MAS'UM GHAR, Afghanistan — It may be the season of brotherly love in other parts of the world but here in Afghanistan the credo is a bit simpler: kill or be killed.

Canadian soldiers have become accomplished combat troops since arriving here, and the Canadian-led Operation Medusa in September added lustre to their war-time reputation on the international stage.

But the fact remains, being in a war means Canadian troops are having to kill the enemy and it's something soldiers have to deal with on a personal level.

"I haven't had a single kill that has bothered me and there's been a lot of them. None of them have bothered me at all," reflected one private, who cannot be identified because of a ban by the Canadian military.

"You sit and wonder if it should and you wonder why it doesn't bother you; I mean to see bodies explode or to see them chopped into little pieces by a machine gun and know that you did it," he added.

The soldier is a gunner on a light armoured vehicle, which sports both a machine-gun and a 25-mm cannon. As a member of the PPCLI (Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry) he and his mates have seen plenty of action.

"On Aug. 19 at Mas'um Ghar it was about nine hours fighting out at 360 degrees and there was a body count of 72 the next morning and they always carry their dead away so I would imagine there were 120-130 dead Taliban," he said.

"I had an RPG hit my turret, I was in a little jeep with a glass window on it but it was too close for it to arm so it just bounced over my head. I fired about 3,000 rounds out of a machine-gun in about 15 minutes," recalled the 28-year-old former heavy equipment mechanic.

The decision to kill under the rules of engagement is something each soldier has to decide before they come here he said, as he checked supplies and ammunition on his LAV high above the forward operating base at Mas'um Ghar, which is Afghan for "Beautiful Mountain."

"The Taliban are doing things I don't agree with. My country says it's all right for me to do it, my God says it's all right for me to do it. They're doing things he doesn't agree with too, so it makes it easy to do it," he concluded.

But being here has been a life altering experience and the long-term consequences worry him.

"You wonder if you're going to be normal. I know I've caught myself wondering if I will ever be the same again and how I will adjust," he added.

Troops at Mas'um Ghar are on standby and would likely be called in if necessary to help out with Operation Baaz Tsuka, a NATO-led offensive against the Taliban in the Panjwaii and Zahre districts.

Canadian troops have set up a combat team, including tanks, troops and LAVs near the village of Howz-e Madad. There have been no battles with Taliban forces and NATO reported Saturday it had secured a third village in the area without incident.

NATO, along with Afghan security forces, have now taken control of Howz-e Madad, Zangabad and now Talukan without a shot being fired.

Hundreds of hardline Taliban members are believed to be hiding out in the region south of Howz-e Madad.

Canadian military officials said the Taliban have nowhere to go with Canadian troops to the north and east, British to the west and American and British forces to the south.