Tribute- Canada's Blue Berets- Stompin Tom Connors - Blue Berets (1994)
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One Martyr Down: The Untold Story Of A Canadian Peacekeeper Killed At War
January 2, 2013 by Adam Day
Canadian Army Major Paeta Hess-von KruedenerUN1
Wolf and his team were right in the heart of it,
standing on their platform at Patrol Base Khiam, charting each truce violation
and each breach of the Geneva Convention as it happened.
In an email Wolf sent to his wife Cynthia, he laid
out the situation.
“It looks like it will be another beautiful day here
in paradise, forecast is for 32ºC with a dash of explosive artillery and a hint
of aerial bombing. A winning combination for any tropical destination. If I
could only market this shit, people would be lining up at the airport…wait they
are lining up at the airport (but to get the fuck out). There has been a lot of
civilian casualties and deaths here,” he wrote. “It appears, from my military
experience anyway, that with all the preparatory artillery shelling, the [Israelis]
are setting the conditions for an invasion of Lebanon. No doubt given the
situation here, and what has been coming out of Jerusalem, they are intent this
time on crushing the Hezbollah.”
In the meantime, the constant near-misses weren’t the
only problem facing Wolf and his team. There was no one in charge at Observer
Group Lebanon headquarters. The three key positions there were vacant—the chief
was stuck by the “code red” at another patrol base and the deputy chief and the
operations officer were both on leave.
Patrol Base Khiam was running out of food and water.
Wolf worried that if the Israelis invaded they would be really stuck and so now
was the time to get some food. While this meant breaking the “code red” order
not to move, the team took a vote and while not unanimous Wolf got his way and
he headed into town with Du and Jarno. The three peacekeepers made it to the
village store with no problem. They knew the shopkeeper well, having been there
many times. Moments after they left with their supplies, the shop was struck by
Israeli artillery, killing everyone inside.
“It is disgusting what [the Israelis] are doing
here,” Wolf wrote in an email to Cynthia. “Yesterday I witnessed an [Israeli]
attack helicopter fire missiles at a local school and destroy a brand new
hospital. These [guys] are trying to cripple and destroy the infrastructure of
Lebanon. What this has to do with the Hezbollah terrorists I have no idea and
cannot make the connection. I agree that the [Israelis] have the right to
protect themselves, but they are indiscriminately bombing and targeting the
civilian population and infrastructure, which is a fucking WAR CRIME under the
Geneva Conventions.”
Patrol
Base Khiam after the bombing.
ILLUSTRATION:
ALEX WILLIAMSON
Meanwhile, there were growing concerns at the base
about what they were still doing in Khiam. “As the war continued and the near
misses to all of the UN bases along the border increased, I wondered why we had
been left at our posts.We were unarmed peacekeepers whose mandated mission was
to observe and monitor a peace agreement. There was now clearly no peace to
keep,” Australian Major Matina Jewell would later write.
As it would turn out, Jewell was evacuated on July 17
alongside the Irishman Dillon, replaced by the team leader, Austrian Major
Hans-Peter Lang.
KINGSTON, ONT.
SEPT. 28, 2012, 20:45 LOCAL
SEPT. 28, 2012, 20:45 LOCAL
Kingston’s western suburbs seem about as far as it is
possible to get from the ancient blood feuds and feral violence of the modern
Middle East. In that fractured place the past infects every new moment and
history is a weapon that compels nightly battles and makes the future feel
unimportant. Here the nights are calm and the wide untroubled roads and soft
lamp-lit grass are all about the future, about gymnastics practice and soccer
tryouts and the endless potential of things young and strong.
I’m driving along Front Road with Lake Ontario in the
darkness to my left and a subdued Cynthia Hess-von Kruedener talking quietly in
the seat to my right. If I had to guess, I would say Cynthia is in her
mid-forties now. She is a charmer; blond, blue-eyed, healthy and strong. Only
her voice gives away what her past few years must have been like. Cynthia often
sounds very far away even when she’s right beside you and her tone has that
special kind of immunity granted only to those who’ve endured crushing pain—the
fireless calm of someone who’s lost more than they had.
Paeta is officially a martyr, the Lebanese have said
so and produced a certificate to authenticate it and this is what we’re talking
about now. Specifically, we’re discussing the controversial details of Islamic
martyrdom, as we understand it, that Paeta in the afterlife will be surrounded
by 72 virgins. But we’re both unsure how it would technically work, seeing as
Paeta wasn’t a Muslim and so maybe he wouldn’t get all the rewards, exactly. “I
kind of hope there’s a mistake somewhere and he gets Virginians instead of
virgins,” she laughs softly, looking out her side window at the passing houses.
Earlier in the evening we’d sat in a fancy Italian
restaurant in downtown Kingston and ate Caesar salads and talked about war and
nicknames4 and the legal definition of murder.
4 Paeta had several nicknames, Cynthia tells me. His
daughter Kirsten referred to him as a tiger, for example. But her best guess
about where “Wolf” orginally came from is that he used to toss meat up and then
catch it in his teeth. But she thinks it stuck because he really was like a
wolf. If you ask Paeta’s friend Major Lindsay Reinelt where the nickname Wolf
came from, he just gives a sly laugh and says, clearly amused, “He probably
gave it to himself.”
Cynthia was with Paeta for 15 years, married for nine
and when she talks about what she experienced in the first years after his
death it’s like she’s talking about someone else.
Paeta was buried in August 2006 and Cynthia went back
to work at the bank in September. She would cry all the way to work and all the
way home. Eventually, she would give up working for a time to focus on getting
things together, but in that first year there were some serious struggles.
Cynthia’s son Jonah and Paeta’s daughter Kirsten—both from previous
relationships—were teenagers who still needed a mother.
“My kids, they didn’t want to be in the house,” she
says. “I didn’t want to be near them. I couldn’t put up a Christmas tree,
didn’t bother celebrating Christmas. That first year I remember some things,
but I don’t remember a lot. I had no strength really to even get up and do
things. I couldn’t even put my attention toward my son…I don’t know how
families do it because you’re just trying to survive and you can’t even help
your family members.”
Wherever she went she found memories of Paeta,
whatever she watched reminded her of him. “It was freaking hell,” she says. “It
still is.”
After dinner I drive Cynthia home because she wants
me to come in and see the room upstairs that she calls the shrine. I guess you
could say it’s where Paeta lives now.
And that’s where I got to see, sure enough, the
certificate in Arabic with Islamic green flourishes, indicating that Paeta is
officially a martyr.
All of Paeta’s awards are arrayed on the walls and
shelves, pictures are everywhere and every news story is catalogued. Cynthia
shows me every item and she takes many of them down to see them up close. She
holds onto one award for a bit longer: it’s the plaque the Ontario government
gave her to recognize Paeta’s death.
Cynthia
with Wolf’s recognition from the Ontario government.
PHOTO:
ADAM DAY
BEIRUT, LEBANON.
OCT. 19, 2012, 15:45 LOCAL
OCT. 19, 2012, 15:45 LOCAL
I’ve come to Lebanon to visit Patrol Base Khiam and
retrace Wolf’s footsteps, and much like him I’ve wandered into some sort of
war.
The urban heart of Beirut is deceptive. There are
Starbucks and gourmet burger joints and even a place called Lord of Wings that
serves “Quebecoise Poutine,” but there are also car bombs and assassinations
and general mayhem. I was walking down Hamra Street looking for some batteries
and admiring all the fashionable people when a blast shook the city.
It was a car bomb, assassinating Brigadier-General
Wissam al-Hassan, one of the country’s most powerful men, an intelligence chief
with a long record of opposing Hezbollah.
I came in off the street and went up to the Crowne
Plaza’s 19th floor executive lounge to watch the drama unfold.
“Yes,” said Gattas, the lounge’s thoughtful attendant
as we both looked out the window at the black cloud lingering a few thousand
metres away. “It’s bad but it’s not a problem for us. That’s over there, in
Ashrafiya, we are fine here in Hamra. They would not do that here. It’s fine
here.”
I looked at him sideways. It was maybe a couple of
kilometres max and hard to understand his confidence. But anyway, first things
first: “They? Who did it?” I ask.
“I don’t know,” he shrugs like it doesn’t matter.
While the approach to violence in this part of the
world is unusual—kind of like the way a Canadian will talk about bad weather:
something to keep your eye on but nothing to get excited about—it really did
matter who killed al-Hassan. It mattered to the thousands of sectarian hooligans
now tooling up to head onto the streets to participate in the ritualistic
post-assassination insurrection. With neighbouring Syria all mired in its own
civil war, and Hezbollah being tightly allied to Syria’s slick-suited tyrant
Bashar al-Assad, the good betting money for who killed al-Hassan was on
Hezbollah. And since Hezbollah also comprises a significant portion of
Lebanon’s government, the whole place was instantly threatening to go berserk.
But I wasn’t here for this war, I was here for the last
war, and I still had to get myself a couple of hours drive south through the
roadblocks and black-masked rebels to Khiam and the Israeli border.
The Litani River is the demarcation line between
“normal” Southern Lebanon and the border area, a place Canada’s Department of
Foreign Affairs will advise you is just as dangerous as IED-laced Kandahar
Province or pirate-infested Somalia. Oddly enough, it’s the most peaceful area
of Lebanon I saw during my visit. But, as my guide told me, it can go from
bird-chirping pastoral calm to run-for-your-life total war in about 25 minutes,
as it did back in 2006, for example.
For visitors, getting past the checkpoints at the
Litani can be difficult. In my case it wasn’t until after we got through the
checkpoint that my driver told me the guards kept asking what I was doing here
and what my job was. The answer he gave was that I was a friend of a Canadian
guy who died and I sold cars for a living. I just looked out the window. If one
of the guards questioned me for even 30 seconds we both would have been in a
terrible situation because while my driver’s cover story may have been
necessary, I didn’t know a thing about it. “OK, we’re lucky that worked,” I
told him, “but we should try not to tell any more lies.” He nodded slowly and
looked at me like I was a toddler.
Once you pass the Litani you are in another kind of
world. The roads are narrow and broken and they wind circuitously through the
barren hills. Beside the road there are occasional advertisements, some of
which are not normal or good. They all share the same format—modern steel
pedestals holding up large billboards—and while some of them advertise banks
with low 2.5 per cent interest rates or high-end Italian kitchen appliances, a
great many present the dour faces of young Lebanese men who died along the road
in suicide operations against the Israeli army and who are now enjoying the
hypothetical rewards of martydom. The billboards almost always list the number
of Israelis who died and end with some religious exhortations to thrill the
ardent.
As I found out, wise people do not rashly bring out
their cameras in this area of Lebanon. “No!” my driver shouted when I grabbed
my camera from the bag and took a picture of a particularly ghoulish martydom
advertisement.5
5
Martydom Advertisement.
PHOTO:
ADAM DAY
“No! No pictures!” he said and tried to push my
camera down. “But there’s no other cars,” I said, “No one around.” He nodded
his head at the hills and pursed his lips at me like I was being dumb again.
Apparently, the Party of God was watching6.
