MILNEWS.ca News Highlights – 22 Jan 11

• Bad Guys in Canada (1): “The lawyer for a Canadian man suspected of supporting a terrorist group says his client will fight extradition to the United States. “I think any Canadian would want to stay in Canada to answer to charges,” Bob Aloneissi said outside court. Sayfildin Tahir Sharif, a 38-year-old Iraqi Canadian, was arrested by the RCMP in Edmonton on Wednesday at the request of the FBI. Sharif, who has children and family in the city but is not married, appeared in court briefly on Thursday accompanied by three sheriffs. The matter was put over to Jan. 27 ….”
• Bad Guys in Canada (2): “A (Pembroke) man charged with attempting to possess explosive substances — in what police allege was his intention to detonate an improvised explosive device at CFB Petawawa — has been refused bail. Matin Abdul Stanikzy, 24, will remain in custody at the Ottawa-Carleton Detention Centre, a superior court judge ruled this week. Stanikzy, an Afghan national, faces charges of assault, attempting to possess an explosive substance, counselling to commit theft, uttering a threat to cause death and threatening to burn, destroy or damage personal property. On Nov. 17, city police arrested Stanikzy after investigating an assault allegation. The RCMP’s anti-terrorism squad subsequently laid the other charges. Stanikzy was denied bail on Dec. 3 ….”
• Bad Guys in Canada (for the moment): “The Canadian government has begun the process of formally deporting an Ottawa man declared a threat to Canadian security, but his lawyers don’t expect him to be leaving the country any time soon. Mohamed Harkat’s lawyer, Matthew Webber, said on Friday he had received a notice of intention to seek Justice Minister Vic Toews’s opinion about whether to deport Harkat under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. Under Section 115 of the act, the minister can decide not to allow an individual to remain in Canada with refugee status if the minister believes the individual constitutes a danger to the public or to the security of the country. The notice starts a process rolling, but is not a formal deportation order ….” More here.
• Project management in Afghanistan appears to be very different than project management taught in business school.  “In 2002, while I was studying project management at the École des hautes études commerciales in Montreal, I never imagined that I would someday apply the principles I was learning to a counter-insurgency campaign in the heart of one of the most volatile regions of Afghanistan. After only two weeks here, Lieutenant-Colonel Michel-Henri St.-Louis, commander of the 1st Battalion Royal 22e Régiment Battle Group, informed me of the full scope of the mission that would be my main effort for the coming months ….”
• Meanwhile, a Canadian General checks out how projects are working out. “…. The alliance has also helped the Afghan Border Police build a new battalion headquarters on a vast, empty plain a couple of kilometres from the frontier, which follows the Durand Line, a British creation in the 19th century that few Afghans recognize. It was to check on construction at that new base in an area long notorious for smuggling and to see how some Afghan police officers at isolated checkpoints were faring that Brig.-Gen. Andre Corbould, of Edmonton, deputy commander of Regional Command South, had travelled more than an hour down a muddy, outrageously bumpy track in a U.S. army convoy. Leading what the military calls a “battlefield circulation” was Col. Jim Edwards, a career intelligence officer from Fort Bragg, North Carolina, who commands U.S. forces in Spin Boldak. Along the way, the officers met Afghan construction engineers who told them of threats from the Taliban, who accused them of building the border police base for American troops, although none was going to live there. “I told them I am an Afghan and I am building this for Afghanistan and not for Americans,” the chief engineer said. Searching for Afghan flags and only spotting one, Corbould suggested an easy way to help brand the base as Afghan would be to fly a lot more Afghan flags ….”
• A Greek Cypriot newspaper says Canada’s going to use Germany and Cyprus as its Afghanistan staging bases after getting kicked out of the UAE.  More details from government officials via Agence France-Presse, including a spokesperson for the Minister of National Defence quoted saying they’re still “assessing options” on the up-and-coming training mission in Kabul.
• Taliban Propaganda Watch:  Taliban denies Mullah Omar heart attack, surgery stories (report via Washington Post blog here).
• F-35 Tug of War Update (1):  CDS quoted saying “Multibillion-dollar fighter jet buy ‘best value for Canada’ “.
• F-35 Tug of War Update (2):  “Liberals launch television ads focusing on the issues” Translation:  one of the ads picks on the Tories for sorta committing to buying the F-35 without what most recognize as a clear competition process.
• F-35 Tug of War Update (3):  Canadian aerospace industry association underwhelmed by “Official Opposition’s fundamental lack of understanding of the importance of the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) program to the Canadian Aerospace industry“.
• “Those who fight for a living in Ultimate Fighting Championship’s octagon are helping raise millions of dollars for those who fight for the Canadian and American militaries. Fight For The Troops 2 takes place Saturday night in front of U.S. military personnel in Fort Hood, Texas. It is the third fundraising event held by the mixed-martial-arts promotion in cooperation with the military. Fight Night 7 was held in December 2006 at the MCAS Miramar in San Diego, while Fight For The Troops in Fayetteville, N.C. raised $4 million in December 2008. This time, the money raised will go to help military personnel and their families in not only the U.S. but Canada as well. “Our soldiers take care of us, and this is our chance to help take care of them,” said UFC director of Canadian operations Tom Wright ….”

