Posted on 09/09/2006 11:03:42 AM PDT by exg
NATO soldier dies as fighting rages in Afghanistan Last Updated Sat, 09 Sep 2006 11:09:57 EDT CBC News A NATO soldier was killed Saturday in southern Afghanistan, as Canadian and NATO troops said their efforts had pushed Taliban forces to the brink of collapse.
The identity and nationality of the soldier killed has not yet been released. The soldier died in the Panjwaii region near Kandahar.
Lt.-Col. Omer Lavoie, the commander of Canadian forces on the ground in Afghanistan, told the Canadian Press that Taliban forces are being squeezed from the north and the south. Taliban representatives denied their forces were in trouble.
Canadian troops are on the front lines in NATO's Operation Medusa, a large-scale offensive aimed at driving Taliban fighters from their strongholds in southern Afghanistan.
Five Canadian soldiers have been killed since Operation Medusa started on Sunday. Since the mission started four years ago, 31 soldiers and one diplomat have died in Afghanistan.
On Friday, American and British airplanes provided support for Canadian and Afghan troops exchanging heavy fire with Taliban fighters in a major battle west of Kandahar.
Lt.-Col. Nick Grant-Thorold, a NATO officer in Afghanistan, said NATO forces killed up to 30 Taliban fighters Friday during the operation. NATO says it has killed 290 Taliban fighters since the operation started on Sunday.
Taliban representatives have denied the number is that high.
Panjwaii has been a hotbed of Taliban activity in southern Afghanistan. Four Canadians were killed there in a battle with the Taliban on Sunday, and another Canadian was killed Monday when two U.S. jets mistakenly fired on his platoon.
Of course Taliban terrorists always have a direct line to the leftist media, as fighting "rages". Still, it must be depressing for pro-terorist media (the CBC being the equivalent of pro- terrorist BBC and NYT) to see their team getting their butts kicked, which is why you see pro-terrorist leftist politicians like Jack Layton calling for negotiations with terrorists, and making resolutions in their party to label Canadian soldiers "terrorists". I guess it's because they are killing off their voter base.
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