Civilians to join Canadian mission in Kandahar

RCMP officers and government development personnel are arriving in Kandahar this week to bolster an experimental force that mixes civilians, the police and military.

With its focus on reconstruction, the team has a $4-million budget to spend on development projects in the next 18 months.

Unlike Canadian missions in other parts of Afghanistan -- where the military has participated in aid projects in a coordinating role -- the Kandahar PRT is based on an integrated approach.

The mission's success is threatened, however, by the instability that has wracked the southern province regarded as the birthplace of the Taliban.

In recent months, as Afghanistan prepares for its mid-September parliamentary and provincial council elections, Taliban and al Qaeda insurgents have escalated attacks throughout the country, and particularly in Kandahar.

Reporting from the volatile province, CTV's Matt McClure said a roadside bomb that killed four U.S. troops north of Kandahar Sunday, was a stark reminder of the dangers that Canadian troops must always beware of.

"This is the worst attack on U.S. forces in some two months," McClure said in an interview Monday.

At least 72 U.S. service members involved in the U.S.-led military operations in Afghanistan have died since Jan. 1, making 2005 the costliest year for the United States since their intervention ousted the Taliban in November 2001.

U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld declared that major combat operations in Afghanistan were over in May, 2003. But Taliban attacks have been increasing since the beginning of this year, so far killing an estimated 1,000 Afghans.

Canadian patrol vehicles are being fitted with a special gun turret that provides added protection in a blast.

"Canadian commanders are predicting there's going to be lots more of these attacks in the leadup to the September 18th vote," McClure told CTV's Canada AM.

"Given that the deteriorating security situation here, soldiers can't wait for that."