The following article from the 12 August 2009 edition of the Ottawa Citizen under the fair comment provisions of the Copyright Act.
High-tempo operations keep Taliban on run
Canadian troops living amongst population to force insurgents out
By Matthew Fisher, Canwest News Service August 12, 2009
Canadian troops have moved into several villages to the southwest of Kandahar City in the past few days to live among the population and be much closer to the heart of the Taliban insurgency.
The move to have troops dwell in small communities, such as Zhalakhan and Baladay, coincides with orders by U.S. Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the new commander of all NATO forces in Afghanistan appointed by President Barack Obama, to focus on populated areas in order to separate the Taliban from the wider population.
The general's directive to "clear, hold and build" fits with training that the Quebec-based Royal 22nd Regiment Battle Group did in Canada before deploying to Afghanistan this spring.
"The population is the key," said Maj. Stephane Briand, the battle group's chief of operations. "We go into hot spots to render the enemy uncomfortable. When we hold that terrain they must move somewhere else."
The strategy had already reaped some benefits, according to Capt. William Girard, the Van Doos' plans officer.
"When we live with villagers we gain their confidence," he said. "They come, for example, and tell us if the insurgents had come to them in the night."
The latest initiatives in the volatile Zhari District, including an operation that ended Sunday, which involved more than 500 Afghan and Canadian forces, are part of a fast operational pace on which Canada's Brig.-Gen. Jon Vance has had the Van Doos and his other troops since before the onset of the searing Afghan summer several months ago.
In all, there have been 38 Task Force Kandahar-directed major operations since early this year.
The Van Doos and other troops such as combat engineers, artillery gunners and a reconnaissance squadron from Quebec, as well as tanks from Alberta, have launched two dozen operations involving 100 or more soldiers at a time, as well as more than 50 smaller operations.
"We started very early with a high tempo of large operations to try to knock the insurgency off its game as it tried to transition into what we call the fighting season," Vance said.
"We selected large operations because we wish to ensure that the insurgents would flee and required sufficient forces to deal with that ...
"The nature of the insurgency now is such that it (is) in positions quite close to population centres or in them and we need to work quickly to the get them out and relieve the population."
Several new wrinkles in the military situation in Kandahar had permitted the Van Doos to be more uptempo than the six Canadian battle groups that preceded them.
Forward operation bases are now guarded by private security contractors, a U.S. infantry battalion is now working alongside the Van Doos and the arrival of Canadian helicopters early in the year makes it easier to move troops and supplies around.
These changes have allowed the Van Doos to operate company-sized missions with 120 or 130 men, rather than half that number as had often been the case in the past.
Still, maintaining a high tempo in austere outposts has not been easy for infantry who march into the desert loaded down with as much as 50 kilograms of gear that includes body armour, radios, batteries, ammunition, food and water.
The Canadians have also become used to the rhythms of desert warfare. Between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m., "our tempo diminishes and so does the enemy's," the major said. "Soldiers often maintain a defensive posture and look for shade."
Being forward deployed on constant operations among the local population is part of a learning process that is producing results, Girard added.
"We see certain signs of success," he said. "We have disrupted them where they were previously secure, so they are not able to plant as many IEDs. We cannot be sure, but there are many indications that lives have been saved."
High-tempo operations keep Taliban on run
Canadian troops living amongst population to force insurgents out
By Matthew Fisher, Canwest News Service August 12, 2009
Canadian troops have moved into several villages to the southwest of Kandahar City in the past few days to live among the population and be much closer to the heart of the Taliban insurgency.
The move to have troops dwell in small communities, such as Zhalakhan and Baladay, coincides with orders by U.S. Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the new commander of all NATO forces in Afghanistan appointed by President Barack Obama, to focus on populated areas in order to separate the Taliban from the wider population.
The general's directive to "clear, hold and build" fits with training that the Quebec-based Royal 22nd Regiment Battle Group did in Canada before deploying to Afghanistan this spring.
"The population is the key," said Maj. Stephane Briand, the battle group's chief of operations. "We go into hot spots to render the enemy uncomfortable. When we hold that terrain they must move somewhere else."
The strategy had already reaped some benefits, according to Capt. William Girard, the Van Doos' plans officer.
"When we live with villagers we gain their confidence," he said. "They come, for example, and tell us if the insurgents had come to them in the night."
The latest initiatives in the volatile Zhari District, including an operation that ended Sunday, which involved more than 500 Afghan and Canadian forces, are part of a fast operational pace on which Canada's Brig.-Gen. Jon Vance has had the Van Doos and his other troops since before the onset of the searing Afghan summer several months ago.
In all, there have been 38 Task Force Kandahar-directed major operations since early this year.
The Van Doos and other troops such as combat engineers, artillery gunners and a reconnaissance squadron from Quebec, as well as tanks from Alberta, have launched two dozen operations involving 100 or more soldiers at a time, as well as more than 50 smaller operations.
"We started very early with a high tempo of large operations to try to knock the insurgency off its game as it tried to transition into what we call the fighting season," Vance said.
"We selected large operations because we wish to ensure that the insurgents would flee and required sufficient forces to deal with that ...
"The nature of the insurgency now is such that it (is) in positions quite close to population centres or in them and we need to work quickly to the get them out and relieve the population."
Several new wrinkles in the military situation in Kandahar had permitted the Van Doos to be more uptempo than the six Canadian battle groups that preceded them.
Forward operation bases are now guarded by private security contractors, a U.S. infantry battalion is now working alongside the Van Doos and the arrival of Canadian helicopters early in the year makes it easier to move troops and supplies around.
These changes have allowed the Van Doos to operate company-sized missions with 120 or 130 men, rather than half that number as had often been the case in the past.
Still, maintaining a high tempo in austere outposts has not been easy for infantry who march into the desert loaded down with as much as 50 kilograms of gear that includes body armour, radios, batteries, ammunition, food and water.
The Canadians have also become used to the rhythms of desert warfare. Between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m., "our tempo diminishes and so does the enemy's," the major said. "Soldiers often maintain a defensive posture and look for shade."
Being forward deployed on constant operations among the local population is part of a learning process that is producing results, Girard added.
"We see certain signs of success," he said. "We have disrupted them where they were previously secure, so they are not able to plant as many IEDs. We cannot be sure, but there are many indications that lives have been saved."