6 Hezbollah means ‘Party of God’ in Arabic.
While clearly good at tactical concealment, there’s
no doubt what Hezbollah are all about. The facts are clear: the Canadian and
U.S. governments both consider them to be a terrorist organization—think
al-Qaida without the “attack America” quotient—and they certainly have the
credentials for it. Consider the sheer fanaticism of their founding manifesto:
“We see in Israel the vanguard of the United States in our Islamic
world…Therefore our struggle will end only when this entity is obliterated. We
recognize no treaty with it, no ceasefire, and no peace agreements, whether
separate or consolidated.”
So, not much point negotiating with them then, it
seems.
As for exactly how capable they are, well, prepare
for a shock: they have more weapons and missiles than most small countries.
They have about 50,000 missiles of every kind: anti-tank, long-range,
surface-to-air, short-range and anti-ship. Somewhat incredibly, they also have
drones—one of which the Israelis shot down this summer.
So while Hezbollah may sometimes pretend to be
defenders of the Lebanese state, it’s clear they’d be more interested in war
with Israel than peace. Which, of course, makes it kind of strange that the UN
is trying to supervise an evidently impossible truce between them and Israel.
In any event, I was now in southern Lebanon—Hezbollah-controlled
territory—and about to eat lunch at Wolf’s favourite restaurant.
PATROL BASE KHIAM / KINGSTON, ONT.
JULY 25, 2006
JULY 25, 2006
Since the early 1970s Patrol Base Khiam had sat out
in the open at the southern edge of El Khiam, overlooking Israel. It was a
square squat concrete compound, painted stark white, emblazoned with “UN” in
huge black block letters. And if it looked like a bunker, that’s because it was
a bunker.
Wolf had great confidence that it was a good bunker,
one that could by design repel nearly anything. It was situated well
underground and had four small rooms, including the operations room stocked
with communications gear. Because of the bunker’s safety, Wolf and his fellow
observers had managed to endure the war with considerable spirit. Until today.
The first barrage of artillery shells and guided
bombs started at 12:11 and right away they all knew something wasn’t right. In
the past, incidents of firing close had always been bombs or shells or missiles
intended for nearby Hezbollah positions that missed their target. But now,
there were no Hezbollah targets within hundreds of metres.
The four peacekeepers sheltered in the underground
bunker began furiously radioing for help.
In the early afternoon—from 14:18 to 14:49—there was
a second barrage. This triggered a wave of protests that rippled all the way up
the UN chain of command to UN deputy secretary general Mark Malloch Brown, who
called the Israeli ambassador to the UN, Dan Gillerman, several times to lodge
official protests.
It didn’t help.
Wolf wasn’t a superstitious man, but he had dreamed
this was going to happen. The morning before, Team Sierra interpreter Elias had
gone to wake Wolf up for his shift.7
7 The name Elias is a pseudonym.
Elias shook him a couple of times and he didn’t
respond. Finally Wolf woke up but gave Elias a strange look.
“Sorry man, if I disturbed you,” Elias said, “but
it’s 05:30 you have to make breakfast.”
Elias walked back into the operations room and sat
down at the computer. Wolf came in still in his underwear. He sat down in front
of Elias, very quiet. “What’s wrong with you?” Elias asked.
“You woke me up from a fucking nightmare, Elias,”
Wolf said. “I was getting burned inside the base. I was about to die. I could
feel the fire eating my body.”
Back in Kingston, it was Cynthia’s day off and she
was waiting for Wolf to call as he normally did. In preparation, she’d gone out
to buy new batteries for her cordless phone because she was afraid she’d miss
his call.
At 18:29 the third wave of the attack hit the patrol
base. Twelve 155-mm artillery rounds landed within metres of the base and four
landed directly inside the compound, destroying most of the buildings above
ground and blowing the door off the underground bunker. At this point General
Alain Pellegrini, the man in charge of UN operations in Lebanon, called the
Israeli liaison officer and shouted at him, no holds barred, “You are killing
my people.”8
8 Board of Inquiry (pg. 21)- Death of Major Hess-von
Kruedener (Nov. 1, 2006).
With the bunker now compromised, the four
peacekeepers urgently requested evacuation. And while their wish was granted,
it wasn’t scheduled until 07:00 the next morning.
At about 12:10 Kingston time—19:10 in
Lebanon—Cynthia’s phone rang. It was Wolf. “Paeta I can’t hear you, there’s
static, but I love you, if you can hear me I love you. Are you all right? I’m
going to have to hang up because I want you to call me back because all I can
hear is static, but I don’t want to hang up. I love you. I’ve got to hang up.”
A few minutes later, at just before 19:30, an Israeli
F-16 pilot managed to do what so many other pilots and gunners failed to do
that day—he dropped his 1,000-pound GPS-guided JDAM inside the compound, inside
the blown-off door of the stout little underground bunker. It exploded in the
front room beside Jarno. All they ever found of Jarno was a piece of his hip.
Wolf was discovered in one of the back rooms
alongside the bodies of Gwynn and Ghajar, the base’s adopted dogs. They hated
the sound of the bombs and frequently got scared and Wolf would often sit with
them, trying to calm them down. He died there.9
9 And so did these men: Major Hans-Peter Lang, 44,
from Styria, Austria, survived by an 11-year-old son and his 70-year old
mother; Lieutenant Senior Grade Jarno Mäkinen, 29, from Kaarina, Finland,
survived by his mother, father and partner; Major (posthumously promoted
Lieutenant Colonel) Du Zhaoyu, 34, from Jinan, People’s Republic of China,
survived by his wife and one-year-old son.
In Kingston, Cynthia was walking around with the
phone in her hand waiting for Wolf to call back. She turned on the TV just
before dinner and the first thing she saw was a picture of Wolf on the news
with the caption: “Missing, presumed dead.”
The
memorial in El Khiam.
ILLUSTRATION:
ALEX WILLIAMSON
The Aftermath
Having clear and direct information about what had
happened the day before, UN Secretary General Kofi Annan did not shy away from
the truth in his first official statement on the killing.
“I am shocked and deeply distressed by the apparently
deliberate targeting by Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) of a United Nations
observer post in southern Lebanon,” said Annan. “This co-ordinated artillery
and aerial attack on a long established and clearly marked United Nations post
at Khiam occurred despite personal assurances given to me by Prime Minister
Ehud Olmert that United Nations positions would be spared Israeli fire.”
There seemed more worldwide debate about whether
Annan’s remarks were appropriate than about the four dead peacekeepers.10
10 Though of course there was quite a bit of concern
about that as well. The Finnish said the attack had “no justification,” the
Chinese “strongly condemn[ed]” it and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper
wondered why Patrol Base Khiam had “remained manned during what is now, more or
less, a war.”
Many commentators simply blasted Annan without ever
seeing the facts. Many believed the Israelis were actually trying to hit
Hezbollah targets, but that wasn’t the case—there were no Hezbollah targets
left there. In the face of this criticism, Annan backed down.
Much later it would turn out that Annan wasn’t wrong
at all. Patrol Base Khiam was deliberately targeted. By their own admission,
the Israelis were trying to blow it off the map. Why? Because it was on their
targeting list.
The question of how and why it was on their targeting
list has never been legally resolved. The Israelis claim it was a data-entry
error—put on their target list by mistake. But they have prevented any
organization or government from verifying that claim; including both the UN and
the Canadian government.
The Board of Inquiry
On Nov. 1, 2006, Canada and the Department of
National Defence finished their own investigation into Wolf’s death. Called a
“Board of Inquiry” and headed by two military officers, the investigation was
meant to provide an official explanation of the incident at Patrol Base Khiam.
After the board’s report was published it was
subsequently removed from government websites for “security reasons.” If you
want to read it now, you will be advised that you have to file an access to
information request. I filed one, and was promptly sent a letter saying it
couldn’t be released within the legally-allotted time.
I also filed a request for the UN report into Wolf’s
death, which is in the annex of the government’s Board of Inquiry. I received
another letter regarding that request: “Unfortunately, following a thorough and
complete search for all records in response to your request, it is determined
that no records could be located within the Department of National Defence.”
But it must be there—the UN report is in the annex of
our official inquiry. Has this report vanished?
I don’t know. What I do know is that I was able to
find a copy of the Nov. 1, 2006, Board of Inquiry report, in order to write
this story. On Dec. 3, 72 hours after the magazine went to the printer, we received
an official copy from DND. Here it is: www.legionmagazine.com/inquiry.pdf
In the report’s 67 pages there are no less than 62
discrete and pointed disclaimers about lack of access to evidence.11
11 For example: “The Board made efforts to obtain
access to UN personnel…and documentation. [The UN] ultimately denied the
request….this has limited the Board’s ability to make certain findings either
partially or in their entirety.” (pg. 9) or “…the Board requested access to
several individuals within the Israeli Defence Forces. The IDF did not grant
access to these individuals…(pg. 9-10) or “It is important to note that the
Board was hampered in its ability to assemble evidence for the facts related to
this finding…[the details of the UN command, control and communications of the
deceased’s mission].” (pg. 30)
The UN refused to answer questions or allow access to
any of its employees. The Israelis refused access to individuals who were
actors in the incident. The UN did agree to provide a copy of its own inquiry,
whereas the Israelis delivered a “non-paper” summarizing its internal
investigation.
Nonetheless, the Board of Inquiry states that Wolf’s
death was preventable and blamed the Israeli Defence Forces “As an
organization, the IDF is responsible for the death of Major Hess-von
Kruedener.”12
12 “The Board was unable to determine if a specific
individual within the IDF was to blame…as a result of the IDF decision to
restrict the Board’s access to the relevant IDF personnel.” (pg. 20-21)
It went on to note that the “IDF has attributed the
targeting of, and subsequent attack on PB Khiam to an operational error,”
however, “The board was not in a position to verify the claim.”
The board concludes that while their ability to
gather evidence was limited, they don’t think the lack of evidence affected
their findings.
The president of the inquiry was Colonel Alain Boyer
and the second officer was Major Jason Steeves. Requests for verbal interviews
with them were not granted, though I did receive an e-mailed reply—via a
communications adviser—from Steeves, who noted: “Internal to the Department of
National Defence and the Canadian Forces, accessing information was not
an issue. External to the Department of National Defence and the Canadian
Forces, getting access to information was certainly more challenging. At times,
information was less than forthcoming and sometimes not available at all.”13
13 The e-mail reply also said: “Given the sensitivities
associated with the nature of the incident and associated information, it is
quite understandable that the UN and the IDF were cautious about disclosing
information from their investigations. However, I can say with confidence that
with the information available, the Board was able to accomplish its tasks.”
The board report does seize upon the one huge
question that remains—the attack on Patrol Base Khiam lasted nearly seven hours
and during that time the Israelis received a blizzard of calls and protests all
up and down the liaison network, from Wolf himself using the bunker’s radio
handset to UN Assistant Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Jane Lute working
the phones.
“While the IDF has acknowledged the receipt of the
protests from the UN, it has failed to explain why the attack was not halted,”
the board writes. “Considering that on previous occasions the IDF had halted
fires when protests were received, no indication has been offered as to why
protests of this nature and severity did not result in the halting of fires.
The ability of the IDF to halt fires on previous occasions, combined with the
functioning on the UN side of the liaison network, and the ability of the IDF
side of the liaison network to contact the implicated headquarters indicates
there was sufficient time for appropriate information to have been transmitted
to the appropriate IDF decision maker in order to halt fires on PB Khiam.”
