While the politicians bicker...

...Canadian soldiers continue to prosecute their mission in Afghanistan, one day at a time.

As the government clampdown on military communication with the public has tightened even more with the election on, I had to find out about the latest Canadian-Afghan operation from an ISAF press release, and a CTV photo gallery which seems to have been lifted entirely from the Combat Camera site.

I find it interesting to note the grape-drying hut was destroyed by detonating the captured explosives. A building like that is, in and of itself, neither a good nor a bad thing. That the ANA and CF forces decided to level it tells me there's a bit more to this story than we're being told right up front. Perhaps a message to the local inhabitants about the consequences of offering such substantial and unambiguous aid and comfort to insurgents.

Anyhow, here's some of the press release:

Afghan National Security Forces and ISAF soldiers conducted security operations aimed at disrupting insurgent leadership and supply lines in eastern Panjwayi district, Kandahar, Oct. 2-10.

During the operations, which took place near Nakhonay, ANSF and ISAF forces seized heavy weaponry, ammunition and vast quantities of insurgent medical supplies. Substantial quantities of explosives and components used for making roadside bombs were also seized and destroyed.

"Afghan forces have seized considerable caches of insurgent supplies, bomb-making material and weapons," said General Zazai, the commander of Afghan National Army’s 205th Corps. "We fully expected to find these caches, and the insurgent capability to operate will be impacted and public safety improved as a result of the efforts of the ANSF and ISAF."

The joint military forces arrived in the area via air and ground movement, catching the insurgent forces off-guard. The insurgents abandoned their weapons and infrastructure, and fled without any resistance.

Further detail from the CTV pictorial - thank heavens for the embed program:

Operation Aray was a combined operation involving Canadian troops, a Battle group of British Marine commandoes and forces from the Afghan National Army. It was centred around the village of Nakonay, southwest of Kandahar City and was meant to disrupt and dislocate the insurgents who had used the area for staging attacks against Canadian and other NATO forces. During the operation, the Canadians discovered a large cache of Taliban weapons and medical supplies, including dozens of homemade explosives, mines, mortars, an 82-millimetre recoilless rifle which is capable of taking out an armored vehicle, as well as what appeared to be a full Taliban infirmary.

As Sergeant-Major Keith Jacquard, CIMIC Team Leader from the KPRT said of a previously captured weapons cache, “It’s always a good day when we find a weapons cache and dead Taliban.”

Hear, hear.