| I detect the CBC reporter is rather conficted. |
The commander of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), Maj.-Gen. Ton Van Loon, confirmed on Saturday that the troops will play a "very important role" in hunting for Taliban fighters, telling reporters this after making a surprise visit to two of Canada's operating bases in southern Afghanistan.
His comments came as a Canadian soldier was seriously injured Saturday after stepping on a landmine while on a foot patrol in the same area where NATO forces were launching the operation. Pte. Frederic Couture of the Van Doos, the Royal 22nd Regiment based in Valcartier, Que., was airlifted to Kandahar airfield and is in stable condition, a military spokeswoman said. His age and hometown in Canada were not immediately available.
The British-led mission will see Canadian troops operating from the bases they've established in the Panjwaii district, west of Kandahar city, but "there would also be movement involved," the general said, although he would not provide details or say when the mission would begin.
Afghan army taking part
Van Loon said the Canadians will continue working with the Afghan National Army as they try to separate hardline members of the Taliban from the civilian population. The army will play a key role as it tries to convince locals to support NATO and to turn their backs on the Taliban, Van Loon said.
The offensive, entitled Operation Falcon's Summit — or Baaz Tsuka in the Afghan language — was billed in a NATO news release as a show of strength and a demonstration of the coalition's ability to combat and defeat the Taliban.
NATO consulted with tribal elders and district leaders before embarking on Operation Baaz Tsuka, which was planned with the help of Afghan security forces, Van Loon told reporters on Friday. "Those people contemplating joining the Taliban should listen to their tribal elders and choose the way of peace, not destruction," he said.