| Canada will send between 200 and 500 additional soldiers and a squadron of Leopard tanks to Afghanistan to battle resurgent Taliban fighters, the Canadian government said Friday. The extra soldiers and equipment are "a necessary response to the Taliban," the Department of National Defence said in a release. The department said it will add an infantry company from Quebec's Royal 22nd Regiment, the Van Doos, 15 Leopard tanks based in Edmonton and armoured engineering vehicles called Badgers to help with rebuilding projects. Four tanks will be shipped by air to Afghanistan as quickly as possible, Gen. Rick Hillier, the chief of defence staff, told reporters. The tanks will help battle the Taliban, which has changed its tactics and been fighting more conventional battles. The reinforcements will raise the total number of soldiers to about 2,500. The department's news release said there are currently "more than 2,000 members of the Canadian Forces" in Afghanistan. However, military officials say the number is closer to 2,300, adding that the number of soldiers in the country fluctuates constantly. |