In other words, the above paragraph says: the
Israelis were told they were killing UN people; the Israelis admit they heard
this warning and had proven in the past they could stop attacks if they wanted;
we don’t know why they didn’t stop this attack.14
14 From the Board of Inquiry: “Unfortunately, due to
the lack of access to IDF personnel and the limited information contained
within the IDF Non-Paper, the Board was unable to ascertain why the IDF side of
the liaison network could not deliver the necessary action in this particular
case.” (pg. 52)
Meanwhile, at higher levels of government there was
diplomacy. On Sept. 19, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert wrote to Prime
Minister Stephen Harper, expressing his “deep regret over the death” of our
soldier and Harper wrote back on Nov. 20, 2006, thanking Olmert for his
“expression of condolences, for the Israeli government’s rapid investigation of
the incident and for information provided to Canadian officials.”
This was all very gracious, but a bit absurd,
considering the Israelis attacked a clearly marked UN base—killed a Canadian
soldier—and then refused to even answer any questions about it.
BEIRUT, LEBANON.
OCT. 22, 2012
OCT. 22, 2012
It’s after midnight in Beirut and my hotel room phone
is ringing. It’s Elias, Wolf’s old interpreter. I’m supposed to be going back
down south in a day or two to see more of the place and meet with a Canadian peacekeeper,
but Elias lives down south and he’s called to tell me it might not be safe, the
violence engulfing the country has spread and Elias says there are beatings and
kidnappings, people getting dragged from their cars, nothing good.
We resolve to wait a day and see what happens. The
next morning it seems calm but while I’m having coffee the news flashes that
another person has been killed in a firefight in Beirut, bringing the total so
far to 11 in three days. It’s hard to tell if it’s getting better or worse. The
local newspaper headline reads: Army, gunmen clash in Beirut as fears of
civil war rise.
Worse, I guess.
I decide to go south anyway. On the way, my local
driver tells me how Lebanon is like a volcano, from a distance it’s nice to
look at, but you have to be stupid to want to live on it because
eventually…boom. He makes the sound of a long, low bad explosion. We both laugh
awkwardly and look out the window at the young rebels in masks waving black
al-Qaida flags.
I needed to go south to talk to Elias. He was the
last person who saw Wolf alive and he knows the story better than almost
anyone. The Canadian Board of Inquiry never spoke to him and never visited the
site of the incident, and I wanted to do both.
Elias still works in the area. He’s strong looking,
has lots of energy and his English is perfect. He drives me in his Jeep
Cherokee up through the little village of El Khiam and out to the edge of town,
where the base used to be.
We get out and walk around the memorial, just a
couple of shell-blasted concrete barriers sitting on a barren ridgeline. Elias
walks me down a bit further to the exact location of the base, where he himself
spent nearly two weeks trapped with Wolf during the war. He tells me about
Wolf’s nightmare and then about what happened later that day, on the night of
the 24th. “At the end of the day, Wolf stepped in toward me and said, ‘You go.
Don’t stay here. I don’t want you to stay here.’
“I felt like he gave me a chance. A chance to go. So
I went. And so.”
And so he lived.
Now, Elias and I stand on the site of the base,
looking around.
I can see two Israeli military positions very
clearly—one high atop Mount Dov a few hundred metres east and one above the
Israeli town of Matullah a few hundred metres south—and I realize then that the
Israeli explanation—that it was a data-entry error—simply isn’t sufficient to
explain what happened. It is hard to imagine that these Israeli military
positions within line of sight on a clear day were not fully aware that a UN
position was being targeted. It is one thing to believe that the Israelis
mishandled the 10 or more official protests that day, or that the dozen or so
fighter pilots who dropped bombs didn’t grasp they were attacking a UN
position, but it is nearly impossible to believe that the static observation
positions were unaware of the nature of the target.
Perhaps the Israeli command and control was so bad
that no matter who reported a UN base was being hit, there was no way to get it
off the targeting list. Or perhaps the Israelis decided that attacking the base
was somehow necessary.
Several people I asked believe this is what happened,
that it was not a mistake exactly, but a consequence of war. As to why, I
couldn’t find the answer.15
15 There is no proven, or definitive answer. Hezbollah
thinks the Israelis bombed the base to force an international push for an end
to the war, which truly was going badly for the Israelis. Others theorized it
was because the observers at PB Khiam had witnessed too much, reported too
much. One soldier told me: “list a bunch of strategic, operational and tactical
reasons and it’s probably all three.” The actual answer remains unknown today.
A Dream From Another Time
The UN began as one of the most noble and necessary
ideas in human history—an organization of nations where leaders could gather to
forge peace, defend human rights and “end the scourge of war.” It was a dream
from the days just after the Second World War, an organization devoted to
diplomacy and non-violence that would in time create peace on Earth.
Unfortunately, so far, the Earth has strongly
resisted peace.
And the UN has many limitations, particularly where
peacekeeping is concerned. Far too frequently, contingents of poorly-trained
and under-resourced soldiers are sent to intervene in complex conflicts with
mandates that are unrealistic or even absurd. The painful part is this: those
limitations are not merely conceptual—people die because of them. And not just
in Lebanon, but in Srebrenica, Rwanda and Darfur, to name a few notable places
where local civilian populations paid a heavy price when they discovered that
UN forces were not able to protect them.
Diplomat Louise Fréchette has probably had more
experience at the UN than any other Canadian. She was Canada’s ambassador to
the UN and spent eight years as UN deputy secretary-general.
For UN missions there should be a different
definition of success, she argues. “If you define the success of peacekeeping
mission as peace in the Middle East then there should be no peacekeeping. But success
of missions in the Middle East is not whether there is peace in the Middle
East. It doesn’t depend on that. How you have to assess effectiveness is
whether or not the presence of peacekeepers keeps the situation from
deteriorating further or breaking down. That is the only reasonable measure of
so-called success.”
Not everyone would agree with her position. Some
critics would say that in matters of life and death, where trillions of dollars
and international stability are at stake, you might be obligated to aim for
something bolder than merely preventing further deterioration. Canada’s
Minister of Foreign Affairs John Baird, for example, is one of those critics.
“You measure results by measuring the results. Not by weighing best efforts.
Not by counting good intentions. Not by calculating inputs,” Baird told the UN
itself during his speech there on Oct. 1, 2012.
Meanwhile, any talk of results would be rebuked by
Fréchette. “A peacekeeping mission cannot force agreement between people who
disagree,” she said. “A peacekeeping mission is a tool to appease tension, it’s
not a substitute for agreement among the parties. And in the Middle East the
parties don’t agree. They haven’t agreed for 60 years and despite every effort,
God knows how many peace negotiations there have been, there is no agreement.”
And so the problem is this: if a peacekeeping mission
has no chance of creating peace because it has no ability to create agreement
between warring parties, then it’s clear the system needs to change. There is
no point pretending to solve problems if you haven’t mustered the resources to
actually solve them. “This organization is not a goal; it is merely the means
to accomplish goals,” said Baird, who also did not agree to be interviewed for
this article.
PATROL BASE EAST, SOUTHERN LEBANON.
OCT. 23, 2012
OCT. 23, 2012
If it all kicks off again in Lebanon, Major Richard
Little, 42, is the Canadian who’s going to witness it. He’s a military observer
living just down the road from where PB Khiam once was, and he’s here, much like
Wolf, for a one-year tour of duty.
Since PB Khiam was never rebuilt, Team Sierra now
lives in a large sprawling base deep inside a canyon. Little is a thoroughly
Canadian artillery officer, self-deprecating and affable.
Because UN insurance regulations forbade me from
going on patrol with Little, I instead watched him prepare meatloaf for his
team dinner inside the little kitchen trailer. At this point in the tour,
“every day here is a Monday,” and “it is what it is,” are currently vying for
supremacy as Little’s favourite sayings.
Little’s daily routine is to go out in his white
truck and drive up and down the border, watching for violations of the truce.
Should he see one, he logs it and reports it. It can be anything from a
goat-herder wandering too close to the border to, well, an act of war.
Major
Richard Little patrols Southern Lebanon.
PHOTO:
ADAM DAY
In the time since Wolf was killed, it seems the
organization has learned quite a bit. The war in 2006 made it obvious that the
UN lacks effective protocols for extreme situations. It is a bureaucracy and if
it stumbles into something for which it has no plan, no process, then it is
instantly and sometimes fatally paralyzed. Now though, things are different:
“Once the shooting starts, our job is done,” said Little.
They also learned from 2006 that it’s not a good idea
to transmit exact locations of strikes in relation to their UN position.
For Little, who is after all risking his life by
being here, there is some merit to the role the UN is playing in Southern
Lebanon. “It’s unfortunate people here don’t think of [whether] the Israelis
will attack, it’s when the Israelis will attack,” he said. “So people do get
worried, and the calming presence of seeing a white vehicle with a blue beret
sticking out of it is sometimes enough for them to think, ‘OK, we’re not
alone.’16
16 In the end though, having visited the mission, it’s
hard to see how the UN can consider itself a force for stability in Lebanon
when it stands by as Hezbollah amasses an unbelievable stockpile of weapons and
turns southern Lebanon into a fortress. It’s no wonder the Israelis have such
disdain for the UN as, from their perspective at least, all the UN is really
doing is acting as international human shields while the world’s most heavily
equipped terrorist organization plots and prepares for the obliteration of the
Israeli state. “Hezbollah needs us,” Little told me. “If we weren’t here I
don’t think Hezbollah would be either.”
A Handful of Dust
I’m no expert on loss and grieving, but I have
observed that some people speak of the dead as if they’re not really dead, as
if they’re waiting at a pub around the corner or on vacation in Cuba or
something. Elias speaks of Wolf that way, especially when he tells stories of
Wolf’s shenanigans, like the time he had a near-fatal
testosterone-fuelled-showdown with a Hezbollah fighter.
Elias and Wolf were on patrol near the border before
the war when Wolf decided to ask a Hezbollah fighter a few questions. It
quickly turned into a faceoff between unarmed Wolf and a young fighter
clutching his AK-47.
“He looked at me, the Hezbollah guy,” says Elias,
“and he said ‘listen, if you don’t get him out of my face it’s not going to
take me anything to just press the trigger and he’s gone. I don’t give a damn,
nobody’s going to ask me why I killed him.’ I spoke to Wolf, I said ‘listen,
you’re not Lebanese, you’re not Israeli, you’re Canadian. You’ve got nothing to
do with this conflict. You’re gonna lose, your wife is gonna lose, your kids
are gonna lose, your country is gonna lose.”
Wolf decided Elias was right and they walked away
together. Moments later, an Israeli soldier on the other side of the border
aimed his laser-equipped rifle at Wolf’s chest, the little red dot dancing over
his heart. “[Wolf] looked at me and he said ‘Fuck! What the fuck is this guy
doing?’”
“And I was like see? Both sides now, they don’t care
about you. You are the sandbag. You’re the sandbag in front of them, for
Hezbollah and for the Israelis and if they don’t want to take the attack,
they’ll put you in front, they’ll let you pay the price, they don’t give a damn
about you.”
