MILNEWS.ca News Highlights – 4 Apr 11

• Libya Ops – “The Canadian pilots steered their CF-18 Hornet fighter-bombers over the Libyan target with every intention of destroying it with their 225-kilogram smart bombs. But they saw something they didn’t like and hesitated:  Mission aborted. “We passed,” said the pilots’ commanding officer, Lieutenant-Colonel Sylvain Ménard – call sign “Gogo” – referring to a mission flown shortly after the CF-18s from Bagotville, Que., arrived in Sicily on March. 19. “The target we were investigating was really close to some buildings. We didn’t know if they were military or civilian, so we did not drop on the target.” ….”
• A bit of a reminder re:  the seriousness of war, from “George Jonas’ 10 commandments of war.” “…. 1.  Don’t go to war for any purpose but the defence of your country’s vital interests, and only if they cannot be secured any other way …. 8.  If hostilities become unavoidable, please let your soldiers fight ….”
• “Unfinished plates of lamb and rice are still being cleared away as the governor of Panjwaii, Haji Fazluddin Agha, receives a post-lunch briefing on security threats in his district.  An official with Afghanistan’s National Directorate of Security stands on the shura room’s ornate red carpet to deliver his report, telling Agha his agency has identified a pair of insurgents who have been appointed to the new Taliban shadow government in Panjwaii.  The official says evidence was recently discovered proving both men are responsible for killing Canadian troops and laying “thousands” of roadside bombs. It also seems both men had been previously captured by coalition forces and then released, though the reasons for this are unclear. Agha takes in the information and a discussion ensues among the dozen or so Canadian and Afghan military commanders in the room. The idea is raised of re-arresting the men or killing them. But a consensus ultimately forms around another course of action, which is verbalized by Lt.-Col. Michel-Henri St-Louis, the commander of the Canadian battle group.  Instead of taking punitive measures, give the insurgents a chance to change their ways, St-Louis says.  “I think the district governor has a great opportunity to convince some of the fighters to live in peace, and maybe these two can be the start,” he tells Agha. “If these two individuals came here with their village elders, admitted to some of the choices they’ve made and vowed a future of peace, I think you could have the start of something very positive.” ….”
• “The Conservative government quietly went to Federal Court last week hoping to impose limits on what a military watchdog can say in its final report into torture allegations involving Afghan prisoners.  The Military Police Complaints Commission is currently reviewing evidence and writing its report after hearings into allegations that army cops turned a blind eye to suspected abuse in Afghan jails …. The Harper government …. (has) challenged the definition of what military cops could have known.  Justice Department lawyers also accused the commission of stepping “out of its narrow jurisdiction” and investigating Ottawa’s policy of handing over prisoners to Afghan authorities — something it was strictly forbidden from doing.  The government wants to exclude the testimony of diplomats and civilians who did not work for the Defence Department. Its lawyers also want any documents belonging to those officials, including reports that warned of torture or documented the abuse, excluded from the commissions findings ….”
• What’s Canada Buying? (1) “The (U.S.) Defense Security Cooperation Agency notified Congress March 17 of a possible Foreign Military Sale to the Government of Canada of 36 MK-48 Mod 7 Advanced Technology (AT) Torpedo Conversion Kits and associated equipment, parts, training and logistical support for an estimated cost of $125 million. The Government of Canada has requested the sale of 36 MK-48 Mod 7 Advanced Technology (AT) Torpedo Conversion Kits, containers, spare and repair parts, weapon system support & integration, publications and technical documentation, personnel training and training equipment, U.S. Government and contractor engineering and technical, and logistics support services, and other related elements of logistical support These kits will upgrade their existing MK-48 torpedoes from Mod 4 to Mod 7 ….” (PDF)
• What’s Canada Buying? (2) “…. The Department of National Defence intends to award a contract …. Aircraft Accident Investigator training …. to Cranfield University. The contract will be for the provision of a six-week Aircraft Accident Investigator course for one participant in 2011. The contract will also include one option period, for the provision of a six-week Aircraft Accident Investigator course for up to three participants in 2012, to be exercised at the discretion of the Crown. The contract, including the option period, has a total all-inclusive estimated value of £50,000 (~$77,700 Cdn) ….” More on where the training is expected to be conducted here.
• Hope the air conditioning’s working. “The nearly 500 Canadians currently in the Ivory Coast should stay indoors to keep away from the political violence engulfing the West African nation following a disputed election, according to the Department of Foreign Affairs. The statement followed a week of heightened fighting between supporters of president-elect Alassane Ouattara and those of Laurent Gbagbo — who has refused to step down since last November’s election — that’s brought the conflict’s death toll to at least 1,300, according to the Red Cross ….” More on what’s going on there here (from Canada’s Foreign Affairs department),  here (Google News) and here (EMM NewsBrief).
• Oopsie…. “A military base commander who served with the UN has lost a bid to return to head CFB Borden after being stripped of his power for inappropriate behaviour. Capt. John Frederick Schmidt was removed from the top position in July 2008 following an incident in which he was drinking alcohol and inappropriately touched two junior female officers, according to court documents. Schmidt, a 30-year veteran, went to a federal court, seeking a review of his removal due to “procedural unfairness.” He wanted the decision set aside and for a new probe to be launched. Judge Robert Barnes recently tossed out the request, ruling that Schmidt admitted the incident to his commanding officer and did not answer questions about it when interviewed at another time ….” Full text of Federal Court of Canada decision here.