Posted on 01/22/2006 10:38:55 AM PST by Daralundy
EDMONTON -- It is the life of a soldier to bid farewell to loved ones and face the dangers ahead.
And it is the lot of military families to let them go.
The tightly knit Edmonton Garrison played out this age-old ritual during an emotional farewell Saturday morning as about 80 soldiers departed for conflict-ridden Afghanistan -- the first wave of a major new deployment of Canadian troops to the danger zone.
The planes carrying the soldiers eastward landed at Canadian Forces Base Shilo in Manitoba later Saturday to pick up another 60 soldiers, en route to Germany at first. It wasn't immediately known when they would arrive in Afghanistan.
More groups of soldiers will be leaving every few days over the next several weeks. About 1,250 soldiers altogether -- 1,000 from Edmonton and 250 from Manitoba -- will join a multinational brigade for a six-month tour of duty. Some will stay for nine months.
Their departure comes just one week after a suicide bomber killed a Canadian diplomat and seriously injured three Edmonton-based soldiers, and at a time when the suicide attacks are escalating -- a fact that weighed heavily on many of those gathered in a gymnasium for the leave-taking.
Lt.-Col. Ian Hope, who will command a battle group at Kandahar, said they're well aware this is more dangerous than past missions to Afghanistan.
But he believes it's the most important.
"It's a critical phase in Afghanistan's history," Hope said.
"They need the support of the West -- of the world, in fact -- now and the next two to three years . . . or they will slip back into anarchy.
(Excerpt) Read more at canada.com ...
God Speed and God Bless. May God watch over and protect them till they all safely return to home and hearth.
It's the best Canada can do until they replace their government tomorrow. It's better than nothing, and to each individual Canadian soldier, it's all he can do.
Canada has a military?
Yeah, they have spears and everything!
;-)
My husband likes to quip "we've got more cooks over there they they have everybody combined"! He usually says it about the French, but it's probably true in most cases and definitely true in Canada's case.
I can't help picturing mounties.
"Canada has a military?"
Funny thing, many Canadians ask the same thing! Years ago, when we were at Ft. Rucker, we had a Canadian Liason officer, who said he was asked the same thing by fellow Canucks!!
Snowballs dont count...........
It's sounds like it's a story about just one small unit and that 1,250 Canadians are being deployed.
Things may be changing up there in Canada. Watch the election tomorrow and see.
140 soldiers leave for Afghanistan (Canada)
I don't blame them.
There will be 2000 of them when the deployment is completed.
Thank you Canada for your support.
that is a good story, but to this day I don't understand why the Canadian didn't have weapon while in battle and why did the American sniper gave his weapon up to him?
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