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Canadian soldier slightly injured in Afghanistan
CTV.ca News Staff
A Canadian soldier suffered relatively minor injuries in Afghanistan on Sunday after a coalition convoy was attacked as it passed through the former Taliban stronghold of Kandahar.
The assault, which occurred at 15:45 local time, killed the attacker and a motorcycle driver and wounded two others.
Lt-Col Steve Borland told The Canadian Press that the Canadian soldier, who has not yet been identified, was treated for a minor injury above his eye and has since returned to duty.
There were conflicting reports on the nature of the assault.
While U.S. officials called Sunday's attacker a suicide bomber, a police officer at the scene reported that he was trying to throw a grenade.
Meanwhile, Afghan Interior Ministry spokesman Yousuf Stanekzai said the explosives detonated when the attacker was hit by a motorcycle.
In other developments in Afghanistan, the U.S. military said five American troops and an Afghan soldier were wounded when two helicopters made emergency landings during combat operations.
The American soldiers were hurt when a CH-47 Chinook landed north of Kandahar, the military said.
The Afghan soldier was hurt when the other helicopter made an emergency landing at a forward operating base in neighboring Uruzgan province.
Pte. Braun Scott Woodfield, the 24-year-old soldier who died in a vehicle accident while serving in Afghanistan, was bestowed with full military honours at a memorial at Canadian Forces Base Gagetown last week.
Ottawa is in the process of shifting its military presence from the capital Kabul to the more volatile southern region of Kandahar, which is considered the heartland of the Taliban.
By February 2006, about 2,000 Canadian soldiers will be based in Kandahar and a Canadian general will take command of a multi-national force to fight insurgents.
In total, some 20,000 coalition troops are fighting Taliban and al Qaeda-linked insurgents in southern and eastern Afghanistan.
Increased violence has killed nearly 1,500 people this year alone -- the bloodiest death toll since U.S.-led forces ousted the Taliban from power in 2001.
Canadian soldier slightly injured in Afghanistan
CTV.ca News Staff
A Canadian soldier suffered relatively minor injuries in Afghanistan on Sunday after a coalition convoy was attacked as it passed through the former Taliban stronghold of Kandahar.
The assault, which occurred at 15:45 local time, killed the attacker and a motorcycle driver and wounded two others.
Lt-Col Steve Borland told The Canadian Press that the Canadian soldier, who has not yet been identified, was treated for a minor injury above his eye and has since returned to duty.
There were conflicting reports on the nature of the assault.
While U.S. officials called Sunday's attacker a suicide bomber, a police officer at the scene reported that he was trying to throw a grenade.
Meanwhile, Afghan Interior Ministry spokesman Yousuf Stanekzai said the explosives detonated when the attacker was hit by a motorcycle.
In other developments in Afghanistan, the U.S. military said five American troops and an Afghan soldier were wounded when two helicopters made emergency landings during combat operations.
The American soldiers were hurt when a CH-47 Chinook landed north of Kandahar, the military said.
The Afghan soldier was hurt when the other helicopter made an emergency landing at a forward operating base in neighboring Uruzgan province.
Pte. Braun Scott Woodfield, the 24-year-old soldier who died in a vehicle accident while serving in Afghanistan, was bestowed with full military honours at a memorial at Canadian Forces Base Gagetown last week.
Ottawa is in the process of shifting its military presence from the capital Kabul to the more volatile southern region of Kandahar, which is considered the heartland of the Taliban.
By February 2006, about 2,000 Canadian soldiers will be based in Kandahar and a Canadian general will take command of a multi-national force to fight insurgents.
In total, some 20,000 coalition troops are fighting Taliban and al Qaeda-linked insurgents in southern and eastern Afghanistan.
Increased violence has killed nearly 1,500 people this year alone -- the bloodiest death toll since U.S.-led forces ousted the Taliban from power in 2001.
