# Canadian contribution to Sierra Leone rescue?



## bossi (17 Sep 2000)

(according to this article from the Sunday Times, there was a Canadian contribution to the SAS/Para rescue mission):


How the hi-tech army fell back on law of the jungle and won
Marie Colvin and James Clark 


  THE first Chinook C-47 flew low over the jungle as the African sun started to rise. There was just enough light for the pilot to see where he was going - but not enough for his helicopter to be seen - as he swooped towards Rokel Creek in the heavily wooded Occra Hills of Sierra Leone. 
His target was a camp sprawling over both banks of the muddy creek, where six British soldiers had been held in sweltering heat for more than two weeks by heavily armed members of the rebel militia that called itself the West Side Boys. 

On board the Chinook and four other helicopters that followed were more than 120 paratroopers and members of the Special Air Service (SAS) trained in hostage rescue. Their mission: to recover the six members of the 1st Battalion, Royal Irish Regiment and, if possible, to capture Foday Kallay, the rebels‘ 24-year-old leader. 

Operation Barras, co-ordinated from Permanent Joint Headquarters, the army‘s nerve centre almost 2,700 miles away in Northwood, northwest London, had received the green light from Tony Blair four days earlier. Within 20 minutes of the first landing last Sunday, the British hostages were being flown to safety, their 16-day ordeal over. Within hours, at least 25 of the West Side Boys had been killed and Kallay was on his way to jail. 

For the military planners it was a textbook operation, worthy of study for years to come and marred only by the death of Brad Tinnion, a 26-year-old member of the SAS snatch squad, who was shot as he jumped from his helicopter. 

"You cannot resolve a situation like this with a laser-guided bomb from 30,000ft," said Brigadier Andrew Stewart, who monitored the operation from Northwood. "As a purely military operation, it knocks the lifting of the Iranian embassy siege into a cocked hat." 

Few of the hostages would have dared envisage such an outcome during the dark days after they fell into the West Side Boys‘ hands on August 25. At one point, they were subjected to a mock execution at a place known as the dead zone, because so many of the West Side Boys‘ enemies had been shot there. 

Eleven members of the Royal Irish - five of whom were subsequently released - had been returning to their Benguema base after visiting a Jordanian peacekeeping battalion in Masiaka, east of Freetown, when Major Alan Marshall, their commander, turned sharp right off the main road, down a narrow red dirt road that led for seven miles to the West Side Boys‘ camp at Magbeni. 

Marshall thought there were only a few rebels there. He was wrong. His men were overwhelmed, he was beaten and all were taken across the creek in dugouts with outboard motors to Gberi Bana, Kallay‘s headquarters on the north bank. 

There they were stripped of their uniforms and searched. Kallay personally stuffed possessions ranging from watches to spare clothes into a bag, putting their rings on his fingers and admiring the glitter of the gold. He later put on a spare British uniform as he swaggered around the camp, and used one of the three British Land Rovers to check on his followers. 

Kallay visited his captives every day, repeatedly demanding to know why they had driven to his camp. "Explain your mission or I will shoot you," he would say. 

Several days after their capture, Kallay hyped himself up with cocaine and decided he had had enough. The six soldiers were taken to the dead zone and placed in front of wooden poles that had been hammered into the ground about a yard apart. 

Their hands were secured behind the poles with cuffs twisted out of twine. The bodyguards lined up, stony-faced, pointing their weapons at the captives, awaiting the order to shoot. 

As the rest of the Britons fell silent, Marshall tried to reason with the rebel leader, who, maddened by cocaine, was shouting: "I will kill you! I will kill you!" 

"Even when he was tied to the stake, the major continued to speak to Kallay," said the rebel leader‘s chief bodyguard, who styled himself Corporal Blood. "He was very cool. He told Kallay, ‘We just came to see you, to tell you to forget fighting. We did not come with any bad intentions. If you kill us, it will not be for any reason.‘ " 

Then, after half an hour of threats, Kallay relented and ordered the men to be returned to their hut in the main camp. He gave no reason. 

Unbeknown to the rebels or their captives, Kallay‘s increasingly erratic behaviour was being monitored by a handful of SAS men who spent a week in the jungle before the rescue. 