“And he paid the price. He paid the price,” Elias
said.17
17 One of Wolf’s best friends was a guy named Major
Lindsay Reinelt, they roomed together in the Congo and worked together in
Kingston. I had a question I wanted answered and I thought he might be the only
person who could do it. What would Wolf have thought of his own death?
“He would have been marching to the sound of the guns, without a doubt,” said Reinelt. “He was totally dedicated to his profession, to his country, to whatever task he was given. So he would have been headed for the patrol base and he would actually probably have laughed at the announcement of his own death. And not a laugh of humour, but just almost joy, you know, because it was who he was.”
“He would have been marching to the sound of the guns, without a doubt,” said Reinelt. “He was totally dedicated to his profession, to his country, to whatever task he was given. So he would have been headed for the patrol base and he would actually probably have laughed at the announcement of his own death. And not a laugh of humour, but just almost joy, you know, because it was who he was.”
Sometimes Elias tells a story that reveals a bit
about what he’s been through. A few years ago there was a memorial service on
the old site of Patrol Base Khiam and some of the relatives came, including
Jarno Mäkinen’s mother, Terttu.
She was this dignified Finnish lady, Elias says,
short, brown-haired and well-dressed, very proper.
When Elias showed her the exact spot where they died,
Jarno’s mom collapsed on her knees and started digging at the ground with her
hands. “My son walked here,” she was crying. “My son died here. My son.”
And she kept digging at the ground. “This was her
boy, her only boy,” says Elias.
“The mayor was crying, the others were crying. And
they didn’t even know Jarno.”
I think Elias was crying now, but he didn’t want me
to see. “The mayor,” Elias says, “He’s pro-Hezbollah, he says they’re martyrs
of Khiam; that their blood was shared with the people of Khiam.”
Elias looks around.
“These guys were murdered,” he says. “They mean a lot
to me. They were the bravest I’ve ever seen. They stayed together and faced a
lot of difficulties but at the end these guys are gone because someone decided
they shouldn’t be there.”
He lost his life in the service of peace—that’s the
official line.
But it tells you nothing you need to know. There was
no peace and he didn’t lose his life—the language is wrong. He was killed.
That’s what happened. He was killed in action and some questions remain.
Paeta
and Cynthia on the beach in Tyre, Lebanon.
PHOTO:
COURTESY CYNTHIA HESS-VON KRUEDENER
Cynthia’s War
Cynthia spent a long time after Paeta’s death trying
to get answers about what happened to her husband.
What torments her is that she couldn’t find those
answers—nothing was fully explained, no one was ever held accountable.
“My focus is solely on that one thing,” she says. “If
you’re going to kill UN personnel who have no gun, who have nothing, then the
UN needs to step in, they need to be protected. But the UN clearly has no power
to do anything about that,” she says. “That’s what is proven, at least in this
circumstance, that these acts can be committed and nothing is going to happen
at all.”
And she is brave too, like her husband, she’s not
afraid to say who she thinks is responsible for Paeta’s death. “I blame the man
that made the decision to bomb that post,” she says. “And as it reads in the
Board of Inquiry, that’s a person in a higher-up position in Israeli military
or government.”
But while Cynthia wants that person held accountable,
she knows it’s not going to change anything.
“I do not understand life,” says Cynthia. “It becomes
increasingly difficult to understand.”
Epilogue: Blessed are the Peacemakers
Wolf was buried at the Woodland Cemetery in
Burlington, Ont., on Aug. 11, 2006, at 2 p.m.
The pallbearers who carried his coffin were rigid and
correct in their uniforms. His parents Gerry and Shirlee were there. So was
Cynthia, his stepson Jonah and daughter Kirsten.
They laid a Canadian flag over his coffin. Later,
Kirsten read a poem she wrote for her dad.
“They tell me The Tiger is dead but I still sense his
magic,” she said.
“The Tiger is not dead. He has found a new home,” she
said. “The Tiger now lives in my heart.”
Email the writer at: aday@legion.ca
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See more at: https://legionmagazine.com/en/2013/01/one-martyr-down-the-untold-story-of-a-canadian-peacekeeper-killed-at-war/#sthash.PGbKEX4Y.dpuf
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We were teaching over 40 Grade V and VI students at a Catholic Sunday School.... we were talking about the environment as Sunday School classes always tie in nature with the Bible.... and fell upon Gorillas being killed in large numbers in RWANDA..... and then we fell upon this horror..... and nightmare..... proving that if it ain't oil, gas, or minerals or coal.... UNITED NATIONS doesn't give a sheeeeet.... our broken hearts.... Romeo Dallaire... THE SAVIOUR OF RWANDA...
BLOGSPOT:
CANADA MILITARY NEWS- RWANDA-Canadians
Remember Rwanda- April 7, 2014/So few...NO heroes among Global politicans r
Global $$$ Media- so many deaths... not a white mans war-UN ignored- as did
Africas- RWANDA SCREAMS THAT SYRIA IS 2014's RWANDA- shame United Nations-
Shame!
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Beautiful Vet Service Dogs- showing respect... honour...Peacekeepers Memorial
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HAITI- PEACEKEEPER- _ We Remember- RCMP Mark Gallagher- UN Mission Haiti- Peace of Christ
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BLOGGED:
CANADA MILITARY : Peacekeeping and War-Cyprus/Rwanda/Yugosavia/Suez/Korean/Gulf War/ ColdWar/etc. A history of our Canada- Peacekeeping - War and the horrors our beautiful troops suffered - 4 our freedom - our flag and our beloved Canada. Question: why doesn't Islam nations fight so hard 4 their innocents?-why always our nations/
http://nova0000scotia.blogspot.ca/2015/03/canada-military-peacekeeping-and-war.html
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Canadian Peacekeepers
Honour Roll
More than 125,000 Canadians have participated in United Nations and NATO peacekeeping duties throughout the world. That
is more Peacekeepers than any other country.Peacekeepers have helped to make the world a better place in which to live. The Nobel Committee recognized the good work that UN Peacekeepers have been doing by awarding them the Nobel Peace Prize in 1988.
Canada has honoured its Peacekeepers, past, present and future, by dedicating a monument to their service and dedication. The monument was unveiled in Ottawa, ON in October 1992. The Canadian Peacekeepers Service Medal is awarded to all Canadians who serve with peacekeeping missions.
For a complete listing of all Missions in which Canadians have participated since the Second World War
Canadian Peacekeepers Honour Roll
We remember the Canadian Peacekeepers who lost their lives in the Service of their Country and the World.LEST WE FORGET
INDIA AND PAKISTAN (UNMOGIP 1949 - 1979)
British Columbia Dragoons 17 July 1950 |
KOREA (JULY 1953 - 1955)
| Lieut Neil MacDonald ANDERSON QOR 25 Aug 54 | Pte Wallace MacPherson BETTS RCR 28 Jul 53 | Sdt Paul-Emile BOUDREAULT R 22 R 17 Dec 53 |
| Sdt Benoit BOUTIN R 22 R 4 Nov 53 | Cfn Earl Arthur CHAPMAN RCEME 8 Jan 54 | Pte Robert Alan CHRISTIE RHR 15 Feb 54 |
| Cpl Paul Adrien CLARK R 22 R 5 Jul-54 | Pte Bennie CLEMENTS PPCLI 15 Dec 53 | Sgt Albert Edwin Winston CUMBERBATCH RCASC 4 Jul 54 |
| S/Sgt Jean Louis DUHAIME, CD RCASC 13 Jul 55 | Pte Albert Clifford EARHART RHR 15 Feb 54 | Rfn Norman Philip FERLAND QOR 31 Mar 54 |
| Pte Joseph Leonard GAGNIER RCR 30 Sep 53 | Pte Henri-Louis GRENIER, CD RCASC 8 Nov 55 | Sgt Russell Arthur JODRIE PPCLI 26 Jun 54 |
| Lieut Edward Gordon KAIN R 22 R 20 Jan 55 | Sgt Gerald Walter KOCH QOR 4 Aug 54 | Pte Clifford Joseph LAFRAMBOISE RHR 14 Jun 54 |
| Sgt Malcolm Charles LEONARD RCASC 16 Jun 54 | Sgt Jules Leonard LETENDRE R 22 R 5 Jul 54 | Pte Everett Welsh MacDONALD PPCLI 14 Oct 53 |
| F/Sgt Herbert Thomas MacDONELL, CD 426 Sqd RCAF 6 Sep 53 | Pte Murdoch Ryan MacMILLAN RCR 22 Jun 54 | Pte Gerald Dennis McINNES PPCLI 23 Aug 55 |
| Pte Douglas Allen McKINNON PPCLI 15 Feb 54 | Spr Alexander McNEIL RCE 21 May 54 | Cpl Marc Henri MICHAUD R 22 R 8 Oct53 |
| Pte Charles Joseph MORRISON RCR 23 Oct 53 | Pte Leonard Joseph O'DONNELL RCASC 4 Nov 53 | Sdt Raymond RACINE R 22 R 23 Oct 53 |
| Rfn George Peter REID QOR 11 Jun 55 | Pte Elvin Stanley SABEAN RHR 26 Dec 54 | Lieut Frank Sidney STILWELL RCD 25 Jan 54 |
| Cfn Ronald Harvey TAYLOR RCEME 19 Apr 54 | Cpl William James TOPPING RCR 16 Sep 53 | Pte Ralph Elvin TURNBULL RHR 1 Jan 54 |
| Lieut Milton Cameron VIPOND QOR 18 Mar 55 | Pte William John WALCH PPCLI 6 Sep 53 | Sgmn Reginald Frank WOODS RC Sigs 26 Oct 55 |
| Pte Carl Joseph ZEIGLER RCAMC 13 May 55 |
||
KOREA (UNCMAC 1956 - 1978)
| Lt/Col William Robert SLACK, CD RCAMC 4 Feb 56 | Pte Frank Agustus ANDREWS RCOC 4 Jun 56 | Pte Louis Joseph COURCHAINE RCASC 4 Aug 56 |
| WO1 James Ronald THOMSON, CD RCASC 5 Oct 56 | Maj Philip Edwin GOWER, MC QOR 9 Dec 56 | Sgt Joseph Rene Robert PROVOST R 22 R 6 Dec 56 |
| QOR = Queen's Own Rifles of Canada | RCOC = Royal Canadian Ordance Corps |
| RCR = Royal Canadian Regiment | R 22 R = Royal 22nd Regiment (Van Doos) |
| RCEME = Royal Canadian Electric & Mechanical Engineers | RHR = Royal Highland Regiment of Canada (The Black Watch) |
| PPCLI = Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry | RCASC = Royal Canadian Army Service Corps |
| RCE = Royal Canadian Engineers | RCAMC = Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps |
| RCD = Royal Canadian Dragoons | RC Sigs = Royal Canadian Corps of Signals |
| RCAF = Royal Canadian Air Force | |
MIDDLE EAST - GOLAN HEIGHTS & LEBANON
(UNTSO 1948 - present)
