100

Deep down, I think we all knew this was coming, but the last three months - in which no Canadian Forces personnel in Afghanistan were killed - may have lulled us into a false sense of security:

Three Canadian soldiers were killed and two were wounded in separate incidents in Afghanistan on Friday, raising to more than 100 the number of Canadians who have died while serving in the war-torn country.

Brig.-Gen. Denis Thompson, commander of Canadian troops, identified two of the latest casualties as Cpl. Mark Robert McLaren and Pte. Demetrios (Dip) Diplaros, both based in Petawawa, Ont. They died after the armoured vehicle they were in struck an improvised explosive device (IED).

The name of the third soldier who died was being temporarily withheld at the request of the family, Thompson said.

[...]

Before Friday, the last Canadian death reported was Sept. 7, when Sgt. Scott Shipway was killed under similar circumstances after his armoured vehicle struck an improvised explosive device during a security patrol.

"To have gone for three straight months gave soldiers here perhaps a little bit of cautious optimism," said Common.

"That optimism, of course, shattered … tonight, as there are many solemn faces."

Friday's deaths are unlikely to have an impact on Canada's mission in Afghanistan, Mercedes Stephenson, a military analyst, told CBC News.

"Certainly it is difficult for the soldiers. They have lost three brothers — possibly sisters — in arms," she said.

"There's a lot of anger and sadness after something like this, but [the soldiers] are professionals [who are] trained to deal with it and will continue with their job at hand, as they believe the soldiers who have been killed would have wanted them to."

May they rest in peace. (The comment section, sadly, tells us more than we ever wanted to know about the CBC's audience.)

Damian P.

Posted by damian at December 5, 2008 06:14 PM