A militant attack that freed hundreds of prisoners in Kandahar has created a "serious security situation" that adversely affects Canada's mission in Afghanistan, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said Thursday. - He was responding in Huntsville, Ont., to reporters' questions about the attack on June 13 that freed most of the prisoners at Kandahar's main prison, including about 400 suspected Taliban militants. - "I don't want to minimize: this is a serious security situation. It's a setback," Harper said. - "It's particularly a setback in our plans. As you know, we have a plan to pass full responsibility to the Afghan authorities by 2011. This is a setback in that regard," he said. - In March, Harper's Conservatives, with support from the Liberals, passed a motion that would keep Canadian soldiers in Kandahar until 2011. About 2,500 Canadian soldiers are currently deployed in Afghanistan, mostly in and around Kandahar, as part of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force. - Harper said the good news was that the Afghan government responded quickly and directly, and that Afghan forces were working quite well with Canadian forces to deal with some of the consequences of the prison break. - The prime minister pointed out that the prison is an Afghan government institution, so security there is the responsibility of Afghan forces. - "But, obviously, this affects all of our operations," he said. "That's why we are working carefully with the Afghan government to address the consequences of this and, obviously, to deal with reconstruction of the prison." - 56 Taliban confirmed dead in battle: Afghan Defence Ministry - As Harper spoke, Afghan and Canadian forces continued a military operation launched Wednesday against hundreds of insurgents gathered in villages outside Kandahar. - Military officials declared victory over the Taliban on Thursday, saying they had almo...
A militant attack that freed hundreds of prisoners in Kandahar has created a "serious security situa...