| LCol George A. FLINT, CD Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 26 May 1958 | Maj. Paeta HESS-VON KRUEDENER Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 26 Jul 2006 |
INDO-CHINA (ICSC 1954 -1973)
| Mr. John H. THURROTT Canadian Diplomat - External Affairs Canada 24 Dec 1954 | Mr. Albert E.L. CANNON Canadian Diplomat - External Affairs Canada 12 Apr 1957 | John D. TURNER Canadian Diplomat - External Affairs Canada 18 Oct 1965 |
| Sgt James S. BYRNE, CD Royal Canadian Army Service Corps 18 Oct 1965 | Cpl Vernon J. PERKINS Royal Highland Regiment of Canada 18 Oct 1965 | |
EGYPT (UNEF 1956 -1967)
| Spr Rene H. VEZINA Royal Canadian Engineers 9 Mar 1957 | Lt Charles C. VAN STRAUBENZEE 56 Canadian Reconnaissance Squadron 10 May 1957 | Cpl Kenneth E. PENNELL Royal Canadian Corps of Signals 15 Sep 1957 |
| Pte Brooklyn O. ADAMS Royal Canadian Army Service Corps 20 Sep 1957 | Sgt Ivan L. STARK Royal Canadian Engineers 27 Sep 1957 | Tpr George E. McDAVID 56 Canadian Reconnaissance Squadron 29 Nov 1957 |
| Pte Ian A. SAWYER Royal Canadian Army Service Corps 22 Apr 1958 | Sig Neil E. MASON Royal Canadian Corps of Signals 15 May 1958 | Cpl John T. ROBERTS Royal Canadian Army Service Corps 10 June 1958 |
| Cpl Gerald S. PORTER Canadian Provost Corps 23 Apr 1959 | Maj Harry MOREWOOD Royal Canadian Ordnance Corps 26 July 1959 | Tpr Ronald W. ALLAN Royal Canadian Dragoons 28 Nov 1959 |
| Pte Alfred T. HURST Royal Canadian Army Service Corps 4 Feb 1960 | Cpl George A. GAUTHIER Royal Canadian Army Service Corps 20 Feb 1960 | Tpr Reginald J. WILEY Lord Strathcona's Horse (Royal Canadians) 7 Sep 1961 |
| Cpl Joseph M. ALBERT Royal Canadian Electrical and Mechanical Engineers 19 Nov 1961 | Cfm Dale S. ROSTER Royal Canadian Electrical and Mechanical Engineers 19 Nov 1961 | Cpl Emmanuel OLIVIER Royal Canadian Corps of Signals 9 Dec 1961 |
| Spr George G. THOMPSON Royal Canadian Engineers 18 May 1962 | Cpl Elmer G. GROOM Royal Canadian Ordnance Corps 2 Oct 1963 | W/C Earle D. HARPER, DFC, CD Royal Canadian Air Force (att 115 ATU) 2 Nov 1963 |
| Sgt John K. HERMANN Royal Canadian Air Force (att 115 ATU) 26 Dec 1963 | Pte Roger L. MORIN Royal Canadian Postal Corps 29 May 1964 | Tpr Adrian A. BONS 8th Canadian Hussars (Princess Louise's) 27 Nov 1964 |
| Cpl Paul R. WALLACE 8th Canadian Hussars (Princess Louise's) 27 Nov 1964 | Pte Denis A.J. LAMOTHE Royal Canadian Army Service Corps 16 Mar 1966 | F/O Richard V. EDWARDS Royal Canadian Air Force (Att 115 ATU) 28 Apr 1966 |
| F/O Joseph M.L.P. PICARD Royal Canadian Air Force (Att 115 ATU) 30 Apr 1966 | Spr John LORIENZ Royal Canadian Engineers 12 July 1966 | Sig Philip M. CROUSE Royal Canadian Corps of Signals (att 56 Can Sig Sqn) 20 Aug 1966 |
| Pte Edward J. FICKLING Royal Canadian Army Service Corps 17 Oct 1966 | ||
BELGIAN CONGO (ONUC 1960 - 1964)
| Sgt Robert H. MOORE, CD Royal Canadian Corps of Signals 9 Oct 1961 | SSgt Joseph P.C. MARQUIS, CD Royal Canadian Ordnance Corps 6 Feb 1962 | |
CYPRUS (UNFICYP 1964 - present)
| Tpr Joseph H. CAMPBELL Royal Canadian Dragoons 31 July 1964 | Lt Kenneth E. EDMONDS , CD Canadian Intelligence Corps (att HQ, Nicosia) 25 Dec 1964 | Rfn Perry J. HOARE 1st Btn Queen's Own Rifles of Canada 14 Aug 1965 |
| Gdm Joseph J.P. CHARTIER 2nd Btn Canadian Guards 14 Mar 1966 | Pte Joseph P.E. BERNARD 2nd Bn Black Watch (Royal Highland Regiment) of Canada 9 July 1966 | Tpr Lennard W. NASS 8th Canadian Hussars (Princess Louise's) 27 Sep 1966 |
| Cpl Otto J. REDMOND 1st Btn Royal Canadian Regiment 10 Mar 1967 | Cpl Kenneth A. SALMON Canadian Provost Corps 24 Sep 1967 | Pte John A. LERUE 2nd Btn Black Watch (Royal Highland Regiment) of Canada 9 Feb 1970 |
| Pte Theodore J. HALL , CD 1 Btn Royal Canadian Regiment 31 July 1970 | Cpl Perley C. ISENOR 3 Service Bn Logistics Branch 25 Oct 1970 | MCpl Joseph R.M.J.P. LESSARD 2 Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 1 Dec 1972 |
| Capt Aloysius ROACH , CD Logistics Branch (att 2 RCR) 17 Feb 1974 | Tpr J.L.Gilbert PERRON Canadian Airborne Regiment 6 Aug 1974 | Tpr J.J.Claude BERGER Canadian Airborne Regiment 10 Sep 1974 |
| Capt Ian E. PATTEN , CD Royal Canadian Regiment 1 Apr 1975 | Pte S.J. KOHLMAN 1st Btn Royal Canadian Regiment 11 Apr 1975 | Capt Kenneth C. CRAWFORD Medical Branch (att 3 PPCLI) 20 Dec 1975 |
| Pte D.R. KRIEGER 2 Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 17 Aug 1976 | Sgt (R) J.R.Andre DUPONT Logistics Branch 8 Med Coy (att 12 RBC) 24 Apr 1977 | MCpl J.D.G. McINNIS 3 Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 30 Mar 1980 |
| Pte J.R.E. ARCHAMBAULT 2 Bn Royal 22e Regiment (Van Doos) 30 Nov 1981 | Pte A.J. PRINS 2 Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 26 Sep 1982 | Pte M.D. WILSON 2 Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 22 Jan 1983 |
| MCpl Mark MACRAE C and E Branch - Airborne HQ (att Can Sig Unit) 6 Dec 1986 | Pte Thomas J. TROTTIER 3 Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 25 Apr 1988 | Sgt Donald L. KLOSS 2nd Regt Royal Canadian Horse Artillery 8 Apr 1993 |
MIDDLE EAST (UNEFME 1973 - 1979)
| Capt Garry G. FOSTER , CD Air Operations Branch (att 116 ATU) 9 Aug 1974 | Cpl Maurice H.T. KENNINGTON Logistics Branch (att Can Con Admin Unit) 9 Aug 1974 | A/MWO Cyril B. KOREJWO , CD Royal Canadian Regiment 9 Aug 1974 |
| MWO Gaston LANDRY , CD Royal 22e Regiment (Van Doos) 9 Aug 1974 | Capt Keith B. MIRAU Air Operations Branch (att 116 ATU) 9 Aug 1974 | Cpl Micheal W. SIMPSON Logistics Branch (att 116 ATU) 9 Aug 1974 |
| MCpl Ronald C. SPENCER Air Operations Branch (att 116 ATU) 9 Aug 1974 | Cpl Bruce K. STRINGER Air Operations Branch (att 116 ATU) 9 Aug 1974 | Capt Robert B. WICKS , CD Air Operations Branch (att 116 ATU) 9 Aug 1974 |
| Cpl J.P.Claude BLAIS Administration Branch (att 73 Can Sigs Sqn) 24 Dec 1974 | Cpl Nelson EDWARDS Land Ordnance Engineering Branch (att 73 Can Svc Unit) 24 Dec 1974 | Cpl Robert W. MILLER Royal Canadian Horse Artillery (att 73 Can Svc Unit) 24 Dec 1974 |
| Pte T.E. ABBOT C and E Branch (att 73 Can Sig Sqn) 14 June 1975 | Sgt Larry W. DAILY Canadian Military Engineers (att Can Con CE) 10 Nov 1977 | Sgt J.F.Bernard DEMERS Logistics Branch (att 73 Can Svc Bn) 5 Dec 1977 |
| Pte C.A. DODGE C and E Branch (att 73 Can Sig Sqn) 2 July 1979 | ||
VIETNAM (ICSC - 1973)
| L/S Ned W. MEMNOOK HMCS TERRA NOVA 15 Mar 1973 | Capt Charles E. LAVIOLETTE , CD 12e Regiment blinde du Canada 7 Apr 1973 | ||
GOLAN HEIGHTS (UNDOF 1974 - 2006)
| Cpl Darryl C. ROSS Canadian Military Engineers (att Can Log Coy) 3 Mar 1978 | Pte P.K. PORTER Communications - Electronics Branch (att Can Sig Sqn) 6 Nov 1980 | Cpl J.P.R. HUDON Logistics Branch (att Can Log Coy) 26 Dec 1985 |
| Cpl Gregory J. LaROSE , CD Land Electrical Mechanical Engineers (att Can Log Coy) 8 May 1993 | ||
LEBANON (UNIFIL 1978 - present)
| See above under UNTSO |
MIDDLE EAST - EGYPT/SAINI
MULTINATIONAL FORCE & OBSERVERS (MFO 1986- present)
| Cpl Benoit CHEVALIER Aerospace Control Operator assigned TF El Gorah (TFEG) 6 May 2007 |
CAMBODIA (UNTAC 1992 - 1995)
| Pte William C. SYMONS 2nd Bn Royal Canadian Regiment 12 July 1992 |
YUGOSLAVIA (UNPROFOR 1992 - 1995)
| Sgt Cornelius M. RALPH, CD 22 Field Squadron (att 4 CER) 17 Aug 1992 | MCpl John W. TERNAPOLSKI 2 Bn, Royal Canadian Regiment 25 Mar 1993 | Cpl Daniel GUNTHER 2nd Btn, Royal 22e Regiment (Van Doos) 18 June 1993 |
| Cpl Jean-Marc H. BECHARD 2nd Btn, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 6 Aug 1993 | Sgt J. Denis A. GAREAU, CD Logistics Branch (att Can Con Support Unit) 17 Aug 1993 | Capt James P. DeCOSTE, CD 2 Bn, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 18 Sep 1993 |
| MCpl Stephane L.P. LANGEVIN 12e Régiment blindé du Canada 29 Nov 1993 | Cpl David GALVIN Sherbrooke Hussars (att 12e RBC) 29 Nov 1993 | Pte Kirk D. COOPER 3rd Btn, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 6 June 1994 |
| MCpl Mark R. ISFELD 1 Combat Engineer Regiment 21 June 1994 | Cpl Joseph F.Y. ROUSSEAU 12e Régiment blindé du Canada 25 Sep 1995 | |
SOMALIA (UNITAF 1992 - 1993)
| Cpl Micheal D. ABEL Canadian Airborne Regiment 3 May 1993 |
RWANDA (UNAMIR 1994 - 1995)
| Cpl Scott F. SMITH Canadian Airborne Regiment 25 Dec 1994 |
YUGOSLAVIA (IFOR 1996 - 1997)
| Spr Chris HOLOPINA 2 Combat Engineer Regiment 4 July 1996 |
HAITI (UNSMIH 1996 - 1997)
| Pte J.L.M.Bertrand DOUCET 3rd Bn, Royal 22e Regiment (Van Doos) 12 July 1997 |
BOSNIA/HERZGOVINA (former YUGOSLAVIA) (SFOR 1997 - present)
| Bdr Robert D. VIALETTE 1st Regt, Royal Canadian Horse Artillery 21 July 1997 | MCpl Terrence S. McCREA , CD Logistics Branch (att 1 RCR) 25 Mar 1998 | Cpl James OGILVIE Royal Canadian Dragoons 30 Aug 1998 |
| Spr Gilles DESMARAIS 2 Combat Engineer Regiment 25 Sep 1998 | Sgt V JOUBERET 1 Bn Royal 22e Regiment (Van Doos) 13 Dec 1999 | Cpl R.T. POLLARD 1st Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry Att 426 Transport Training Sqd 28 Sep 2000 |
| Bdr G.K. BAILEY 1st Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 27 Oct 2000 | Cpl Jamie D. VERMEULEN 2nd Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 6 Jul 2003 | PO2 J.S. MORISSETTE Naval Ops 13 DEC 2003 |
| Cpl Andrew David JOHNSON 1st Bn Royal Canadian Regiment (att RCD) 29 Jan 2004 | ||
KOSOVO (KFOR 1998 - present)
| Sgt H. Jerry SQUIRES 1st Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 25 Aug 1999 |
HAITI (MINUSTAH 2004 - present)
| Sgt Mark BOURQUE Royal Canadian Mounted Police (Retired) 20 Dec 2005 | Supt Douglas COATES Royal Canadian Mounted Police 12 Jan 2010 (killed in Earthquake) | Sgt Mark GALLAGHER Royal Canadian Mounted Police 12 Jan 2010 (killed in Earthquake) |
AFGHANISTAN (2002 - 2006)
(The War On Terrorism)
Canadian soldiers were supposed to be part of a NATO-led provincial reconstruction team in Afghanistan's south. Canadian soldiers are now co-ordinating their efforts with the U.S.-led coalition in its war against terrorism and the Taliban.
