Canadian special forces, warplanes strike IS as minister seeks mission reset

I want to make sure that we continue on with the training mission, says Canadian Defense Minister Harjit Sajjan

OTTAWA, CANADA: One day after Canadian warplanes and Special Forces soldiers helped counter an Islamic State group attack in Iraq, Canada reaffirmed Friday that its fighter jets are coming home.

Defense Minister Harjit Sajjan, speaking in London after meeting with his British counterpart, however, declined to provide a timeline for their withdrawal.

"We're still committed to ending the airstrikes and readjusting our mission so that we can have a meaningful contribution," Sajjan said.

In the meantime, he said in a press conference televised in Canada: "The mission hasn't changed. We're still in a train and assist role."



"I want to make sure that we continue on with the training mission."

Canada last year deployed CF-18 fighter jets to the region until March 2016, but new Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has ordered a withdrawal.

On Thursday, Major General Charles Lamarre told reporters in Ottawa that as many as 69 Canadian Special Forces had taken part in a 17-hour counteroffensive east of Mosul the day before. It came after IS fighters launched a surprise attack using artillery, mortars and car bombs.



The Canadians, who are there to help train Kurdish fighters, and the Kurdish fighters returned fire from the ground while two CF-18 fighter jets, along with US, British and French warplanes, launched airstrikes.

The operation demonstrated "the wonderful work that our special forces have done on the ground with the peshmerga," Sajjan commented, using the term for the Iraqi Kurdish soldiers.



He said the Kurds, with the Canadians' assistance, were able "to hold the line and quickly retake the ground that was lost."

"This shows that the assist and advice mission is working, where the Kurdish security forces were able to launch a successful counterattack."