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MILNEWS.ca News Highlights – 16 Jan 11

• A little more information on the claims that Canadians are in Waziristan training for attacks back here in Canada. Even more here.
• Another Layton message on Afghanistan:  it should be an election issue whenever the next election is.
• “Canada’s controversial national security-certificate system faces a new constitutional challenge from Mohamed Harkat — one month after a court declared the Ottawa man a danger to the country. Lawyers for Harkat, who is accused of links to terrorists, want the Federal Court of Appeal to determine whether the security certificate being used to deport him is consistent with the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. It is one of several questions they’re asking Judge Simon Noel, who heard the original case, to approve for examination. Harkat, a former gas attendant and pizza delivery man, was arrested more than eight years ago under a security certificate on suspicion of being an al-Qaida sleeper agent. He denies any involvement in terrorism. Harkat, 42, says he’s merely a refugee who fled strife-torn Algeria and worked with an aid agency in Pakistan before coming to Canada. He argues he will be tortured if returned to his homeland. In his December ruling, Noel called Harkat a security threat who maintained ties to Osama bin Laden’s terror network, including Ahmed Said Khadr — the late father of Toronto’s Omar Khadr, who has spent years in a U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba ….”
• “The Canadian Navy is proud to welcome Commodore David Craig as the new Commander Naval Reserve. The change of command ceremony took place on Saturday, January 15, 2011, at the Pointe-à-Carcy naval complex in Québec City with outgoing commander, Commodore Jennifer Bennett, the first female to command a Navy Formation. “It was an exciting and interesting time to have been Commander Naval Reserve,” said Commodore Bennett. “I have felt tremendously privileged and honoured to have been the formation commander and am extremely proud of all of our accomplishments, including support to the Vancouver Olympics and the tremendous number of events to commemorate the Naval Centennial.” ….”
• It’s one thing when alternative news/information sites call people who run away from the American military to Canada to avoid serving “resisters”.  Why do mainstream media outlets (like here and here) I find it interesting that many mainstream media outlets call them “resisters” as well, instead of “deserters” (or, if they haven’t been found guilty yet, “alleged deserters)? Any insights via comments below greatly appreciated.
• Another question to mainstream media:  why is the accused in this story is identified as a retired member of the military?  I note the occupations of the complainants haven’t been included – what’s good for the goose should be good for the gander if journalistic balance is to be achieved, right? Or am I being too sensitive and “reading” some sort of “hint” about the accused being a former serviceman?  Any insights via comments below greatly appreciated.
• A wounded warrior shares his thoughts on the 5th anniversary of the IED blast that changed his life forever.
• Well put:  “The real test of the proposed changes (at Veterans Affairs Canada) will be whether veterans themselves will feel they are finally getting fair treatment and adequate support for their service and sacrifice. Until that becomes clear, the storm will be far from over.”
• Taliban Propaganda Watch:  NDS agent allegedly assassinated in killings claimed in Kandahar, Uruzgan.

MILNEWS.ca News Highlights – 15 Jan 11

• Remember these guys Asian media sources say are training in Waziristan for attacks back in Canada? The Mounties say they’re looking into the report – more here and here.
• Tough love, CF style, in Afghanistan. “Months of sometimes tough and bloody fighting by Canadian, U.S. and Afghan forces over the summer and fall weren’t enough to pacify a village that remains a refuge for insurgents in southern Afghanistan.  That’s when the Canadians, with plenty of cash for “icebreaker” projects designed to get young men more interested in jobs than war, decided to just bypass Nakhonay and fund a flood of development projects for its closest neighbours.  Canada’s soldiers have taken on a newer, tough-love approach as two deadlines loom — their summer pullout from Kandahar, and, preceding that, the traditional spring start of another insurgent fighting season ….”
• We’re hearing some new messaging out of Jack Layton this week about his opposition to Canada’s coming mission in Afghanistan.  1)  Anyone Canada trains could end up on the bad guys side (more in same vein here).  2)  Why help a corrupt good guy? 3)  Even if we start training Afghan security forces, we’ll get incrementally sucked back into a combat role. Text to his Thursday speech here and his Friday speech here.
• How one recovering Canadian soldier uses music as therapy.
• “F-35 is Great – No It’s Not” Update (1): Canadian PM sells F-35 benefits at Montreal aerospace company visit – more here, here, here, here and here.
• “F-35 is Great – No It’s Not” Update (2):  Le Devior says Quebec won’t get its fair share of the contracts – original in French here, Google translation here.
• Speaking of aircraft, the PM calls a new deal with a company to maintain Canada’s Griffon helicopters “great news for Bell Helicopter Textron Canada Limited workers in Calgary, Mirabel”.
• “Previously secret documents released in the Mohamed Harkat terrorism case reveal that the judge wrestled in closed court with how to gauge the credibility of spy agency informants. Harkat, 42, has been declared a security threat and faces deportation to his native Algeria, where he says he will be tortured or killed. The Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) relied on at least two “human sources” in building its case against Harkat, a former Ottawa pizza delivery man. One of the sources failed a lie-detector test in 2002, a fact that was not disclosed in court until May 2009. Judge Simon Noel ultimately decided that the source’s information could only be relied upon if corroborated. Another CSIS source was deemed sincere and reliable after Noel reviewed his file. Noel relied on the source’s information in concluding last month that Harkat was a member of the Osama bin Laden terrorist network. He said Harkat remains a threat to national security ….” More from the Federal Court of Canada here, here and here (all PDFs).
• “The union representing thousands of national defence workers has launched an online campaign urging the government to reconsider outsourcing 91 national security jobs, a transfer current employees say would put the country’s safety at risk. As of Friday, each time anyone searches the names of certain government officials using Google — including that of Defence Minister Peter MacKay — a sponsored ad appears, pointing to Securityforsale.ca, said John MacLennan, national president of the Union of National Defence Employees. The ads and website are part of the “first phase” of a campaign aimed at grabbing the government’s attention and warning Canadians of a plan to outsource dozens of jobs at Communications Security Establishment Canada, the low-key federal agency responsible for monitoring foreign signals and military intelligence, MacLennan said ….”

