KANDAHAR, Afghanistan, April 21 (UPI) -- Canadian military officers in Afghanistan are seeing progress in their war against al-Qaida and Taliban guerrillas.
The Toronto Star reported Thursday that Canadian Task Force Orion Charlie Company deployed to Forward Operating Base Robinson three weeks ago to reinforce a joint Afghan National Army-U.S. Special Forces detachment. FOB Robinson is an isolated base that has come under repeated attack by suspected Taliban guerrillas in Sangin district, where the Helmand River is used militants and drug traffickers as a travel corridor.
The Canadians will remain at FOB Robinson until July, when 3,000 British soldiers who will take over responsibility for Helmand arrive.
Brig.-Gen. David Fraser told the paper, "This is a sign of how effective the security forces here are becoming. The Taliban are rushing to get things done because we are seeing success stories. Some of the attacks are now starting to go to the outside of the city, which is an indicator that the police are having a greater effect on the ground of being able to protect the city."
"Now they're using suicide bombers. Why? Because the police and the Afghan National Army are more effective in dealing with arising crises. But the ANP is being effective in finding those components and those suicide bombers before they're executing their attacks.
"Those suicide bombers are incompetent fools -- God bless them -- because they're detonating themselves before they get to the targets they're looking to attack."
A roadside bombing in Helmand province of a Canadian armored vehicle on Tuesday produced little damage and no casualties.
