First of Van Doos' Battle Group off to Afstan

Now for the "politically charged" (as Bruce Campion-Smith of the Toronto Star delicately puts it) death watch:

Two hundred Quebec-based troops depart today for Afghanistan, the first of more than 2,000 soldiers from the province who will arrive in Kandahar over the coming weeks for a dangerous – and politically charged – tour of duty.

The soldiers and their families will gather at the Valcartier Garrison, north of Quebec City, before the troops head to the airport to board a military Airbus for their flight overseas.

"They're really ready. They cannot be more ready than they are right now," said navy Lieut. Bruno Tremblay, a spokesperson for CFB Valcartier.

After the first flight, others are expected every three days, shuttling soldiers – including almost 1,000 troops from the Royal 22nd Regiment, the Van Doos – for a six-month deployment.

While the troops are simply replacing Gagetown, N.B.-based troops now headed home, the fact they are from Quebec – where public support for the mission is the lowest – promises to bring new scrutiny to Canada's role in Afghanistan.

And new casualties could further erode public support, despite the progress Canadians are making in the Kandahar region, said Alain Pellerin of the Conference of Defence Associations, an Ottawa-based group that speaks on defence issues. "If you start having big casualties ... people will say, `It doesn't matter what we do there, all we're getting is our people killed and not much progress being shown,'" he said.

A poll last week indicated a growing number of Canadians, especially in Quebec, think the death toll in Afghanistan – so far, 66 soldiers and diplomat Glyn Berry – is too high a price. The Canadian Press-Decima Research survey suggested concern over the mission is highest in Quebec, where 76 per cent said the sacrifice is unacceptable.

Pellerin said Ottawa's efforts to pitch the mission in Quebec have been hobbled by the fact Defence Minister Gordon O'Connor does not speak French. That's left International Co-operation Minister Josée Verner as the mission's main spokesperson in Quebec, a job she could be doing better, Pellerin said.

While much has been made of the fact that these troops are from Quebec, the military downplays any differences from previous rotations. "It's their turn to go," said Capt. Doug MacNair of the Canadian Expeditionary Force Command.