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Security in Afghanistan Worsening - Canadian Report

by Karl Gotthardt - albertacowpoke | September 16, 2009 at 02:23 am

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Canada has had troops deployed to Afghanistan since January 2002, when members of the Third Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry deployed as part of 10 Mountain Division.

Canada has been issuing a quarterly report since it joined the mission. The report outlines the progress of the Afghan Mission. The report for the latest quarter indicated that security conditions continue to deteriorate. The report states that the frequency of attacks are higher in May and June than any other period since the fall of the Taliban.

The latest report states that Khandhar province, where Canadian Forces are concentrated, experienced "a steep increase in the number of enemy-initiated attacks against soliders, civilians and facilities during the quarter."

The incidents of Improvised Explosive Devices was 108% higher than during the same period for 2008.

International Trade Minister, Stockwell Day, tried to put a good face on the report by stating that Canada is the only NATO country that issues such a quarterly report.

There is no doubt that there has been an increase in violence in response to Operation Strike of the Sword and the recent Afghan election.

Yesterday, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, Admiral Mullin, Admiral Mike Mullen, talked of the difficult situation in Afghanistan and the requirement for additional troops. The issue of Afghanistan will, no doubt, be raised today, during the visit of the Canadian Prime Minister, Stephen Harper to the White House.

Security conditions throughout Afghanistan continue to deteriorate, according to a Canadian government report on the mission, with the frequency of attacks in May and June higher than in any month since the fall of the Taliban.

The government's latest quarterly report said Kandahar province in particular, where Canadian forces are concentrated, experienced "a steep increase in the number of enemy-initiated attacks against soldiers, civilians and facilities during the quarter."

Although it follows a yearly trend that usually sees violence increase at the end of the poppy harvest, "the frequency of security events in Kandahar was exceptionally high," the report said.

The report said that the number of incidents involving improvised explosive devices was 108 per cent higher than in the same three months of 2008.