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CTV.ca News Staff
Updated: Mon. Aug. 15 2005 11:50 AM ET
Two Canadian peacekeepers were reportedly injured in Egypt, near the border with the Gaza Strip, after a blast occurred near a vehicle they were travelling in.
The two Canadian soldiers -- serving in the Multinational Force and Observers (MFO) -- were both women sergeants, according to senior Egyptian security officials.
Ian Baxendall, a spokesperson for MFO, said the soldiers were "lightly wounded" but gave no details about gender or age.
The Department of National Defence and the spokesperson for the Canadian Embassy in Cairo, Ulrich Shannon, did not confirm the injuries.
The soldiers are reportedly back on duty, according to CTV Middle East bureau chief Janis Mackey Frayer.
The blast, which was loud enough to be heard in the nearby Gaza Strip, was caused by a natural gas canister planted on the roadside and detonated through a wire, the governor of North Sinai said.
Baxendell refused to call the incident an attack.
"You cannot call it an attack because it was on a public highway and we're not certain of how it occurred,'' Baxendell told The Associated Press in Cairo.
The explosion occurred at about 8 a.m. local time, as the vehicle left the airport where the force is based -- 15 kilometres from the Gaza Strip, according to local security officials.
A white mini-bus bearing the MFO logo was found at the scene of the explosion. It had flat tires and broken windows.
The blast comes as Israel begins implementing its withdrawal plan in the Gaza Strip and West Bank.
The multinational force is made up of 1,800 troops from 11 countries. It was created to help implement the 1979 Camp David peace treaty between Israel and Egypt.
Canada has a 29-member team contributing to the MFO. Members include air traffic controllers, administrators and support personnel. They are located in El Gorah, Egypt.
The Canadian contribution is called Operation Calumet. When the operation began, in 1986, Canada sent a helicopter unit and 140 personnel to Egypt, which has since been scaled back.
© Copyright 2002-2006 Bell Globemedia Inc.
Updated: Mon. Aug. 15 2005 11:50 AM ET
Two Canadian peacekeepers were reportedly injured in Egypt, near the border with the Gaza Strip, after a blast occurred near a vehicle they were travelling in.
The two Canadian soldiers -- serving in the Multinational Force and Observers (MFO) -- were both women sergeants, according to senior Egyptian security officials.
Ian Baxendall, a spokesperson for MFO, said the soldiers were "lightly wounded" but gave no details about gender or age.
The Department of National Defence and the spokesperson for the Canadian Embassy in Cairo, Ulrich Shannon, did not confirm the injuries.
The soldiers are reportedly back on duty, according to CTV Middle East bureau chief Janis Mackey Frayer.
The blast, which was loud enough to be heard in the nearby Gaza Strip, was caused by a natural gas canister planted on the roadside and detonated through a wire, the governor of North Sinai said.
Baxendell refused to call the incident an attack.
"You cannot call it an attack because it was on a public highway and we're not certain of how it occurred,'' Baxendell told The Associated Press in Cairo.
The explosion occurred at about 8 a.m. local time, as the vehicle left the airport where the force is based -- 15 kilometres from the Gaza Strip, according to local security officials.
A white mini-bus bearing the MFO logo was found at the scene of the explosion. It had flat tires and broken windows.
The blast comes as Israel begins implementing its withdrawal plan in the Gaza Strip and West Bank.
The multinational force is made up of 1,800 troops from 11 countries. It was created to help implement the 1979 Camp David peace treaty between Israel and Egypt.
Canada has a 29-member team contributing to the MFO. Members include air traffic controllers, administrators and support personnel. They are located in El Gorah, Egypt.
The Canadian contribution is called Operation Calumet. When the operation began, in 1986, Canada sent a helicopter unit and 140 personnel to Egypt, which has since been scaled back.
© Copyright 2002-2006 Bell Globemedia Inc.