"Canadian Forces deal 'huge blow' to Taliban: official"

CTV story with video (I would note, with an echo of General Hillier, that a CF Lieutenant-Colonel is not an "official"--how about "officer"?):

Lt.-Col. Dave Corbould told reporters Monday that Canadian Forces "hit the Taliban hard" during operation Op Timis Preem.

The operation was conducted in the Zhari district of Kandahar province last Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

Corbould said the operation's objective was to strike at the Taliban's command and control infrastructure and take away their ability to conduct operations against Afghan and coalition forces.

The mission's key goal was to reduce the Taliban's ability to build improvised explosive devices (IEDs), which they routinely plant along Highway Number One -- the main national highway that crosses Kandahar province.

Corbould said the operation has served "a huge blow to the enemy's ability to plant major IEDs."

"It's thrown them off balance and we'll continue to maintain the momentum to keep them off balance in that specific area," said Corbould.

He said officials are still analyzing results of the operation.

"I personally believe we've taken out some of the key leaders that have conducted some of these IED operations that have affected local nationals, Afghan security forces, as well as ISAF soldiers and Canadians," said Corbould.

The report comes as an armoured vehicle carrying six Canadian soldiers and two journalists struck a roadside bomb Sunday.

The group was returning to Kandahar Airfield from the mission in the Zhari district.

Four of the soldiers were airlifted to hospital with serious but not life-threatening injuries. A reporter for the National Post was also treated in hospital and later released.

Two other soldiers and Canadian Press reporter Tobi Cohen sustained only minor bruising in the incident.

"It struck the front-right side of the vehicle, flipped us over and fortunately all of us made it out alive," Cohen told CTV's Canada AM on Monday from Kandahar.

Cohen said there was no clear motive for the attack but she said it may have been related to Op Timis Preem, during which dozens of Taliban militants were killed.

She said the incident hasn't made her question her dangerous assignment.

"I've talked to many soldiers who've cheated death countless times -- between IEDs and firefights with insurgents -- and they keep going back out there and doing their job," she said.

"I think that's what me and my fellow reporter are going to keep doing while we're here."

Last week, three Canadian soldiers were killed by an improvised explosive device while on patrol in Zhari district.

The deaths bring the total number of Canadian soldiers who have died during the Afghan mission to 93.

Update: More than just fighting:

SMALL GAINS IN AFGHANISTAN
Canadian Forces in Afghanistan juggle their combat, peacekeeping, humanitarian aid roles