Taliban insurgents killed two Canadian soldiers and injured another five during an attack in the Panjwaii district of Afghanistan, Canadian military officials have confirmed.

"Two Canadian soldiers have died as a result of injuries suffered during this attack and five others received non-life threatening injuries," Col. Fred Lewis, deputy commander of Task force Afghanistan, said Tuesday.

Sgt. Craig Paul Gillam and Cpl. Robert Thomas James Mitchell were identified as the two soldiers killed. Both were with the Royal Canadian Dragoons, based in Petawawa, Ont. They are the 38th and 39th Canadian soldiers to die in Afghanistan since 2002.

In a statement, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said: "On behalf of all Canadians, I wish to extend my sincerest condolences to the families and friends of Sergeant Gillam and Corporal Mitchell, who died today while serving their country in Afghanistan.

" We also pray for the speedy recovery of the five other soldiers who were injured,'' he said.

"Canada is forever grateful to these brave men who put their lives on the line and made the ultimate sacrifice in the name of promoting peace, stability and security in Afghanistan.''

The soldiers were working to clear a route for a future road construction project when the attack occurred around 4:50 p.m. local time.

"They were members of the surveillance troops," said Lewis. "They were conducting vehicle checkpoints and observation posts at the time."

The patrol managed to return fire after coming under sustained fire from mortars and possibly rocket propelled grenades. The attack involved between two and five insurgents.

The injured soldiers were evacuated to an alliance medical facility at the Kandahar airfield.

The attack took place about 20 kilometres west of Kandahar City, an area that Canadians troops took from the Taliban just weeks ago. Lewis said the violence was expected as Operation Medusa -- the Canadian-led NATO operation that officials claimed as a major success -- was in its final stage.

"This final phase is the one that the Taliban don't want to lose," said Lewis. "We're in reconstruction and development and we've got to remain vigilant to the Taliban re-infiltrating in the area."

"The Taliban attacks will not deter Canadian efforts to help this country achieve peace and stability and a free and democratic society."

The fighting comes on a day soldiers faced a series of insurgent attacks, including ambushes, rocket fire and a suicide bombing.

A Canadian patrol came under heavy fire along the Arghandab River, just southwest of the scene of heavy fighting in September.

Later in the day, a bomber on a motorcycle attacked a Canadian military convoy in the volatile region west of Kandahar, ramming his vehicle into a G-Wagon. No Canadian casualties were reported in that attack, although three Afghanistan civilians were hurt.

The attacks come on the day the body of Pte. Josh Klukie, 23, killed four days ago after stepping on a booby-trapped anti-tank mine, returned home from Afghanistan to CFB Trenton for a repatriation ceremony. The Thunder Bay, Ont. native served with Bravo Company of the First Battalion, Royal Canadian Regiment.

Reinforcements

To deal with the ongoing violence, extra vehicles and firepower have begun to arrive in Kandahar for the Canadian forces.

The first of 15 heavily-armoured Leopard tanks arrived aboard a U.S. military transport aircraft.

Lewis told Canada AM earlier Tuesday that the deployment of the vehicles gives NATO forces a "direct fire capability" in areas of southern Afghanistan where Canadians encountered fierce insurgent resistance during Operation Medusa.

Further, he said a dozen military engineers arrived last week to perform project management and delivery tasks.

Arrangements are also being made to send another 21 Nyalas -- four-wheel-drive vehicles designed to withstand blasts from anti-tank mines -- to Afghanistan.

NATO command to expand

Meanwhile, NATO announced Tuesday that it will assume responsibility for security across Afghanistan beginning Thursday, when it takes over command in the east.

"In two days, on October 5, NATO security assistance will be expanded to all of Afghanistan," NATO's senior civilian representative, Daan Everts, told a news conference.

"And most of the U.S. forces that are still operating on their own command right now in the east will join the overall ISAF organization."

NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) already commands forces in the north, west and south, as well as in the capital of Kabul.

At the end of July, the alliance took responsibility for southern Afghanistan -- where Canadian and British troops in particular have come up against fierce insurgent resistance -- from the U.S.-led coalition.

On Thursday, NATO takes command of 10,000-12,000 U.S. troops in the east.

The troop transfer was expected to take place later this year. But alliance officials said battles with insurgents in the south required the pooling of Canadian, British and Dutch forces with U.S. soldiers.

With a report from CTV's Paul Workman and files from The Canadian Press