Canada wrestles over deployment of troops in Afghanistan
By Christopher Mason Published: April 22, 2007
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SARNIA, Ontario: The sound of bagpipes and drums and the slow, marching footsteps of about 1,200 mourners marked the beginning of the journey from church to cemetery here for the body of Corporal Brent Poland, a Canadian soldier who was killed in Afghanistan on April 8.
People streamed out of the church Friday to form a procession made up of soldiers, police officers, family, friends and residents in this city of 74,000 on the shores of Lake Huron.
Those at the back of the parade had barely marched out of the church parking lot by the time the hearse at the front had reached the end of the route two blocks away. Traffic in the area came to a stop and many, including a group of Vietnam veterans that had crossed the border to attend, lined the street carrying Canadian and U.S. flags.
The outpouring of grief that led funeral organizers to move the service to the largest church in the city played out eight times this month, following the deaths of that many Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan. Seven of them were killed during the deadliest week for Canada's military since the Korean War.
Poland, 37, and five other Canadian soldiers were killed Easter Sunday when a roadside bomb exploded under their light-armor vehicle. Two more soldiers died three days later in a similar attack. An eighth Canadian soldier was killed Wednesday when he fell from a communications tower.
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By Christopher Mason Published: April 22, 2007
Article Link
SARNIA, Ontario: The sound of bagpipes and drums and the slow, marching footsteps of about 1,200 mourners marked the beginning of the journey from church to cemetery here for the body of Corporal Brent Poland, a Canadian soldier who was killed in Afghanistan on April 8.
People streamed out of the church Friday to form a procession made up of soldiers, police officers, family, friends and residents in this city of 74,000 on the shores of Lake Huron.
Those at the back of the parade had barely marched out of the church parking lot by the time the hearse at the front had reached the end of the route two blocks away. Traffic in the area came to a stop and many, including a group of Vietnam veterans that had crossed the border to attend, lined the street carrying Canadian and U.S. flags.
The outpouring of grief that led funeral organizers to move the service to the largest church in the city played out eight times this month, following the deaths of that many Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan. Seven of them were killed during the deadliest week for Canada's military since the Korean War.
Poland, 37, and five other Canadian soldiers were killed Easter Sunday when a roadside bomb exploded under their light-armor vehicle. Two more soldiers died three days later in a similar attack. An eighth Canadian soldier was killed Wednesday when he fell from a communications tower.
Much more on link