While the British Army continued to negotiate with Kallay in the hope of a peaceful resolution, the SAS‘s task was to supply intelligence that would facilitate any eventual rescue mission. 

Working in pairs, they lay in shallow trenches, just below eye-line, dressed in "ghillie suits" - a type of overall to which they attach twigs, leaves and branches picked up from local vegetation as camouflage. Eating carefully packed rations, and urinating into bottles, they used night-vision, thermal and infrared scopes to provide commanders in Northwood with information so detailed that a replica of the West Side Boys‘ camp was built for training purposes. 

The mango swamps along the creek in which they were hidden are heavily wooded. Anyone concealed there would have faced water snakes in the river and the danger of being given away by curious monkeys. 

On September 6, "H hour" was set for 6.16am local time on Sunday - 7.16am in London. Three of the giant Chinook C-47s and two smaller Lynx craft took part in a two-pronged assault. One group of Paras was assigned to destroy the positions held by the rebels at Magbeni, on the south bank of the creek. This was intended to give the helicopter heading for Gberi Bana camp, on the north bank, the chance to land without taking fire from two sides. 

Captain Danny Matthews, aide-de-camp to the commander, Major Matthew Lowe, was apprehensive as his Chinook came into land. At 22, Matthews had already had one tour of duty in Sierra Leone and been a platoon commander in Kosovo. This time, the risks were far greater. 

"We knew the West Side Boys had lots of equipment, mortars, rifles, machineguns and heavy machineguns," he said. "There is obviously no set format and obviously that plays on your mind - not being able to predict your enemy‘s intentions or reactions." 

The West Side Boys had little more than a minute from the moment they heard the clatter of the helicopters to prepare to defend themselves. 

From their camouflaged positions, as close as 180ft from the camp, the SAS men could see the rebels take up their firing positions. They sent a snap radio message back to Northwood warning that the landing would be made under fire. The first target was the hut in which the hostages were being held. As the Chinook touched down in the centre of the village, it came under fire from West Side Boys shooting from a captured Land Rover. 

The helicopter responded with machinegun fire. The SAS men in the jungle opened up, causing panic among the rebels by firing from behind positions they had thought were safe. 

The West Side Boys retaliated with British-made general purpose machineguns and Kalashnikov AK-47 assault rifles. Heavy fire also came from Magbeni, where the rebels had heavy-calibre machineguns and a double-barrelled anti-aircraft gun. But they were no match for the British. 

"We never experienced anything like this," said Blood. "We saw the soldiers coming down to the ground. I fired my RPG [rocket-propelled grenade] two times, but both times the helicopter balanced [swerved] and I missed." 

As the battle raged, SAS men came sprinting towards the hut where their colleagues had reported the hostages to be, firing bursts from their 5.56mm Canadian assault rifles and hurling grenades. "It was all about speed," said one British-based special forces officer. "They had to be in and out very quickly." 

The assault was brutal: the government claimed last week that 25 of the West Side Boys were killed. One source close to the operation said the death toll would prove higher. "If you followed every blood trail into the jungle you might well be able to quadruple that figure." 

Inside the hut, the SAS found Marshall, his men and a Sierra Leonean liaison officer who had been captured with them. 

On the south bank, meanwhile, a Chinook loaded with Paras had landed in front of a swamp, leaving Matthews and his fellow soldiers to wade up to their midriffs for at least 10 minutes, each man weighed down by as much as 60lb of kit. They then had to hack their way through 150ft of jungle. 

The platoon successfully took its first objective - a crumbling one storey-building - but came under heavy fire as it approached a second. A mortar bomb exploded in front of the men, injuring seven, who might have been killed had it not sunk so deep into soft ground. The wounded included Lowe, who went down with shrapnel wounds to his legs. "The OC [Lowe] called me up and told me I was to take over command of the company," Matthews said. 

As another Chinook braved enemy fire to pick up the wounded, Matthews sent his three platoons in different directions to secure the area and retrieve the British vehicles. A Lynx helicopter touched down at speed to the north to collect the hostages. 

It was an audacious piece of flying, but Tinnion, a new recruit to the SAS, was shot from behind shortly after getting out of the helicopter. 

