# Worry follows soldiers to Afghanistan



## GAP (28 Jan 2007)

Worry follows soldiers to Afghanistan
Jennifer Taplin CanWest News Service; The Daily News Sunday, January 28, 2007
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HALIFAX -- As the next contingent of Canadian soldiers leaves for Afghanistan Monday, the ones they leave behind worry for their safety.

While fighting has come to a lull in that war-torn nation, experts predict a spring offensive by the Taliban is inevitable.

Some of the 2,500 soldiers have already started their journey to Afghanistan to relieve their comrades, who are ready to come home after six months of duty. The staggered flights will continue throughout the next six weeks.

Since Canada sent troops to Afghanistan in 2002, 44 soldiers and one Canadian diplomat have been killed in the country. The Canadians are currently stationed in the south, which has seen much more Taliban unrest than other regions of the country.

On Monday, 120 soldiers will leave from CFB Gagetown near Fredericton, N.B., mostly from the 2nd Battalion, Royal Canadian Regiment battle group.

But before they go, the families of the soldiers have much to prepare for.

Sometimes those preparations involve trying to reconcile differences in political beliefs with wanting to support a loved one, said Bernie Mullin-Splude, who works in deployment services at the Military Family Resource Centre in Halifax.
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