to the overall mission in Afghanistan.
Several small pockets of insurgents, numbering in the dozens, according to departing U.S. commanders, still operate in the area. In the spring, they often gather and organize larger offensives.
Six U.S. soldiers and 18 Afghans, including police, soldiers and civilian leaders, died in operations in the area last year.
"If we meet these bad guys, we destroy them. Simple as that," Captain Martin Larose, the acting commander of Company A, said during a briefing for platoon commanders.
Capt. Larose warned his troops to watch for the commonly known arsenal used by insurgents: roadside bombs, AK-47 assault rifles and rocket-propelled grenades.
It's the biggest mission so far for the Canadian contingent of 2,200 troops based in Kandahar who have arrived in the region over the past month. Smaller units have patrolled in the northern part of the province since early February.
The mission coincided with a big anti-narcotics operation in neighbouring Helmond province, where hundreds of Afghan police and soldiers backed up by coalition troops have been plowing under illicit poppy fields.
Canadians moved into a forward operating base near Gumbad, 60 kilometres north of Kandahar, several weeks ago. They almost immediately came under a rocket-propelled grenade attack, answered by a barrage of Canadian howitzers.
Then, Capt. Greene, a civil-military co-operation officer, was attacked by an axe-wielding youth while on a visit with local elders in Shingai village.
Captain Kevin Schamuhn, Capt. Greene's platoon commander who was among three soldiers who killed the attacker and repelled a subsequent ambush, briefed his troops for their return to the region to again meet elders and collect intelligence.
Capt. Schamuhn told soldiers in a briefing that the local residents might feed them misinformation. "We're spending a lot of time trying to sort out the truth. Call them on it directly, it seems to get much better information."
The push into rural areas comes one week after a spate of suicide bombings and ambushes in Kandahar that injured eight Canadian soldiers.
Two others were killed and six injured in vehicle accidents around the same time.
With a report from Canadian Press
|
Good luck boys and girls. Kick some ass and come back safe.
PS: Interesting to read some of the comments. Some real wackos (on both sides) |
|
|
| EvilTree |
http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/Co...ol=968793972154
An excellent series of articles about what Canadians are doing in Kandahar right now, including routine patrols, reaction to the axe attack and more.
Highly recommended if you want to find out a glimpse of what's going on there. (And I don't even like the Star) |
|
|
| Fir3start3r |
I read them all.
Thank God for our soldiers...and my prayers go to Trevor Greene, the soldier that took the axe hit. :sadgreen: |
|
|
| rabbitjoker |
The Canadian Armed Forces are going to have to go through a bit of a revolution with respect to training and preparedness.
With the global war on terrorism comes a new "peace making" role (followed by peace keeping).
Canada's past experience in the peace keeping role already gives Canada many advantages in the peace keeping function.
What is important as Canada moves into this new position is clear and congruent support from both the federal government and the general population. |
|
|
| EvilTree |
| quote: | Originally posted by Fir3start3r
I read them all.
Thank God for our soldiers...and my prayers go to Trevor Greene, the soldier that took the axe hit. :sadgreen: |
Saw on CTV that he opened his eyes today... |
|
|
| EvilTree |
| quote: | Originally posted by rabbitjoker
What is important as Canada moves into this new position is clear and congruent support from both the federal government and the general population. |
That's the biggest problem here. A lot of Canadians still want to believe that Canadian soldiers should just be 'peacekeepers' (I doubt they fully comprehend what that is, considering 'peacekeepers' under UN is doing more killing of insurgents and foreign mercenaries in Congo, for example)
Gen Hillier, the Chief of Defence Staff made an excellent comment this weekend. He said that Afghanistan is a Canadian mission, working with other international partners under UN mandate.
Enough prejudice about being US's bitch. Canada has its own foreign policy. |
|
|
| rabbitjoker |
| quote: | Originally posted by EvilTree
Canada has its own foreign policy. |
100% correct. Canada is not only the best place in the world to live, but we also follow our own mandate with respect to foreign affairs. |
|
|
| EvilTree |
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/serv...fghanistan/home
| quote: | PM urges Canadian troops to remain strong
ALLISON DUNFIELD
Globe and Mail Update
Kandahar, Afghanistan — Prime Minister Stephen Harper told about 1,000 troops stationed in Afghanistan that the Canadian government's commitment to the mission in that country remains strong despite recent hardships.