The bullet passed through his body and out through his shoulder. Under heavy fire, his colleagues treated him as well as they could. He died shortly after reaching medics aboard Royal Fleet Auxiliary Ship Sir Percivale, off the coast near Freetown. 

The mood in headquarters in Northwood changed dramatically: "Within 20 minutes of the go, we knew all the hostages were safe and away from the scene, but within a minute of that we knew Tinnion had been hit and looked unlikely to survive," said Stewart. 

The carnage the SAS left behind them was considerable. "There were many corpses and wounded people lying on the ground moaning," said Unisa Sesay, 16, one of the West Side Boys‘ child soldiers, who reached the base just after the British had left. 

"One commander was standing and his friend was trying to remove a fragment from his shoulder. The rest of the people were on the ground." 

Another soldier, who gave his name as Cyrus and his age as 17, said they had been told the wounded would be shot and thrown into the river because there were no medical supplies. Both boys said they saw too many corpses, and were too shocked, to count. The dead included a 14-year-old boy soldier and one Sierra Leonean hostage who panicked and ran into the firefight. 

General Sir Charles Guthrie, the chief of the defence staff, had been booked three months earlier to be interviewed that morning on BBC1‘s Breakfast with Frost. At about 9.20am, Major Tom Thornycroft whispered to Guthrie in the wings of the studio confirmation that all the hostages were safe. Guthrie then broke the first news to the nation that an operation was under way in West Africa. 

The prime minister, who had spent the weekend at Chequers approving the last details of the plan, had already received a call from Guthrie informing him of the success. Blair returned to London and made a statement to television cameras in Downing Street. 

Kallay, meanwhile, had been captured at his hut and flown by British helicopter to JordBat2 (second Jordanian Battalion) on the Freetown-Masiaka highway. He was hustled into the base, his hands secured behind his back with white plastic cuffs, his oversized Calvin Klein T-shirt flapping almost down to his knees. 

He was stripped naked and searched. Then British soldiers threw him to the ground and exploded in anger. A large black boot was placed on his back and another on his legs, pinning Kally to the ground, face down. He peered around, not responding to shouts from soldiers who had spotted the rings Kallay stole from the British hostages. 

One soldier with a heavy Irish accent shouted, "You f****** f*****, stealing f****** soldiers‘ rings" as his colleague, one by one, twisted and pulled until all the rings were back in British hands. Kallay grimaced in pain, but did not let out a single cry. 

The operation terrified the West Side Boys. More than 50 have surrendered since the raid. But defectors revealed that a hard core had regrouped at a base inland from Gberi Bani. 

In London, jubilation was tinged with sorrow at the death of Tinnion, who had served with distinction in 29 Commando Royal Artillery. The army believes he was almost certainly killed by a round, believed to be of 7.62mm calibre, from a self-loading rifle (SLR) of the type provided by Britain to pro-government forces in Sierra Leone. The West Side Boys‘ militia supported the Freetown government until a few months ago. 

On Friday, as Marshall faced the prospect of disciplinary action after taking the blame for his men‘s capture, Tinnion‘s parents and girlfriend were at his graveside after he was buried with full military honours at his regiment‘s base in Hereford. 

Anna Homsi, his girlfriend, who is seven months pregnant, described him as "the man of my dreams". She added: "We are obviously deeply shocked and devastated by Brad‘s death, but enormously proud he died doing the job he loved." 

Under army rules, neither Homsi nor the unborn child would be eligible for Tinnion‘s pension or other money. However, the Ministry of Defence is preparing to make an exception.One SAS officer said: "Because of the level of danger the lads face, the wives need to know somehow that there is security for the family there if it all goes wrong. It‘s in the regiment‘s interests as well as the blokes‘ and their families‘." 

- 30 -


----------



## the patriot (17 Sep 2000)

He was stripped naked and searched. Then British soldiers threw him to the ground and exploded in anger. A large black boot was placed on his back and another on his legs, pinning Kally to the ground, face down. He peered around, not responding to shouts from soldiers who had spotted the rings Kallay stole from the British hostages. 

One soldier with a heavy Irish accent shouted, "You f****** f*****, stealing f****** soldiers‘ rings" as his colleague, one by one, twisted and pulled until all the rings were back in British hands. Kallay grimaced in pain, but did not let out a single cry. 

