Operation Falcon Summit (Pashto: ''Baaz Tsuka'') was a
Canadian
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
-led operation in the
Battle of Panjwaii
The Battle of Panjwaii was fought in mid-2006 with primarily Canadian and Afghan soldiers, supported by small elements of Dutch, American, and British forces against the Taliban. There were two separate times in which the forces were involved in ...
and, on a larger scale, in the
War in Afghanistan
War in Afghanistan, Afghan war, or Afghan civil war may refer to:
*Conquest of Afghanistan by Alexander the Great (330 BC – 327 BC)
*Muslim conquests of Afghanistan (637–709)
*Conquest of Afghanistan by the Mongol Empire (13th century), see als ...
.
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
forces launched the operation on December 15, 2006, with the intention of expelling
Taliban
The Taliban (; ps, طالبان, ṭālibān, lit=students or 'seekers'), which also refers to itself by its state (polity), state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Deobandi Islamic fundamentalism, Islamic fundamentalist, m ...
fighters from the
Panjawi and
Zhari
Zhari ( ps, ژړۍ, fa, ولسوالی ژری) is a district in Kandahar Province, Afghanistan.
Alternative spellings include Zheley (due to transliteration from Pashto), Zharey, Zharay, Zheri, or Zheray. The district was created in 2004 from l ...
districts of
Kandahar
Kandahar (; Kandahār, , Qandahār) is a List of cities in Afghanistan, city in Afghanistan, located in the south of the country on the Arghandab River, at an elevation of . It is Afghanistan's second largest city after Kabul, with a population ...
.
Canadian troops had been fighting with Taliban fighters in the area for several months. Although the operation was under British command, the majority of movements and elements on the ground were
Canadians
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
operating from
forward operating base
A forward operating base (FOB) is any secured forward Operational level of war, operational level military position, commonly a military base, that is used to support strategic goals and tactical objectives. A FOB may or may not contain an airfi ...
s set up in the district during the fighting of
Operation Mountain Thrust
Operation Mountain Thrust was a NATO and Afghan-led operation in the War in Afghanistan, with more than 3,300 British troops, 2,300 U.S., 2,200 Canadian troops, about 3,500 Afghan soldiers and large air support. Its primary objective was to que ...
and
Operation Medusa
Operation Medusa (September 2–17, 2006) was a Canadian-led offensive during the second Battle of Panjwaii of the War in Afghanistan. The operation was fought primarily by the 1st Battalion, The Royal Canadian Regiment Battle Group and other el ...
.
Information campaign
Early on December 15,
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
aircraft attacked a Taliban
command post
Command and control (abbr. C2) is a "set of organizational and technical attributes and processes ... hatemploys human, physical, and information resources to solve problems and accomplish missions" to achieve the goals of an organization or en ...
in the area, using laser-guided
bomb
A bomb is an explosive weapon that uses the Exothermic process, exothermic reaction of an explosive material to provide an extremely sudden and violent release of energy. Detonations inflict damage principally through ground- and atmosphere-t ...
s,
rocket
A rocket (from it, rocchetto, , bobbin/spool) is a vehicle that uses jet propulsion to accelerate without using the surrounding air. A rocket engine produces thrust by reaction to exhaust expelled at high speed. Rocket engines work entirely fr ...
s, and
fuel-air explosives to blast apart the makeshift fortress the
Taliban
The Taliban (; ps, طالبان, ṭālibān, lit=students or 'seekers'), which also refers to itself by its state (polity), state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Deobandi Islamic fundamentalism, Islamic fundamentalist, m ...
had constructed out of stone, concrete, and sheet metal. The same day, aircraft began dropping three
sets of leaflets over the region, the first warning the population of the impending conflict, the next a plea for locals to turn their backs on the Taliban and support NATO, and the third consisting of an image of a Taliban fighter with a large X through it to warn Taliban fighters to either leave the area, or face NATO.
