Canadians return to base from Lashkar Gah

In early October the taliban launched a major attack on Lashkar Gah, the capital of Helmand province, which resulted in an EPIC Fail. Over 100 taliban were killed in the first assault and scores more killed after repeated taliban attacks on the city.

Here's an account of the battle from the eyes of Canadian troops.Canadian Press

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan — A small group of Canadian soldiers has finally returned to their base in Afghanistan after playing key roles in some of the heaviest fighting this fall.

Details are now starting to emerge about the part about 30 Canadians played in the battle for Lashkar Gah, the capital of nearby Helmand province that was threatened by the Taliban late last month.

"(The fighting) was quite intense," said Maj. Steve Nolan, who commanded one of the mentorship teams working with a kandak, or battalion, of Afghan National Army soldiers.

Taliban fighters began to mass around Lashkar Gah around Oct. 12.

Afghan Gen. Sher Muhammad Zazai has said hundreds of Taliban fighters were involved, attacking the city on three sides. Nolan's team and their kandak, normally based in Kandahar province, were mobilized and arrived in the embattled city the next day as insurgents were attacking police outposts around the city.

"We pulled into Lashkar Gah in the dark and it turned into a combat mission right away," said Nolan. "As we were moving in, there was tracer fire moving over our convoy."

....

On Oct. 17, the Canadian-mentored kandak was ordered to clear a swath of territory five kilometres wide and 10 kilometres long into the nearby village of Aynak - a maze of eight-metre deep canals, three-metre high cornfields, vineyards and narrow lanes lined by tall mud walls.

"There is no more complex terrain anywhere in the world," Nolan said.

Backed up by attack helicopters, the Canadian and Afghan soldiers advanced into repeated ambushes, coming under machine-gun and rocket-propelled grenade fire. Shots would be exchanged, then the Taliban would fall back to their next position.

"It's an all-day affair. There was always fire, or you always knew (every) 50 metres, that's where the next little contact would be."

There were no Canadian or Afghan casualties. Helmand's governor estimated 63 Taliban were killed.