Two Canadian soldiers have died since Canada took over the security operation in the United Nations on Feb. 28. In all, since 2002, 10 Canadian soldiers and one diplomat have been killed in Afghanistan.
Mr. Harper said that Canadians in Afghanistan are doing important work despite the dangers and they must remain dedicated.
”You are standing up for these things, standing up for core Canadian values. Taking on the danger you're taking ... [is] not easy. It's never easy, especially for the men and women who are on the front lines,” the Prime Minister said.
He said the government will continue to encourage troops who are there, and told them not to listen to those who don't support the mission.
"There here may be some who may want to cut and run. But cutting and running is not your way. It's not my way, and it's not the Canadian way. We don't make a commitment and then run away at the first sign of trouble.”
The Prime Minister made the comments during a speech to the troops on the second day in the country after he arrived Sunday in a surprise visit.
He was whisked quietly out of Ottawa early Saturday and landed at the fortified military camp in this southern city in late afternoon after an undisclosed flight that federal officials said had been planned almost since the day Mr. Harper took office.
The trip, Mr. Harper's first abroad since the Jan. 23 election, is intended to bolster troops who have come under attack and to boost domestic support for the mission.
He told the troops gathered on Monday during a speech that their role is about taking action.
”Your work is more than just defending Canadians' national interest. It's also about demonstrating an international leadership role for our country. Not carping from the sidelines, but taking a stand on the big issues that matter in the world.
”You can't lead from the bleachers,” he said regarding Canada's security operation in the country.
The Prime Minister was asked by a reporter after the speech whether future decisions on extending the mission will depend on the casualty count.
"It will be a factor," he acknowledged, but he added that casualties "don't necessarily mean failure. In fact, they may really be the beginning of the end of military conflict."
The Prime Minister is in a zone where Canadian soldiers are clearly being targeted. Earlier this year, senior diplomat Glyn Berry was killed in a bombing that severely wounded three other soldiers. Most recently, two soldiers were killed in a vehicle collision, while yet another soldier was critically injured in an axe attack. Still others have been subjects of suicide attacks.
He said high morale and the determination of the troops is what will keep Canadian troops most engaged in the mission.
"I can assure the Canadians and others that our commitment will remain just as strong."
Mr. Harper also noted that the mission is important to protect Canada from terrorist threats and to help rebuild Afghanistan so that democratic rights, women's rights, the right to education are protected.
With reports from Brian Laghi in Kandahar |
Good for him. |
|
|
| EvilTree |
http://www.canada.com/topics/news/n...bca9de6&k=74365
| quote: |
Canadian soldier killed in Afghanistan
Attack also claimed the life of an U.S. soldier, and wounded three other Canadians
CanWest News Service
Published: Tuesday, March 28, 2006
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan - A Canadian soldier serving in Afghanistan - Pte. Robert Costall - was killed early Wednesday, about 100 kilometres northwest of Kandahar, the military announced.
He was a member of the 1st battalion of the Canadian Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry, based in Edmonton. The dead soldier’s age and home town were not released.
The Taliban attack claimed the life of an American soldier, and wounded three other Canadians who were evacuated to Kandahar airfield for treatment, Brig-Gen. David Fraser, the commander of coalition forces in southern Afghanistan, said. |
There is more of the article. Click on link.
RIP Pte Costall |
|
|
| swilly |
We should not even be there. Helping the yanks clean up thier own mess. They call it peace making or democracy creation. How about cleaning up the mess your buddies the freedom fighters created.
The socialist government in afghanistan was doing ok for itself but we could not let another cuba happen.
Stupid
swilly |
|
|
| chinamon |
we have troops?
when did this happen?
i always thought we had peacekeepers... aka. butlers or something |
|
|
| sensorika |
| i dont agree with the destruction of the afghan farmers poppy fields. you wanna solve a drug problem start in your own country. now people will just grow poppies in another third world country. |
|
|
|
|