Landmine accident
During the days prior to the operation, Canadian soldiers held several meetings with
tribal
The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide usage of the term in English is in the discipline of anthropology. This definition is contested, in part due to conflic ...
elders to discuss potential reconstruction efforts and to persuade locals to help support
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
in keeping the Taliban out of the area after the Taliban had been removed. While en route to one of these meetings (or ''shuras'' in Pashto) a Canadian soldier from the
Royal 22e Régiment, the "Van Doos", out of Quebec, stepped on a
landmine
A land mine is an explosive device concealed under or on the ground and designed to destroy or disable enemy targets, ranging from combatants to vehicles and tanks, as they pass over or near it. Such a device is typically detonated automati ...
. The soldier, Private Frederic Couture suffered severe but non-life-threatening injuries and was
medivac'd to a coalition hospital where he was stabilized.
The landmine had been planted the night before by two Taliban operatives, who were spotted, shot, and killed by Canadian soldiers.
Engineer
Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the l ...
s then came to clear the area of landmines, but they missed the one that Couture set off. The mine attack was the first casualty of the operation.
Preparations for battle
On December 14 in the
Helmand province
Helmand (Pashto/Dari: ; ), also known as Hillmand, in ancient times, as Hermand and Hethumand, is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan
Afghanistan is divided into 34 provinces (, '' wilåyat''). The provinces of Afghanistan are the primar ...
there was increased activity around British bases prior to the announcement of the operation. Soldiers were seen packing large amounts of equipment and ammunition for a long stay outside the wire, and troops began moving out towards the area of operations.
Although the Canadian commanders in Afghanistan did not officially announce that the
Canadian Forces
}
The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; french: Forces armées canadiennes, ''FAC'') are the unified military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air elements referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army, and Royal Canadian Air Force.
...
in the area would take part in the operation until the information campaign had been all but completed, Canadian officers gave very obvious hints that Canadians would be active participants. British commanders also stated prior to this that if need be Canadian personnel would be called upon for the operation.
Back at the Canadian Forward Operating Bases in the
Panjwaii District
Panjwayi ( ps, پنجوايي; also spelled Panjwaye, Panjwaii, Panjway, Panjawyi, Panjwa'i, or Panjwai) is a district in Kandahar Province, Afghanistan. It is located about west of Kandahar. The district borders Helmand Province to the southwes ...
, soldiers could be seen preparing for battle. Troops were gathering ammunition and web-gear; and last minute checks were being conducted on Canadian armored vehicles such as the
LAV III
The LAV III, originally named the Kodiak by the Canadian Army, is the third generation of the LAV (Canada), Light Armoured Vehicle (LAV) family of armored personnel carriers built by General Dynamics Land Systems – Canada (GDLS-C), a London, O ...
and
Leopard C2
The Leopard 1 (also styled Leopard I, before the Leopard 2 simply known as Leopard) is a main battle tank designed and produced by Porsche in West Germany that first entered service in 1965. Developed in an era when HEAT warheads were thought to ...
tanks.
Offensive operations
On December 19, the offensive operations of Falcon Summit began. A massive barrage of Canadian
artillery
Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during siege ...
and tank fire rained down on Taliban positions in the area of operations which killed around 60 Taliban. The
artillery barrage
In military usage, a barrage is massed sustained artillery fire (shelling) aimed at a series of points along a line. In addition to attacking any enemy in the kill zone, a barrage intends to suppress enemy movements and deny access across tha ...
lasted for 45 minutes and was supported by
heavy machine gun
A heavy machine gun (HMG) is significantly larger than light machine gun, light, medium machine gun, medium or general-purpose machine guns. HMGs are typically too heavy to be man-portable (carried by one person) and require weapon mount, mountin ...
fire from Canadian .50-calibre guns.
Shortly after the barrage ended, Canadian armoured convoys left the "protection" of being behind the wire and headed out into the
area of operation In U.S. armed forces parlance, an area of operations (AO) is an operational area defined by the force commander for land, air, and naval forces conduct of combat and non-combat activities. Areas of operations do not typically encompass the entire op ...
s and set up perimeters without a single shot being fired. The Canadians stationed themselves around the village of Howz-e Madad and are said to be on a "soft knock" approach with the villagers to help gain support.