*****************************************************************

Had this been our Airborne, or the JTF2. The soldiers doing that would have been dishonourably discharged and a proud regiment would have been disbanded.  Shidane Arone in Somalia was killed by a Native Canadian.  And suddenly, the CF is racist?!!!!!

-the patriot-


----------



## Brad Sallows (18 Sep 2000)

I don‘t wish to comment on the speculative outcomes.  However, I think it worth observing that to my knowledge, Shidane Arone was not the leader of a group of thugs (or any other organization), was not responsible for detaining hostages, had not stolen personal effects from any Canadian soldiers, and was not captured during a planned military operation which resulted in a pitched (albeit one-sided) battle.  He was not assaulted, battered, and subject to removal of ill-gotten gains, he was murdered.


----------



## bossi (19 Sep 2000)

Interesting.
I‘d only hoped to draw attention to "... firing bursts from their 5.56mm Canadian assault rifles ...".
I did not draw any comparison to the actions of the British soldiers as they recovered stolen rings from the captive.

However, it is indeed interesting to note this difference of culture between Britain and Canada (i.e. the British public better understand that their military are not all choir boys - by design, due to the nature of war and warriors - and stand behind them).  It‘s a difficult balance.

So what?  Do we just leave it at that?  Or, should the military as an institution embark upon an awareness campaign to educate the Canadian public why we need a military, and what a military REALLY is?  This reminds me of a favourite Marine recruiting poster - the slogan "Nobody Wants To Fight, But Somebody Has To Know How" (heck - it even reminds me of hockey, which is as Canadian as it gets!)   Personally, I think this is an important message which should be repeated loud and wide.  An overly simplistic observation on a complex issue?  Perhaps, but I‘m still convinced our military could and should be doing a much better job of educating Canadians.  Here endeth my sermon:

"Nobody wants to fight, but Somebody has to know how."

Dileas Gu Brath,
M.A. Bossi, Esquire


----------



## Brad Sallows (19 Sep 2000)

Actually, I didn‘t miss the comment about the C-7, but I couldn‘t bring myself to let the comparison with Somalia stand.

Permit me to speculate.

I think most people acknowledge the reality of warfighting, even if they don‘t care to see footage of tank turrets blown off with crew ejected like flaming rag dolls, or two frightened youths fighting to the death hand-to-hand.  Most can tolerate physical brutality in the aftermath of a firefight - who would begrudge a police officer a swing at a suspect in custody who had fired upon the officer or killed another officer?  But most draw the line well before attacks upon and execution of non-combatants.  Much depends upon context - compare opinions of area bombing between those alive in 1939-45 and those of comparable age today.

There is no lobby of common citizens preventing the CF from buying whatever equipment it chooses.  Canadians are not afraid of the words "tank" or "gun".  But whether we (soldiers) like it or not, we (Canadians) want our forces to set the international standard for compliance with the spirit and letter of the Laws of War.


----------



## Michael Dorosh (19 Sep 2000)

The problem isn‘t with the public at large, it is with the politicians.  Canada, historically, has had gutless and stupid politicians going back to Mackenzie King.  They are the ones who will decide whether or not the Canadian public needs to know what our Army is really for. 

The question is, how political are our generals?  Having just re-read Tarnished Brass, I dare not speculate on that in open forum.  In tandem with that is the question of how much influence they have on the government.  I‘m not advocating the military dictating public policy, but until the get a government who does not hate or just plain not understand the military and the need for it, you can have 1000 generals with the absolute perfect defence policy formulated - it ain‘t gonna happen til the PM says "ok."

Whatever kind of "education" you give to the public regarding the importance of maintaining our Army, you‘re either going to be preaching to the converted, or closing the barn door after the cow has gone.  Face it, our Army is beyond "economical" repair and needs a major overhaul.  We need fewer officers, more troops, and equipment to give to them when we send them into harm‘s way.

Once the "creeps and bums" (to quote King Ralph) out there in Ontario stop voting Liberal, maybe we‘ll have a fighting chance.


