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cnews: http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/War_Terror/2006/12/23/2950907-cp.html
MAS'UM GHAR, Afghanistan (CP) - After days of sitting and waiting, Canadian troops are finally gearing up for what is expected to be a push against the Taliban in Afghanistan's Panjwaii district next week.
Members of A Company, 2nd Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry returned for a brief visit Thursday to forward operating base Mas'um Ghar before heading back west to the village of Howz-e Madad, where Canadian troops have already secured the area.
It will be A Company, along with support from the Canadian Leopard tank squadron, that will carry the ball in the next phase of Operation Baaz Tsuka said Lt.-Col. Omer Lavoie.
The targeted area will be south of Howz-e Madad, where at one point coalition forces thought there were hundreds of hardline Taliban. But now?
"I don't know. We're about to find out," said Lavoie, who calls Operation Baaz Tsuka a success so far.
"The brigade commander's plan so far has gone off well - pushing the Taliban out of that pocket - and now he's going to mop up the rest that are purportedly still in some strongholds," Lavoie said.
The Taliban showed they were still around Thursday evening with a 10-minute attack on an area directly east of the forward operating base. The sound of rockets and small-arms fire rang through the air, forcing those at the base to don helmets and flak jackets and head for bomb shelters.
With the Muslim holiday of Eid just a couple of days away, Lavoie said his troops would be "somewhat" mindful of that fact as they continued to make plans through the weekend.
"We take it into consideration, so what we're going to do over the next few days is be sensitive to the fact that it is Eid," said Lavoie. "But it's not going to preclude me from manoeuvring forces and pre-positioning them."
Operation Baaz Tsuka recorded its first NATO casualty Wednesday south of Garmsir in Helmand, the province directly west of Kandahar.
During a reconnaissance mission, an explosion caused a NATO vehicle to crash, resulting in one death, one serious injury and two minor injuries. Britain's Ministry of Defence said the soldiers were British.
Winter traditionally marks a slowdown in Taliban attacks, Lavoie acknowledged, noting it was another reason to push ahead with the mission now.
"We don't want to give them the opportunity to use a winter lull on their part to mount operations for a spring offensive. We'll disrupt them from that perspective as well," Lavoie said.
Canadian troops have continued to patrol the area around Howz-e Madad but haven't yet run into any skirmishes with the Taliban. However, the fact that Highway 1, which leads directly into Helmand province and ultimately to Pakistan where many of the Taliban are trained, means the Canadian presence in the area is already having an impact.
MAS'UM GHAR, Afghanistan (CP) - After days of sitting and waiting, Canadian troops are finally gearing up for what is expected to be a push against the Taliban in Afghanistan's Panjwaii district next week.
Members of A Company, 2nd Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry returned for a brief visit Thursday to forward operating base Mas'um Ghar before heading back west to the village of Howz-e Madad, where Canadian troops have already secured the area.
It will be A Company, along with support from the Canadian Leopard tank squadron, that will carry the ball in the next phase of Operation Baaz Tsuka said Lt.-Col. Omer Lavoie.
The targeted area will be south of Howz-e Madad, where at one point coalition forces thought there were hundreds of hardline Taliban. But now?
"I don't know. We're about to find out," said Lavoie, who calls Operation Baaz Tsuka a success so far.
"The brigade commander's plan so far has gone off well - pushing the Taliban out of that pocket - and now he's going to mop up the rest that are purportedly still in some strongholds," Lavoie said.
The Taliban showed they were still around Thursday evening with a 10-minute attack on an area directly east of the forward operating base. The sound of rockets and small-arms fire rang through the air, forcing those at the base to don helmets and flak jackets and head for bomb shelters.
With the Muslim holiday of Eid just a couple of days away, Lavoie said his troops would be "somewhat" mindful of that fact as they continued to make plans through the weekend.
"We take it into consideration, so what we're going to do over the next few days is be sensitive to the fact that it is Eid," said Lavoie. "But it's not going to preclude me from manoeuvring forces and pre-positioning them."
Operation Baaz Tsuka recorded its first NATO casualty Wednesday south of Garmsir in Helmand, the province directly west of Kandahar.
During a reconnaissance mission, an explosion caused a NATO vehicle to crash, resulting in one death, one serious injury and two minor injuries. Britain's Ministry of Defence said the soldiers were British.
Winter traditionally marks a slowdown in Taliban attacks, Lavoie acknowledged, noting it was another reason to push ahead with the mission now.
"We don't want to give them the opportunity to use a winter lull on their part to mount operations for a spring offensive. We'll disrupt them from that perspective as well," Lavoie said.
Canadian troops have continued to patrol the area around Howz-e Madad but haven't yet run into any skirmishes with the Taliban. However, the fact that Highway 1, which leads directly into Helmand province and ultimately to Pakistan where many of the Taliban are trained, means the Canadian presence in the area is already having an impact.