Over the next few days, NATO forces secured several more objective towns with very little resistance from Taliban fighters. Canadian Leopard C2 tanks were requested for support by the head of the
Afghan National Army
Afghan may refer to:
*Something of or related to Afghanistan, a country in Southern-Central Asia
* Afghans, people or citizens of Afghanistan, typically of any ethnicity
**Afghan (ethnonym), the historic term applied strictly to people of the Pas ...
(ANA), but were turned down due to the high number of
anti-tank mine
An anti-tank mine (abbreviated to "AT mine") is a type of land mine designed to damage or destroy vehicles including tanks and armored fighting vehicles.
Compared to anti-personnel mines, anti-tank mines typically have a much larger explosive c ...
s littering the ground in the area where the tanks would have been used. Commanders believed that the lack of resistance they encountered was due to the bombardment of leaflets dropped during the information campaign.
Near the village of Howz-e Madad was a 10-square-kilometre area full of mud-walled fortresses and 900 surrounded Taliban fighters. Canadian infantry and armour surrounded the area, which was ideal for the Taliban's style of attacks. The complex build of the area the fighters were held up in made it nearly impossible to escape from, and to the east of the complex was a road built by the Canadians after
Operation Medusa
Operation Medusa (September 2–17, 2006) was a Canadian-led offensive during the second Battle of Panjwaii of the War in Afghanistan. The operation was fought primarily by the 1st Battalion, The Royal Canadian Regiment Battle Group and other el ...
, which ran along the
Arghandab River
Arghandab is a river in Afghanistan, about in length. It rises in Ghazni Province, west of the city of Ghazni, and flows southwest passing near the city of Kandahar, and then joins the Helmand River below Grishk. In its lower course, it is ...
, which made it impossible for any Taliban to escape using the road. Ten kilometres to the south of Howz-e Madad was a line of American soldiers, and to the west were more British soldiers making this a truly combined effort by the three nations to protect the Afghan people living nearby and bring down the Taliban.
After 48 hours passed, the Taliban fired. Two rockets flew past C Company just south of Howz-e Madad. This was responded to by a burst of machine-gun fire from the Afghan National Army, but nobody on either side of the skirmish took any casualties.
After the new year began, on January 5, a 45-minute firefight between about 20 members of the Royal 22
e Regiment and a force of Taliban fighters about half the size. Small arms including automatic rifle and machine gun fire,
rocket propelled grenade
A rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) is a shoulder-fired missile weapon that launches rockets equipped with an explosive warhead. Most RPGs can be carried by an individual soldier, and are frequently used as anti-tank weapons. These warheads are ...
s and
mortars were used against the Canadians. The Van Doos were conducting operations in the village of Lacookhal, which is just south of Howz-e Madad, looking for arms caches and Taliban fighters when the enemy force opened fire. By the time the fire ceased, at least two of the Taliban fighters had been killed with no Canadian or ANA casualties.
The next day, Canadian
light infantry
Light infantry refers to certain types of lightly equipped infantry throughout history. They have a more mobile or fluid function than other types of infantry, such as heavy infantry or line infantry. Historically, light infantry often fought ...
forces, backed by U.S. helicopter
gunship
A gunship is a military aircraft armed with heavy aircraft guns, primarily intended for attacking ground targets either as airstrike or as close air support.
In modern usage the term "gunship" refers to fixed-wing aircraft having laterally-mo ...
s, swept into the mud fortresses and routed out the remaining Taliban, most of whom fled.
References
CTV.caSoft approach working in Operation Baaz Tsuka
{{DEFAULTSORT:Falcon Summit
Conflicts in 2006
Conflicts in 2007
Battles of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)
Battles of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) involving Canada
Military operations of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) involving the United Kingdom
History of Kandahar Province