----------



## The Reverend (20 Sep 2000)

To go back to the Somolia incident. (a bit off topic, I know)Regardless if it was a murder or not, it is no bases to disband an entire regiment of some of Canada‘s best soldiers. Everyone that I have ever worked with that were in the Airborne Regiment have been the most professional soldiers that I know. It is a shame not only what happened to them, but what has come out of it. All that SHARP bullshit may have a meaning, in which I do agree with, but it is coming at a wrong angle. All the SHARP and diversity doesn‘t say "Learn what you do wrong and fix it", but it basically says "Rat on your fellow soldier instead of helping him (or her) see what they have done wrong". Soldiers no longer stick up for themselves, but would rather weasel there way to a better position. "Your fail is my success". This is no way to run an army. It is embarrassing. There was an incident this summer, where one of the best WO‘s that I have worked for was fined $900 for a few statements that he had made in the mess. There was a militia WO (not to bash the militia) who was asked why he didn‘t sum that particular WO up. He replied "he was intimidated by the WO" Not the kind of person that I want to follow into a conflict. A man who cannot stand up to a drunk is supposed to stand up to armed hooligans? I question were exactly the army is going. Putting a huge dent in man‘s career over a few words? Instead of progress, we are on a rapid decline. How long before "to close with and destroy" is erradicated? Already, the words are starting to ring hollow. A LOT of good men died over the years to place Canada where it is. Why are we ruining that? With strength comes pride.


----------



## the patriot (21 Sep 2000)

Michael, just to comment on your submission (I know we‘re getting away from Bossi‘s intent on his original message).  Whether one votes Liberal in Ontario or not won‘t help our military at all. Diefenbaker, a Tory, killed the fabled Avro project. As a result, a huge amount of our researchers and engineers left Canada and started working for NASA and thus put the Americans on the moon in 1969.  If that doesn‘t hurt our national ego, I don‘t know what else could.  Furthermore, be well aware that the Canadian Conservative Alliance has admitted former Bloc Quebecois into its fold. Do remember, that back in 1995, the Bloc Quebecois sent letters and leaflets to the Van Doos inviting them to form a Quebec Army in the event of a yes vote that fall.  That is sedition, and conspiracy to cause mutiny against the Crown.  It‘s right in the Queens Regulations Notes and Orders.  I will not vote for Stockwell Day or any of his candidates.  He is a Mulroney clone who is inviting Quebec nationalists into his party just like Muldoon did in the eighties, thus leading to us almost losing our beloved country.  It was a Liberal government that kept the country from dying in October, 1970; it was a Liberal government that patriated the Constitution in 1982; it was a Liberal government that gave us the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms; and finally it was under C.D. Howe and the Liberals that the Avro fighter (we had the best fighter in the world that could fly at Mach 3 and above, faster than the SR-71 Blackbird) project was bankrolled until the Tories under Diefenbaker killed the program and the whole Aerospace Industry along with it.

-the patriot-


----------



## Michael Dorosh (21 Sep 2000)

Patriot;
   As you well know, it was also the Liberals who saw the unravelling of the Canadian Army; Unification, the disbandment of the Canadian Guards, the reduction of regiments like the QOR and Black Watch from regular to reserve status, the CF Green uniform, etc.  

  Whatever part the CF played in the October 1970 crisis, they would have played no matter who was in power.  And while the Constitution and Charter of Rights and Freedoms are (arguably) admirable achievements, I don‘t see that that is an excuse for not having, or a trade off for, a properly maintained military.

   I agree the Arrow project was a sad chapter - but helping put a human (not an American) on the moon ("We came in peace for all mankind") was also something worthy for Canadians to be involved in.  Maybe it‘s time for all nations to start thinking globally and not in terms of, as you put it, national ego.

  In the meantime, I really don‘t think Stockwell Day will be instituting BQ policy through the Alliance...in the final analysis, it seems that all the political parties act disparately from what public opinion, and in some cases common sense, would have them do.