This is NOT a standard "Peacekeeping" Mission.
The following 4 Canadian soldiers on active duty lost their lives as a result of a 'aircraft friendly fire incident' on Apr 17, 2002.
They were engaged in a nighttime live-fire military exercise being conducted by the Canadian troops outside Kandahar, Afghanistan. They are the first Canadian soldiers killed on active service since the Korean war in the 1950's. | ||
| Sgt. Robert Alan SHORT 3rd Bn, Royal Canadian Regiment 2 Oct 2003 | Cpl. Robbie Christopher BEERENFENGER 3rd Bn, Royal Canadian Regiment 2 Oct 2003 | Cpl. Jamie Brendon MURPHY 1st Bn Royal Canadian Regiment 27 Jan 2004 |
| Pte. Braun Scott WOODFIELD 2nd Bn, Royal Canadian Regiment 24 Nov 2005 | Mr. Glyn BERRY Foreign Affairs Dept serving with (PRT) - Kandahar 15 Jan 2006 | Cpl James DAVIS 2nd Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 2 Mar 2006 |
| M/Cpl Timothy WILSON 2nd Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 6 Mar 2006 (injured 02 Mar) | Pte Robert COSTALL 1st Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 29 Mar 2006 | Cpl Matthew J. DINNING 2 Military Police Platoon 22 Apr 2006 |
| Bdr Myles S. MANSELL 5th (British Columbia) Field Regiment, RCA 22 Apr 2006 | Lt William TURNER Land Forces (Western Area) Headquarters 22 Apr 2006 | Cpl Randy PAYNE 2 Military Police Platoon 22 Apr 2006 |
| Capt Nichola GODDARD 1st Regiment Royal Canadian Horse Artillery - Serving with Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 17 May 2006 | Cpl Anthony BONECA Lake Superior Scottish Regt 9 July, 2006 | Cpl Francisco GOMEZ 1st Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 22 July, 2006 |
| Cpl Jason Patrick WARREN The Black Watch (Royal Highland Regiment) of Canada 22 July, 2006 | ||
AFGHANISTAN (ISAF 2006 - 2011)
| Cpl Christopher Johnathan REID 1st Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 3 Aug, 2006 | Sgt Vaughn INGRAM 1st Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 3 Aug, 2006 | Cpl Bryce Jeffrey KELLER 1st Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 3 Aug, 2006 |
| Pte Keviin DALLAIRE 1st Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 3 Aug, 2006 | M/Cpl Raymond ARNDT Loyal Edmonton Regiment 5 Aug, 2006 | M/Cpl Jeffery Scott WALSH 2nd Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 9 Aug, 2006 |
| Cpl Andrew James EYKELENBOOM First Field Ambulance Unit 11 Aug, 2006 | Cpl David BRAUN 2nd Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 22 Aug, 2006 | WO Frank Robert MELLISH 1st Bn Royal Canadian Regiment 3 Sep, 2006 |
| WO Richard Francis NOLAN 1st Bn Royal Canadian Regiment 3 Sep, 2006 | Sgt Shane STACHNIK 2 Combat Engineer Regiment 3 Sep, 2006 | Pte William Jonathan CUSHLEY 1st Bn Royal Canadian Regiment 3 Sep, 2006 |
| Pte Mark Anthony GRAHAM 1st Bn Royal Canadian Regiment 4 Sep, 2006 | Pte David Robert BYERS 2nd Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 18 Sep, 2006 | Cpl Shane KEATING 2nd Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 18 Sep, 2006 |
| Cpl Keith MORLEY 2nd Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 18 Sep, 2006 | Cpl Glen ARNOLD 2 Field Ambulance Unit 18 Sep, 2006 | Pte Josh KLUKIE 1st Bn Royal Canadian Regiment 29 Sep, 2006 |
| Sgt Craig Paul GILLAM Royal Canadian Dragoons 3 Oct, 2006 | Cpl Robert Thomas MITCHELL Royal Canadian Dragoons 3 Oct, 2006 | Tpr Mark Andrew WILSON Royal Canadian Dragoons 7 Oct, 2006 |
| Sgt Darcy Scott TEDFORD 1st Bn Royal Canadian Regiment 14 Oct, 2006 | Pte Blake Neil WILLIAMSON 1st Bn Royal Canadian Regiment 14 Oct, 2006 | CWO Robert GIROUARD 1st Bn Royal Canadian Regiment 27 Nov, 2006 |
| Cpl Albert STORM 1st Bn Royal Canadian Regiment 27 Nov, 2006 | Cpl Kevin MEGENEY 1st Bn Nova Scotia Highlanders 6 Mar, 2007 | Sgt Donald LUCAS 2nd Bn Royal Canadian Regiment 8 Apr, 2007 |
| Cpl Aaron E. WILLIAMS 2nd Bn Royal Canadian Regiment 8 Apr, 2007 | Pte Kevin Vincent KENNEDY 2nd Bn Royal Canadian Regiment 8 Apr, 2007 | Pte David Robert GREENSLADE 2nd Bn Royal Canadian Regiment 8 Apr, 2007 |
| Cpl Brent D. POLAND 2nd Bn Royal Canadian Regiment 8 Apr, 2007 | Cpl Christopher Paul STANNIX Princess Louise Fusiliers 8 Apr, 2007 | M/Cpl Allan STEWART Royal Canadian Dragoons 11 Apr, 2007 |
| Tpr Patrick James PENTLAND Royal Canadian Dragoons 11 Apr, 2007 | M/Cpl Anthony KLUMPENHOUWER Special Operations Forces 18 Apr, 2007 | Cpl Matthew MCCULLY 2 Cdn Mechanized Brigade Group HQ & Signals Squadron 25 May, 2007 |
| M/Cpl Darrell Jason PRIEDE Combat Photographer - 3 Area Support Group 31 May, 2007 | Tpr Darryl CASWELL Royal Canadian Dragoons 11 Jun, 2007 | Cpl Stephen Frederick BOUZANE 3rd Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 20 Jun, 2007 |
| Pte Joel Vincent WIEBE 3rd Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 20 Jun, 2007 | Sgt Cristos KARIGIANNIS 3rd Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 20 Jun, 2007 | Cpt Matthew Johnathan DAWE 3rd Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 4 Jul, 2007 |
| M/Cpl Colin Stewart Francis BASON The Royal Westminster Regiment 4 Jul, 2007 | Cpl Cole D. BARTSCH 3rd Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 4 Jul, 2007 | Pte Lane William Thomas WATKINS 3rd Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 4 Jul, 2007 |
| Cpl Jordan ANDERSON 3rd Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 4 Jul, 2007 | Cpt Jefferson Clifford FRANCIS 1st Regt Royal Canadian Horse Artillery 4 Jul, 2007 | Pte Simon LONGTIN 3e Bataillon, Royal 22e Régiment (Van Doos) 19 Aug, 2007 |
| M/Cpl Christian DUCHESNE 5e Ambulance de campagne, (4th Health Service Group) 19 Aug, 2007 | M/WO Mario MERCIER 2e Bataillon, Royal 22e Régiment (Van Doos) 19 Aug, 2007 | Maj Raymond RUCKPAUL Serving with ISAF Headquarters, Kabul 22 Aug, 2007 |
| Cpl Nathan HORNBURG King's Own Calgary Regiment 24 Sep, 2007 | Cpl Nicolas Raymond BEAUCHAMP 5e Ambulance de campagne, (4th Health Service Group) 17 Nov, 2007 | Pte Michel Jr. LEVESQUE 2e Bataillon, Royal 22e Régiment (Van Doos) 17 Nov, 2007 |
| Gnr Johnathan DION 5th Régiment d'Artillerie légère du Canada 30 Dec, 2007 | WO Hani MASSOUH 2e Bataillon, Royal 22e Régiment (Van Doos) 6 Jan, 2008 | Cpl Éric LABBE 2e Bataillon, Royal 22e Régiment (Van Doos) 6 Jan, 2008 |
| Tpr Richard RENARD 12e Régiment blindé du Canada 15 Jan, 2008 | Cpl Étienne GONTHIER 5e Régiment du génie de combat 23 Jan, 2008 | Tpr Michael Yuki HAYAKAZE Lord Strathcona's Horse (Royal Canadians) 2 Mar, 2008 |
| Bbr Jérémie OUELLET 1st Regt Royal Canadian Horse Artillery 11 Mar, 2008 | Sgt Jason BOYES 2nd Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 16 Mar, 2008 | Pte Terry John STREET 2nd Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 4 Apr, 2008 |
| Cpl Michael STARKER 15 Field Ambulance Unit 6 May, 2008 | Cpt Richard (Steve) LEARY 2nd Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 3 Jun, 2008 | Cpt Jonathon Sutherland SNYDER 1st Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry (attached to OMLT Group) 8 Jun, 2008 |
| Cpl Brendan Anthony DOWNEY Military Police Detachment (Att TSE) 4 Jul, 2008 | Cpl Colin William WILMOT 1 Field Ambulance Unit 6 Jul, 2008 | Cpl James Hayward ARNAL 2nd Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 19 Jul, 2008 |
| M/Cpl Joshua Brian ROBERTS 2nd Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 9 Aug, 2008 | M/Cpl Erin DOYLE 3rd Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 12 Aug, 2008 | Sgt Shawn Allen EADES 12 Field Sqdn, 1 Combat Engineer Regt 20 Aug, 2008 |
| Cpl Dustin Roy Robert Joseph WASDEN 12 Field Sqdn, 1 Combat Engineer Regt 20 Aug, 2008 | Spr Stephan John STOCK 12 Field Sqdn, 1 Combat Engineer Regt 20 Aug, 2008 | Cpl Andrew Paul GRENON 2nd Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 3 Sep, 2008 |
| Cpl Michael James Alexander SEGGIE 2nd Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 3 Sep, 2008 | Pte Chadwick James HORN 2nd Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 3 Sep, 2008 | Sgt Prescott SHIPWAY 2nd Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 7 Sep, 2008 |
| WO Robert John WILSON 1st Bn Royal Canadian Regiment 5 Dec, 2008 | Cpl Mark Robert McLAREN 1st Bn Royal Canadian Regiment 5 Dec, 2008 | Pte Demetrios DIPLAROS 1st Bn Royal Canadian Regiment 5 Dec, 2008 |
| Cpl Thomas James HAMILTON 2nd Bn Royal Canadian Regiment 13 Dec, 2008 | Pte John Michael Roy CURWIN 2nd Bn Royal Canadian Regiment 13 Dec, 2008 | Pte Justin Peter JONES 2nd Bn Royal Canadian Regiment 13 Dec, 2008 |