MILNEWS.ca News Highlights – 10 Dec 10

• Last batch of Vandoos enroute to Afghanistan for latest ROTO – bonne chance et bonne chasse!
• Care packages:  they’re not JUST for the troops anymore.  “…. Soldiers in Afghanistan regularly receive care packages from home, but the Bomb Disposal Dogs that work alongside our troops are often forgotten. That is until now ….” CF video here, full transcript here.
• Alternative explanation:  the Taliban could just be waiting for a better chance. “NATO’s offensive through restive western Kandahar this fall seems to have caught the Taliban off guard. American and Canadian troops uncovered several large stockpiles of semi-prepared homemade bombs during their push into the area known as the horn of Panjwaii. Many of the explosives were either very old or missing their power sources. Maj. Pierre Leroux, the commander of Alpha Company from the 1st Battalion, Royal 22e Regiment, says it appears insurgents in the notorious Zangabad area simply up and left their compounds — perhaps in a hurry — when the initial U.S. assault wave hit. “This push was a surprise for them,” Leroux said in an interview Thursday with The Canadian Press. “They were probably expecting something last summer.” ….”
• He says:  NDP cranky over lack of Canadian detainee documents. “NDP Leader Jack Layton is calling on the Liberals and Bloc Québécois to pull out of a special panel with the Conservative government that examines documents related to the Afghan detainee transfers. At a news conference Thursday on the one-year anniversary of Parliament’s demand for access to the thousands of pages of uncensored documents, Layton also called on Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff and Bloc Leader Gilles Duceppe to join his party’s call for a full public inquiry ….” She says:  they’re coming, they’re coming! “Canadians will soon get their first official glimpse of sensitive Afghan detainee documents — more than a year after the House of Commons demanded disclosure of some 40,000 pages of confidential information. Bloc Quebecois Leader Gilles Duceppe said a special multi-party committee that’s been vetting the documents since July will finally start disclosing “an important number” of documents next month. Liberals were somewhat less specific, saying only that the first round of document disclosures will come “very soon.” ….”
• Is the CF at war, while Canada is at the mall?
• “A judge says there are grounds to believe Algerian-born Mohamed Harkat is a security threat who maintained ties to Osama bin Laden’s terror network after coming to Canada. The Federal Court decision Thursday could pave the way for Harkat’s deportation to his native country.  In a separate ruling, Judge Simon Noel upheld the constitutionality of the national security certificate system the government is using to remove Harkat, which denies the person named full access to the evidence.  Harkat, a 42-year-old former gas bar attendant and pizza delivery man, was arrested eight years ago on suspicion of being an al-Qaida sleeper agent. He is free on bail under strict conditions, and must wear an ankle bracelet that allows authorities to track him.” More in the Federal Court of Canada decision summary here (PDF), as well as in individual judgement documents here, here and here (all PDF).
• The Canadian Army’s training system has a new boss as of today.  “Major-General David Fraser will assume command on December 10 of Land Force Doctrine and Training System (LFDTS) from Major-General Guy Laroche in an official ceremony at the Normandy Hall, CFB Kingston ….”
• An interesting contrast of headlines to behold among different media regarding word that Canada and the U.S. are discussing some common “perimeter security” measures. Postmedia News/Global TV:  “Canada, U.S. on verge of North American trade, security ’perimeter.’ “ Globe & Mail:  “Canada negotiating perimeter security deal with U.S.” Toronto Star:  “Border security talks with U.S. fan sovereignty concerns” CBC.ca:  “Reported security deal draws House sparks”
• Taliban Propaganda Watch: Bad guys claim responsibility for killing Karzai’s brother’s bodyguard in Kandahar.