----------



## the patriot (22 Sep 2000)

Michael;

Definitely it was under the Liberals that the military shrunk.  At the time inflation was out of control and there was a recession in the mid-seventies.  As you know there was also the Oil Crisis at the time. Economic indicators showed that there had to be something done or the federal government would have gone bankrupt.  As for a well equiped military, I fully agree with that argument.  We‘re in a healthier economic environment now that the habitual neglect towards the military can and should be reversed.  Do bear in mind, I am not excusing the political neglect the military has been given since the end of the Korean Conflict.  As for Stockwell Day, he should know better.  Every Bloc Quebecois MP should be hanged for treason along with Premier Lucien Bouchard.  They‘ve taken oaths to be loyal to the crown, whilst their political ideology is to kill Canada.  Futhermore, the job of the military is to uphold the constitution.  We only brought it home 18 years ago.  Why isn‘t anything being done to do so (protect the Constitution)?!  The Bloc Quebecois is one giant mutiny.  In closing, in reference to your last sentence; in politics, common sense never prevails. 

-the patriot-


----------



## the patriot (13 Nov 2000)

Since we have a contingent as part of the mission over there right now, thought this would be most appropriate.
**************************************************
12 July 2000



MAJ GEN VIJAY KUMAR JETLEY 

COMMANDER UNITED NATIONS MISSION IN SIERRA LEONE 

The commander of the UN Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL), Indian Army Maj Gen Vijay Kumar Jetley, has come under harsh criticism for not taking the initiative and limiting the military activities of the rebel Revolutionary United Front (RUF). Observers are especially concerned that with the withdrawal of UK forces now complete, except for a training team, the security situation could deteriorate. 

Gen Jetley told Jane‘s Defence Weekly that with his multinational force planned to reach about 16,000 troops from 21 countries, he is capable of handling the situation. 

"With such a large force under his command, he is in better condition to dictate the course of hostilities than anybody else. And that, basically, with the main body of British troops now gone, is what we would like to see," Brig David Richards, commander of the UK force deployed to Sierra Leone in May, told JDW before leaving Freetown. 

Gen Jetley acknowledged that in recent months, UN forces had encountered aggression on the part of the RUF on numerous occasions. "While we would always try to negotiate our way, for instance, through a roadblock or a stoppage, we have had to resort to force on occasion. When this happened, we reacted aggressively. That would leave nobody in any doubt of our intentions," he said. 

Some of the obstacles placed in the way of his forces in the interior, he disclosed, had been weak. "Others were strong, involving a lot of firepower," Gen Jetley said. He said that his instructions to his forces are clear. "If threatened, they have been told to employ very robust rules of engagement." 

The general believes that "the UN in Sierra Leone had to move slowly and very methodically. There was no reason to rush anything. One sure step at a time is the only way and that dictates the way that I do things," he explained, stating that other priorities such as human rights and child protection were also important. 

When UK forces, including an airborne battalion and Chinook helicopters, arrived in Freetown in early May, he said, "they helped very effectively to stiffen my defences. At that time I had a single battalion at Lungi Airport; now I have four battalions deployed there." 

Elsewhere, the UN had other problems, he said. For instance, Gen Jetley said that he had cautioned the Zambian contingent about carrying out reconnaissance patrols shortly before some of their personnel were taken hostage. "But at that time we were all sort of feeling our way." The general acknowledged that his peacekeepers had been tricked. "But I can assure you that it won‘t happen again. We now know that we cannot negotiate with an adversary with a forked tongue. They have been very cunning," he added. 

On the dozen or so armoured personnel carriers seized by the rebels, Gen Jetley regarded them as a minimal threat to future UN operations. "They are specialised vehicles and the RUF does not have the kind of experience needed to deploy them effectively. Also, they don‘t have access to the fuel needed." Aerial observations had indicated that many had been abandoned after they had run dry, he added. 

On the use of force, the general is circumspect. This follows rumours in Freetown that both the Guinean and Jordanian commanders had said that their role in Sierra Leone was strictly of a peacekeeping nature and that they had not come to fight. 

Gen Jetley said that his original concept was not to use any force and that it worked quite well initially. "We managed to deploy everywhere in the country except to Koidu [capital of the Kono diamond fields which are financing the RUF war effort]. Also, we managed to establish nine of the 11 disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration camps [for rebel forces]. I have effectively divided the country up into four operational sectors: two in the north and north-east, one in the south and last, Freetown on its own. 

" And now that we have established our parameters, we will soon be able to do what we need to." 

