[antiwar-van] FOR IMM RLS: Canada's death toll hits 97 soldiers killed in Afghanistan

[Kira Koshelanyk]

Mobilization Against War & Occupation (MAWO) 
604.322.1764 | info at mawovancouver.org
http://www.mawovancouver.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 7th, 2008

Another Canadian soldier killed in Afghanistan as deaths of Afghan civilians increase:
MAWO Statement Against Canada/NATO Occupation of Afghanistan

On Sunday September 7th, another Canadian soldier was killed and 7 wounded by a roadside bomb in Kandahar, Afghanistan. This is just 5 days after the Wednesday September 3rd “direct fire” attack which killed 3 Canadian soldiers and wounded 5. These attacks are targeting the occupying forces which have carried on the brutal occupation of Afghanistan for almost 7 years. The number of attacks on occupation forces and consequently the frequency of casualties of Canadian troops are increasing. In the last month alone (August), there were 5 Canadian soldiers killed, and now only one week into September there are 4 more deaths, taking the death toll to 97 soldiers. Ironically, the Wednesday attack came on the two-year anniversary of the Canada led “Operation Medusa” which killed over 500 Afghan people in the same area. 

A simple look into just the last two months of the military operation gives a good understanding of how these increasingly frequent murders by occupation forces have continued. On Monday September 1st occupation forces killed 5 children and a father in 2 separate incidents, one in Paktika province and one near Kabul. On Thursday August 21st air strikes in the Shindand district of Herat province killed 90 Afghan civilians, 60 of which were children, as confirmed by the United Nations. On Monday July 28th Canadian Forces in Kandahar shot and killed four people, including a two-year-old boy and his four-year-old sister as the car they were in drove near a Canadian patrol convoy. On Sunday July 27th, 70 so-called 'Taliban insurgents' were killed in NATO air strikes in the eastern Khost province of Afghanistan, according to an AFP report. Saturday July 26th saw the deaths of more than 40 'so-called militants' killed by NATO forces in Ghazni province. A brutal
NATO attack at the end of June killed at least 45 people in Helmand province, most of whom were women and children. According to a report from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in mid July “at least 250 civilians are reported to have been killed or injured in various incidents since July 4th.” This is not counting so-called ‘insurgents’ who have been killed by the occupation forces. How many more were killed since this Red Cross report?

This justification of aggression comes as Canada's Foreign Affairs Minister David Emerson recently announced that 200 more Canadian troops will be dispatched to Afghanistan, increasing the force from 2500 to 2700. At the same time, NATO countries have pledged to send more troops as well. This expansion of the war drive is certain to increase the air strikes, bombings, killings and destruction of all aspects of life for people in Afghanistan. How will all this help the so-called 're-construction' of Afghanistan?

Following his recent visit to Afghanistan, David Emerson said, "Canada’s men and women are doing tremendous work in a challenging situation in Afghanistan. The dedication, ingenuity and resilience of our civilian and military team on the ground are having a positive effect, both in Kandahar and across the country. Working with the Afghan government and the international community, we are moving forward and improving the lives of ordinary citizens."

How are Canada and NATO “improving the lives of ordinary citizens” in Afghanistan by murdering young children? How are Canada and NATO “improving the lives of ordinary citizens” in Afghanistan by murdering unknown hundreds of thousands of innocent people? How can Canada and NATO bring “human rights” to Afghans while they are killing the very people they claim to be bringing human rights to? The thousands of tonnes of bombs dropped on Afghan homes, the thousands of bullets fired by occupation forces in Afghanistan cannot cure poverty and hunger there; they can only kill poor and hungry people. Canada and NATO are not healers in Afghanistan; they are killers. 

But amidst all this suffering that Afghan people endure, they still haven’t let Canada and NATO troops take complete control of their country. As young people in Canada and around the world are being used as cannon fodder to kill Afghan people in a war of profit for the ruling class, Mobilization Against War and Occupation (MAWO) is standing side-by-side with Afghan people to demand an immediate end to this brutal and unjust war drive.

We are representing the over 14,000 people who have already signed MAWO’s Canada Out of Afghanistan petition. We are demanding an Independent Public Inquiry into Canada’s war drive in Afghanistan to answer the questions of why the Government of Canada began the war drive in Afghanistan, and it has since extended it and poured $7 Billion taxpayer dollars (Canadian Center for Policy Alternatives) into this war drive without public consultation or debate. We are with the 56% of people in Canada who, according to the CBC’s recent poll, disapprove the Canadian government’s occupation of Afghanistan. Along with the fact that only 14% of people in Canada strongly approve of the occupation, it is clear that public opinion is alongside with our demands.

We will join justice seeking, peace-loving people around the world to demand:
Canada/NATO Out of Afghanistan Now!
Independent Public Inquiry into the Canadian government’s war in Afghanistan Now!


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