Death of Canadian soldier highlights chaotic security situation in southern Afghanistan

[unhappycamper]

Private security companies staffed by ill-trained and poorly disciplined gunmen have proliferated in Afghanistan in recent years. With so many armed groups on the roads, and the Taliban becoming resurgent, the results are often grim, as underscored by the accidental shooting of a Canadian soldier on Saturday in Kandahar province.


Death of Canadian soldier highlights chaotic security situation in southern Afghanistan
By Drew Brown , Stars and Stripes
Mideast edition, Monday, August 11, 2008

MAIWAND, Afghanistan — The shooting death of a Canadian soldier this weekend provides a grim example of how chaotic the security situation can often be in southern Afghanistan.

The soldier was mortally wounded Saturday morning in Kandahar province when Afghan private security guards opened fire indiscriminately after Taliban insurgents attacked a nearby group of Canadian troops, according to coalition military officers.

The shooting occurred in the Spin Beer district of Kandahar province, about 20 miles west of Kandahar city, said Maj. Corey Frederickson, part of a Canadian advisory team that trains and mentors the Afghan army in Maiwand district, about 45 miles west of Kandahar.

According to a statement issued late Saturday by the Canadian Defense Ministry, the soldier was transported by helicopter to Kandahar Airfield but died on the way.

The Canadian Defense Ministry identified the soldier as Master Cpl. Joshua Brian Roberts. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry, based in Shilo, Manitoba.


Rest of article at: http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=56680