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| Afghanistan |
| 2 Canadians shot in massive Afghan battle |
| 2006-06-12 |
| Two Canadian soldiers have been seriously injured in one of the biggest battles since coalition troops arrived in Afghanistan, involving hundreds of Taliban militants. The battle took place near a village in the desolate Panjwai region west of Kandahar in southern Afghanistan. The troops, who have not been named publicly, are in serious condition after having surgery at a hospital at the main Canadian military base in the southern Afghan city of Kandahar, Canadian Forces Lt. Mark MacIntyre said on Monday. The soldiers had been taking part in one of the largest gunbattles since international troops arrived in Afghanistan in 2002, said CBC correspondent David Common, who is in Kandahar. The operation, which was taking place in the Panjwai region west of Kandahar, started Sunday night after coalition forces learned that up to 800 Taliban fighters were gathering in a village. There to watch the FIFA World Cup, no doubt. Infantry, armour and artillery from the Edmonton-based Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry were involved. Reports from the battle suggest members of the Taliban hid behind the village's mud walls and trenches to attack troops. In separate battles around the country on Monday, about three dozen Taliban fighters were killed by Afghan and coalition troops, said Afghan officials. One of those killed was reportedly Mullah Amanullah, the brother-in-law of Taliban leader Mullah Omar. He reportedly died while fighting in a village in southern Uruzgan province. [Lt. Mark MacIntyre] said Canadian forces are increasingly moving into known Taliban strongholds. On Saturday, soldiers opened up Forward Operating Base Martello, a new base 200 kilometres north of Kandahar. "We are going into the backyard of the Taliban," he said. Some of these regions haven't seen a coalition presence in years, said MacIntyre. The Panjwai region where the Canadians were fighting has been the scene of a number of intense battles with the Taliban, including the firefight that took the life of Capt. Nichola Goddard on May 17. Sixteen Canadian soldiers and one diplomat have died since the mission started. MPs recently voted to extend Canada's mission in the country by two years until 2009. |
| Posted by:Angainter Elmeremble4325 |
| #10 Hurrah for the Princess Pats!! |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2006-06-12 21:13 |
| #9 Some carpet bombing by B-52s is in order... |
| Posted by: john 2006-06-12 20:04 |
| #8 What a difference an election can make! Go Canada! |
| Posted by: Iblis 2006-06-12 19:21 |
| #7 Oh Canada! Go get 'em! |
| Posted by: DarthVader 2006-06-12 19:09 |
| #6 Think of it as a big-ass hostage situation. But an entire batallion of Taliban! Mama Mia! I just hope to hell that the whole place is cordoned so there is no escape, and that they are exterminated to the man. I also suspect that the Pak army is seriously forcing what remains of the Taliban out of the country. |
| Posted by: Anonymoose 2006-06-12 17:43 |
| #5 bjk: 800 taliwackers and they send in ground troops?!? My feeling is that they're not all packed into a single compound. |
| Posted by: Zhang Fei 2006-06-12 16:55 |
| #4 PiMF aren't going..... like use your AC-130 handtrucks or A-10 toemotors. |
| Posted by: 6 2006-06-12 15:03 |
| #3 Same question.... where are the AC-130s? I really do hope our Canadian buddies are going for all the gusto here. |
| Posted by: 6 2006-06-12 14:54 |
| #2 Additional: Mullah Omar's brother-in-law, Mullah Amanullah, was killed along with 14 other insurgents in Siachave village, Uruzgan province, when troops stormed the area late Sunday after a tip from tribesmen, said Afghan army commander Gen. Rehmatullah Raufi. Amanullah, whose body was recovered from the village, was the Taliban commander in the province's Dihrawud district and responsible for numerous rebel attacks, Raufi said. It was not clear how close Amanullah was to Omar, who is believed hiding in mountains along Afghanistan's rugged border with Pakistan. Coalition military spokesman Sgt. Chris Miller said the military was looking into the report that Amanullah had been killed. |
| Posted by: Steve 2006-06-12 14:51 |
| #1 800 taliwackers and they send in ground troops?!? What the hell are daisy cutters for, paper weights? |
| Posted by: bigjim-ky 2006-06-12 14:38 |