Gen Jetley acknowledged that the single government Mi-24 attack helicopter had several times come to the aid of his forces. The general said that if necessary he would employ the three Indian Mi-24s that recently joined UNAMSIL. "If we have to, we will. They are very effective force multipliers, but I don‘t want to bring any speculation into what the UN will or won‘t do. Our role here is first to bring order to a situation that until recently was chaotic." 

Perhaps the biggest problem that he has faced, said Gen Jetley, is that the soldiers under his command come from so many different nations, most with different styles and standards of training. He cites the Indian contingent as an example. Two of the battalions, the 5/8th Gurkha Rifles and the 18th Grenadiers, had deployed from Kashmir. 

"They are tough, aggressive and battle hardened. And while there is nothing wrong with the soldiers from other nations, they simply did not have the kind of combat experience that our boys have experienced," he declared. Because of this, he said, he needed to see for himself what the various components were capable of. "For that it is essential to follow the old tradition: a slow, steady plodding manner in which no time frames had been laid." 

Last week, an Indian and two Jordanian companies reoccupied Masiaka which had been lost to RUF forces which seized the important town after government forces withdrew on 4 July. The UN action followed the 30 June RUF ambush of a UNAMSIL convoy in which one Jordanian peacekeeper was killed and two others wounded. 

With more than 230 UN peacekeepers still held by the RUF as JDW went to press, it remains to be seen whether the UN action at Masiaka marks a shift away from Gen Jetley‘s cautious approach.

 Al Venter JDW Special Correspondent 

 **************************************************

-the patriot-


----------



## the patriot (14 Nov 2000)

Operation Reptile

(excerpt from D-NET)
**************************************************

CF part of UN tour in Sierra Leone

By Mitch Gillett

A 180-day UN tour in Sierra Leone, long-considered one of the world‘s most dangerous places, has given CF Captain Lloyd Jackson a new appreciation for the country.

"I learned that I am very proud to be a Canadian, and I have taken a lot of things in Canada for granted that I should not have. I am a firm believer that Canada is the best place in the world to live," said Capt Jackson, a reservist with the Princess Louise Fusiliers, who recently returned to Canada after completing a UN tour in Sierra Leone.

"I have seen many different places in West Africa and I am very fortunate to be a Canadian and I am proud to be a Canadian soldier. Our level of professionalism is second to none in the world." 

On October 8, 1997, the UN Security Council imposed sanctions prohibiting the importation of weapons, military materiel and petroleum, as well as international travel by members of the military junta.

Under the terms of the Lome accord, signed July 7, 1999, the warring factions agreed to a cease-fire and the UN pledged to send a large peacekeeping force to oversee the disarmament and demobilization of about 45 000 fighters on both sides.

So far, much of the Lome accord has gone unfulfilled. UN troops are in Sierra Leone, but their numbers are far short of the 6000 authorized by the Security Council. This delay has slowed the disarmament process, which has only recovered a token number of weapons. It has also raised suspicion on both sides and led to an increase in violence and tension in the region.

The early months of 1999 saw some of the bloodiest fighting in the country‘s ongoing civil war. One particularly vicious practice was cutting off the ears, noses, hands, arms and legs of non-combatants who were not willing to co-operate with, or provide for, the insurgents. Rebel forces have also been known to detain, decapitate, burn alive, and inflict bullet and machete wounds on civilians.

The forces continue a longstanding practice of abducting villagers and using them as human shields during skirmishes. Boys have been forced to become soldiers and the rebel forces use rape as a terror tactic against women. 

Sierra Leone-Lion Mountain-has been locked in a deadly civil war since March 1991 as different factions of the country fight for supremacy. At stake is the country‘s lucrative diamond mining industry.

The internal conflict involved different ethnic groups and has resulted in about 15 000 deaths from 1991 to 1996. By 1999 the number of dead in the rebel war was estimated at 50 000. 

Sierra Leone‘s population is made up of 18 ethnic groups; however, ethnic differences do not appear to contribute to the Revolutionary United Front‘s 1997 rebellion or the subsequent conflict between the RUF and government forces of the Republic of Sierra Leone Military Forces.
 **************************************************

-the patriot-


----------