| Pte Michael Bruce FREEMAN 3rd Bn Royal Canadian Regiment 26 Dec, 2008 | WO Gaétan ROBERGE Royal 22nd Regiment (Van Doos) serving with the 2nd Bn Irish Regiment of Canada 28 Dec, 2008 | Sgt Gregory John KRUSE 24 Field Squadron, 2 Combat Engineer Regiment 28 Dec, 2008 |
| Tpr Brian Richard GOOD Royal Canadian Dragoons serving with 3rd Bn Royal Canadian Regiment 7 Jan, 2009 | Spr Sean David GREENFIELD 24 Field Squadron, 2 Combat Engineer Regiment serving with 3rd Bn Royal Canadian Regiment 31 Jan 2009 | WO Dennis Raymond BROWN The Lincoln and Welland Regiment 3 Mar 2009 |
| Cpl Dany Oliver FORTIN 425 Tactical Squadron 3 Mar 2009 | Cpl Kenneth Chad O'QUINN 2 Cdn Mechanized Brigade Group HQ & Signals Squadron 3 Mar 2009 | Tpr Marc DIAB Royal Canadian Dragoons serving with 3rd Bn Royal Canadian Regiment Battle Group 8 Mar 2009 |
| M/Cpl Scott Francis VERNELLI 3rd Btn Royal Canadian Regiment Battle Group 20 Mar 2009 | Cpl Tyler CROOKS 1st Bn Royal Canadian Regiment Battle Group 20 Mar 2009 | Tpr Jack BOUTHILLIER Royal Canadian Dragoons serving with Recon Sqdn 3rd Bn Royal Canadian Regiment Battle Group 20 Mar 2009 |
| Tpr Corey Joseph HAYES Royal Canadian Dragoons serving with Recon Sqdn 3rd Bn Royal Canadian Regiment Battle Group 20 Mar 2009 | Tpr Karine BLAIS 12e Régiment blindé du Canada serving with 2nd Bn, Royal 22e Régiment Battle Group 13 Apr 2009 | Maj Michelle MENDES Member Chief of Defence Intelligence Unit 23 Apr 2009 |
| Pte Alexandre PELOQUIN 3rd Bn, Royal 22e Régiment serving with 2e Bn, Royal 22e Régiment Battle Group 8 Jun 2009 | Cpl Martin DUBE 5e Régiment de genie de combat serving with Joint Task Force Headquarters 14 Jun 2009 | Cpl Nicholas BULGER 3rd Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry serving with Task Force Kandahar Headquarters 3 Jul 2009 |
| M/Cpl Charles-Philippe MICHAUD 2nd Bn Royal Canadian Regiment Battle Group injured Jun 23 died 4 Jul 2009 | M/Cpl Pat AUDET Flight Engineer 430e Escadron tactique d'hélicoptères 7 Jul 2009 | Cpl Martin JOANNGETTE Gunner 3e Bataillon, Royal 22e Régiment (Van Doos) 7 Jul 2009 |
| Pte Sébastien COURCY 2nd Bn Royal 22e Régiment serving with 2nd Battalion, Royal 22e Régiment Battle Group 16 Jul 2009 | Cpl Christian BOBBITT 5e Régiment du génie de combat serving with 2nd Battalion, Royal 22e Régiment Battle Group 1 Aug 2009 | Spr Mattieu ALLARD 5e Régiment du génie de combat serving with 2nd Battalion, Royal 22e Régiment Battle Group 1 Aug 2009 |
| Maj. Yannick PEPIN 51st Field Sqdn of 5th Combat Engineer Regiment 7 Sep 2009 | Cpl Jean-Francois DROUIN 51st Field Sqdn of 5th Combat Engineer Regiment 7 Sep 2009 | Pte Patrick LORMAND 2e Bataillon, Royal 22e Régiment (Van Doos) 13 Sep 2009 |
| Pte Jonathan COUTURIER 2e Bataillon, Royal 22e Régiment (Van Doos) 17 Sep 2009 | Lt Justin Garrett BOYES 3rd Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 28 Oct 2009 | Spr Steven MARSHALL 11th Field Sqdn serving with 1 Combat Engineer Regt 30 Oct 2009 |
| Lt Andrew Richard NUTTALL 1st Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry serving with 1 PPCLI Battle Group 23 Dec 2009 | Sgt George MIOK 41 Combat Engineer Regiment 30 Dec 2009 | Sgt Kirk TAYLOR 84 Independant Field Battery Royal Canadian Artillery 30 Dec 2009 |
| Cpl Zachery McCORMACK Loyal Edmonton Regiment 4th Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 30 Dec 2009 | Pte Garrett William CHIDLEY 2nd Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry serving with Kandahar Provincial Reconstruction Team 30 Dec 2009 | Sgt John Wayne FAUGHT 1st Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry serving with Task Force 3-09 Battle Group 16 January 2010 |
| Capt Francis (Frank) Cecil PAUL 28th Canadian Field Ambulance serving with Task Force Kandahar Health Services Unit Feb 10 2010 - died while on leave from Kandahar | Cpl Joshua Calbe BAKER Loyal Edmonton Regiment 4th Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 12 February 2010 | Cpl Darren James FITZPATRICK 3rd Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry injured Mar 6 - died Mar 20 2010 |
| Pte Tyler William TODD 1st Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 11 Apr 2010 | PO2 Craig BLAKE Fleet Diving Unit (Atlantic) serving with Task Force 1-10 4 May 2010 | Pte Kevin Thomas McKAY 1st Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 13 May 2010 |
| Col Jeoff PARKER Royal Canadian Regiment working at HQ Land Forces Central Area 18 May 2010 | Tpr Larry John Zuidemer RUDD 1st Bn Royal Canadian Dragoons 24 May 2010 | Sgt Martin GOUDREAULT 1 Combat Engineer Regiment serving with 1st Bn Royal Canadian Regiment Battle Group 6 Jun 2010 |
| Sgt James Patrick MACNEIL 2 Combat Engineer Regiment serving with 1st Bn Royal Canadian Regiment Battle Group 21 Jun 2010 | M/Cpl Kristal GIESEBRECHT 1st Canadian Field Hospital serving with Task Force Kandahar Health Services Unit 26 Jun 2010 | Pte Andrew Christopher A. MILLER 1st Canadian Field Hospital serving with Task Force Kandahar Health Services Unit 26 Jun 2010 |
| Spr Brian COLLIER 1 Combat Engineer Regiment serving with 1st Bn Royal Canadian Regiment Battle Group 20 Jul 2010 | Cpl Brian PINKSEN 2nd Bn Royal Newfoundland Regiment serving with 1st Bn Royal Canadian Regiment Battle Group wounded 22 August - died 30 Aug 2010 | Cpl Steve Martin 3rd Bn Royal 22e Regiment (Van Doos) serving with 1st Bn Royal 22e Battle Group 18 Dec 2010 |
| Cpl Yannic SCHERER 1st Bn Royal 22e Regiment (Van Doos) serving with 1st Bn Royal 22e Battle Group 27 Mar 2011 | Bbr Karl MANNING 5e Régiment d'artillerie légère du Canada serving with 1er Royal 22e Régiment Battle Group 27 May 2011 | M/Cpl Francis ROY Canadian Special Operations Regiment serving with Special Operations Task Force 25 Jun 2011 |
| M/Cpl Byron Garth GREFF 3rd Bn Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry serving with (CCTM-A) Canadian Contribution to the Training Mission in Afganistan 29 Oct 2011 | ||
To view photographs of all Fallen Canadians Forces members who have given their lives serving Canada and helping people throughout the world
CLICK HERE FOR OFFICIAL SITE
Number killed by year: | 2002= 4 | 2003=2 | 2004= 1 | 2005=1 | 2006=36 | 2007=30 | 2008=32 | 2009=32 | 2010= 16 | 2011=4 | TOTAL =158
In addition, 1 Canadian Diplomat, 1 Canadian Journalist and 2 Canadian Contractors have also been killed during the Afghanistan mission
Figures released by DND in January 2012 show that the total number of Canadian soldiers injured and wounded in the war in Afghanistan reached 2,047 by the end of December 2011. 1,412 of these are listed as NBI (Non battle injuries) and 635 are listed as WIA (wounded in action).
Following a policy change at the beginning of 2010, the Canadian military began to withhold all injury reports, releasing only statistics after the end of a calendar year, citing security reasons
950 Canadian Forces personnel remain in Afghanistan in a training role and will remain there until 2014.
Total number of Canadian Peacekeepers/Soldiers killed to date in ALL missions around the world = 275
NOTE: If you are aware of any additional Canadian Peacekeepers who gave their lives, but are not listed here, please email the details and they will be added.------
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Canadian Peacekeeping StoriesOn this page, you will find stories by current and former Canadian peacekeepers about their adventures, hardships, humorous incidents, and so on. They are true stories and reflect what our peacekeepers go through during their tour of duty. I certainly hope that you enjoy reading them. (NOTE: All stories are copyright by their respective contributors.)
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UNAVEM | UNTAG
| ONUCA | UNIKOM
| MINURSO |
UNBALKANS | UNAFGANISTAN
Canada's role as a peacekeeper
throughout the world began in the 50's when Lester Pearson,
Canada's ambassador to the UN suggested that the organization
might create a peace keeping force. This force could be injected
into a war or conflict area in order to maintain a
ceasefire while the respective combatants negotiated an
alternative solution to fighting. Canada is known throughout the
world for it's readiness to contribute troops or support to
peace keeping missions and has participated in more missions
then any other country in the world. The missions listed on the
left are the ones in which Canada has participated in and built
a reputation for peace with.
