KANDAHAR, Afghanistan – Canadian troops were at a former al-Qaida training camp now used daily by coalition forces for live-fire exercises when they were mistakenly bombed Thursday by a U.S. jet fighter, leaving four dead and eight injured.
A mood of shock, bewilderment and disbelief descended on the camp where more than 800 Canadian soldiers are based with other coalition forces at an airfield south of Kandahar.
"We all expected a mine strike at some point; we never expected this," said one of the soldiers at the base.
The accident happened in darkness – 1:55 a.m. local time – at Tarnac Puhl, a compound once used by Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida network to train fighters. It was featured in instructional videos made by the terrorist group.
Since the fall of the Taliban regime that harboured al-Qaida in Afghanistan, however, the site has been used for weeks by coalition troops to maintain their battle readiness in live-fire exercises.
The fact that live ammunition was being used led to speculation among the troops that the American pilot might have thought he was being fired upon, but military authorities have said only that an investigation will be carried out.
Even the troops back at the base heard the jet fighter overhead, its high-pitched scream clearly distinquishable from the drone of military transport planes that usually fly in and out of the runway on the base.
Soldiers also reported hearing the "whummph" when the bomb hit the training range just several kilometres to the southwest.
Within an hour, all the soldiers on the base were woken to respond to the emergency. Rescue teams rushed to retrieve the dead and wounded. Some of the casualties were quickly evacuated out of Afghanistan, while surgeons at the base hospital operated on others through the night.
After daylight, clusters of Canadian soldiers gathered at a bulletin board outside the public affairs office. Many appeared shocked by what they read from a statement about the deaths and injuries suffered by their comrades – members of the Edmonton-based 3rd Battalion of the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry.
They were the first Canadian Forces personnel killed in a combat zone since the Korean War 50 years ago.
The mood was evident in the solemn movement of the troops on the base. Some talked quietly in small groups. One soldier was slumped in a chair, weeping.
Maj. Mike Audette, a spokesman for the Canadian camp, said the tragedy would not distract the Canadian Forces from its mission in Afghanistan. "We're focusing on the task at hand and realizing that we're still fully engaged in an operational role," he said.
The Tarnac Puhl site where the bombing occurred is a large, mud-walled compound with trench complexes around it. The compound was largely destroyed by U.S. bombing during the war with the Taliban regime.
But even after the Taliban fled Kandahar, the bombardment has continued. Coalition forces have been using the compound daily for live-fire exercises. Its walls have crumbled from repeated blasts from grenades, mortars, landmines and other weapons fired during exercises. Spent ammunition can be seen lying everywhere. The hulk of a bombed-out tank is crippled on the dusty grounds.
During live-fire exercises, troops plan an assault and charge toward an objective under covering fire. Live ammunition is used to make the training as realistic as possible, and grenades and other explosives are frequently set off.
All the action makes the site dangerous with unexploded ordnance. Several weeks ago, at least two American soldiers were killed by a landmine there.
Like all coalition troops in Afghanistan, Canadian soldiers put reflective silver tape on their helmets and equipment to identify them to friendly aircraft overhead. Thursday's accident showed the safety measure does not totally safeguard the troops from "friendly fire."
Last month, Canadian troops had a close call in eastern Afghanistan when they went on Operation Harpoon, an offensive to help U.S.-led coalition forces search for Taliban and al-Qaida fighters on a mountain known as "the Whale."
An American fighter pilot reported that he had identified enemy on the mountain and wanted to "light 'em up," according to military sources. His commanders later realized it was a mistaken identification of Canadian troops as enemy, and the bombing was called off just five minutes before it was to begin.
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