The role of the United Nations
supplying forces to keep the peace was first suggested by Mike
Pearson, (Canadian Prime Minister) when he was serving at the UN
as Canada's representative. This idea was not only adapted by
has become one of the central fixtures in UN activities
throughout the world. Pearson was awarded a Nobel Peace Prize
for the inspiration and Canada has become the most important and
respected player in Peace keeping duties, for the UN, throughout
the world.
Pre-1956 UN Observer Missions
1947-48: UNTCOK—United Nations Temporary Commission on Korea. Canada sends a contingent to Korea to supervise elections and withdrawal of USSR and US from Korea.1948-ongoing: UNTSO—United Nations Truce Supervision Organization. Canada contributes a contingent to the 1st peacekeeping type operation operated by UN observer groups in Palestine. Today, military observer groups (including 7 Canadian military observers) continue to supervise and monitor the ceasefire.
1949-ongoing: UNMOGIP—United Nations Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan (Kashmir). Canada contributes a contingent to the mission in Pakistan to supervise ceasefire between India and Pakistan.
1950-53: UNSK—United Nations Service in Korea. Canada sends the 3rd largest contingent to UN mission in Korea.
1953-ongoing: UNCMAC—United Nations Command Military Armistice Commission. Canada sends a contingent as part of UNCMAC to supervise the implementation of the armistice, putting an end to the Korean War. Although UNCMAC is still ongoing today, in 1978, the responsibilities of the Canadian contingent were transferred to the Canadian military attaché in Seoul, whose purpose is to serve on the UNMAC Advisory Group.
1956: Canada’s Minister for External Affairs, Lester B. Pearson proposes to the UN General Assembly to send a multinational contingent to the Middle East, in response to the Suez Crisis. This culminated in the first designated UN “peacekeeping” mission—UNEF I.
Post-1956 UN Peacekeeping Missions
1956-67: UNEF 1—United Nations Emergency Force I. Canada sends a contingent to the UN mission in Egypt to supervise the withdrawal of French, Israeli and British troops from Egypt.1957: Lester B. Pearson is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his remarkable diplomatic achievements and his innovative thinking in resolving the Suez Crisis through the establishment of a UN Emergency Force.
1958: UNOGIL—United Nations Observer Group in Lebanon. Canada sends a contingent to the UN mission in Lebanon.
1960-64: ONUC—United Nations Operation in the Congo. A Canadian contingent is sent to the Congo. The mission’s purpose is to restore order in the African nation while assisting in the removal of Belgium troops.
1962-63: UNSF—United Nations Security Force in West New Guinea. Canada sends a contingent to monitor the ceasefire between Indonesia and the Netherlands, and help ensure peaceful transition of the territory to Indonesia. The purpose of UNSF was to assist the United Nations Temporary Executive Authority (UNTEA) in administering the territory, maintaining the rule of law, and protecting human rights.
1963-64: UNYOM—United Nations Yemen Observer Mission. Canada sends a contingent to Yemen.
1964-ongoing: UNIFICYP—United Nations Forces in Cyprus. UNIFICYP is Canada’s longest UN peacekeeping mission. The purpose was to maintain balance between the Greek and Turkish Cypriots in their newly created island.
1965-66: DOMREP—Mission of the Representative of the SG in the Dominican Republic. Canada contributes to the observation of the ceasefire and to the withdrawal of OAS forces.
1965-66: UNIPOM—United Nations India-Pakistan Observer Mission. Canada sends contingent to the border between India and Pakistan to supervise ceasefire.
1973-79: UNEF II—United Nations Emergency Force II. Canada sends a contingent to Egypt to supervise the ceasefire between Egyptian and Israeli forces. The greatest loss of Canadians lives on a peacekeeping mission occurred when nine Canadian peacekeeping soldiers serving as part of UNEF II were killed when the plane they were traveling in was shot down.
1974-ongoing: UNDOF—United Nations Disengagement Observer Force. Canada sends a contingent to the buffer zone between Israel and Syria, and provides communication, logistics and technical support for the UN force.
1978-ongoing: UNIFIL—United Nations Force in Lebanon. Canada sends contingent to Lebanon to support security to the government.
1981: UN establishes September 21st as the annual International Day of Peace, celebrating global ceasefire and non-violence.
1988-90: UNGOMAP—United Nations Good Offices Mission in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Canada sends contingent to Afghanistan.
1988-91: UNIIMOG—United Nations Iran-Iraq Military Observer Group. Canada sends a contingent to the borders of Iran-Iraq.
1988: UN Peacekeeping Forces are recognized and win the Nobel Peace Prize for their contribution to reducing tensions around the world under extremely difficult conditions.
1989-91: UNAVEM I—United Nations Angola Verification Missions I. Canada sends contingent to Angola to monitor the withdrawal of Cuban troops.
1989-90: UNTAG—UN Transition Assistance Group in Namibia. Canada sends contingent to Namibia to assist in the transition to independence.
1989-92: ONUCA—United Nations Observer Group in Central America. Canada sends contingent to Central America to monitor compliance with the ceasefire.
1990-91: ONUVEH—United Nations Observer Group for the Verification of the Elections in Haiti. Canada sends contingent to Haiti to observe electoral process.
1991-95: UNAVEM II— United Nations Angola Verification Missions II. Canada assists in monitoring the ceasefire. Subsequent missions in Angola (in which Canada did not take part) are: UNAVEM III from 1995 to 1997 and MONUA from 1997 to 1999.
1991-2003: UNIKOM—United Nations Iraq-Kuwait Observer Mission. Canada sends contingent to monitor the Knor Abdullah waterway between Iraq and Kuwait. Canada provides mine clearance and unexploded ordnance disposal duties.
1991-ongoing: MINURSO—United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara. Canada sends contingent to Western Sahara to monitor ceasefire.
1991-95: ONUSAL—United Nations Observer Mission in El Salvador. Canada sends contingent to observer mission to monitor ceasefire following El Salvador’s 12 year civil war.
1991-92: UNAMIC—United Nations Advance Mission in Cambodia. Canada assists in monitoring the ceasefire and establishes mine awareness.
1991-99: UNSCOM—United Nations Special Commission on Iraq. Canada sends contingent to supervise commission in Iraq.
1992-95: UNPROFOR—United Nations Protection Force. Canada sends a contingent to Croatia to monitor demilitarization of designated areas. The mandate was later extended to Macedonia to monitor border areas.
1992-93: UNTAC—United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia. Canada sends contingent to Cambodia to monitor ceasefire.
1992-95: UNOSOM I and UNOSOM II—United Nations Operations in Somalia I and II. Canada sends contingent to UN mission in Somalia. This mission produces no political success. As well, the mission gains attention and becomes a national scandal referred to as “the Somalia Affair” after Canadian soldiers are convicted of torture, assault and murder of Somali civilians.
1992: Creation of DPKO (Department of Peacekeeping Operations) to provide support to field missions.
1992-94: ONUMOZ—United Nations Operation in Mozambique. Canada sends contingent to Mozambique to monitor the elections in 1993.
1993-94: UNOMUR—United Nations Observer Mission in Uganda-Rwanda. Canada assists in verifying that military supplies do not cross the border into Rwanda
1993-96: UNAMIR—United Nations Assistance Mission for Rwanda. Canada sends contingent to the mission in Rwanda. Canadian Lt.-Gen. Roméo Dallaire led this mission to supervise the warring Tutsi and Hutu population. This mission meets significant hurdles as UN troops witness the slaughter of nearly 800,000 Rwandans in what will later be identified as genocide. Despite specific plans by Lt. General Dallaire to retaliate upon growing violence, the UN does not agree. This mission is viewed as a significant failure, resulting in not only the loss of hundreds of thousand Rwandans but also a significant loss of UN lives.
1995-2002: UNPREDEP—United Nations Preventive Deployment Force to the Balkans.
1995-2002: UNMIBH—United Nations Mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Canada contributes 30 civilian police.
1993-96 UNMIH—United Nations Mission in Haiti. Canada contributes 750 military personnel and 100 civilian police.
1994: Operation Forward Action. Canada sends contingent to UN blockade of Haiti.
1996-2002: UNMOP—United Nations Mission of Observers in Prevlaka.
1996-97: UNSMIH—United Nations Support Mission in Haiti. Canada contributes 752 military personnel and 100 civilian police.
1997: SHIRBRIG is officially established. SHIRBRIG is a multinational Stand-by High Readiness Brigade created to rapidly deploy at any given time by the UN.
1997: UNTMIH—United Nations Transition Mission in Haiti. Canada contributes a contingent of 650 military personnel and 60 civilian police.
1997: MINUGHA—United Nations Verification Mission in Guatemala. Canada assists in monitoring the ceasefire agreement.
1997-2000: MIPONUH—United Nations Civilian Police Mission in Haiti. Canada contributes 22 civilian police and police trainers.
1999: UNAMET—United Nations Mission in East Timor. Canada sends a contingent to assist in East Timor’s democratic independence from Indonesia.
1999-ongoing: MONUC—United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Canada is contributing 9 military observers.
2000-ongoing: UNMEE—United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea. Canada sends 450 military personnel between 2000 and 2002.
2000: Creation of mandate by the UN Security Council (Resolution 1325) for mainstreaming gender perspectives in peacekeeping operations and to identify the importance and significance of women’s roles in peace and security.
2003: On October 24th, the 1st annual International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers pays tribute to all men and women who have, and continue to, serve in UN peacekeeping missions. The UN invites all peoples and nations to celebrate the global day of ceasefire.
2003: Retired Lt.-Gen. Roméo Dallaire releases his influential book, Shake Hands with the Devil, recounting the mission he led in Rwanda and identifying its failures, such as the international community’s reluctance to commit further troops to stop the violence. Dallaire’s book becomes a significant contribution to the obstacles that peacekeeping missions are facing. His book identifies the failure of the international community to stop the genocide, despite the UN’s involvement.
2004-ongoing: UNOCI—United Nations Operation in Côte d’Ivoire. Canada is contributing 2 civilian police.
2004-ongoing: MINUSTAH—United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti. Canada is contributing 66 civilian police and 5 military personnel.
2005-ongoing: UNMIS—United Nations Mission in the Sudan. Canada is contributing a total of 31 troops, police and military observers. In 2006, the mandate of UNMIS was expanded to include its deployment to Darfur in support of the implementation of the Darfur Peace Agreement.
2005: Member states approve a standing civilian police capacity and military strategic reserve force to make peacekeeping missions more efficient and effective.
2006: The Canadian Association of Veterans in United Nations Peacekeeping name August 9th as Peacekeeping Day to recognize the service and dedication of Canadians who served and continue to serve in the name of peace and security. On August 9th, 1974, Canada suffered the greatest single loss of Canadian lives on a peacekeeping mission; 9 Canadian peacekeepers died while serving with UNEF I.
2006: Canada ranks 55th (out of 108) as a UN peacekeeping nation based on its commitment of military and police personnel. Over the years, Canada has sent over 120,000 troops as part of UN peacekeeping missions, and it has the 2nd highest peacekeeping fatality with 114 fatalities.
Sources:
http://www.canadahistory.com/sections/war/Peace%20Keepers/peacekeeping.html
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