Zhari District, Afghanistan - Canadian military officials said Friday a joint operation with Afghan and coalition forces have disrupted enemy activities in an area of Kandahar province seen as a hub of insurgent activities.
A large quantity of weapons, bomb-making materials and narcotics were seized in the ongoing operation in Maywand district west of Kandahar city, they said.
The outcome of the joint operation involving Afghan, British, Canadian and U.S. troops would benefit other unstable areas such as Zhari district, where the Canadians have repeatedly confronted the Taliban.
"Maywand is, to our knowledge, an insurgent logistical node where things like bombs get made and moved to other districts," Capt. Chris Quinlan told reporters at Kandahar Airfield, the main base used by Canadian and other NATO troops.
"So we certainly anticipate that seizing bomb-making supplies in Maywand will have an effect of what will show up in Zahri in the future."
Officials said no insurgents were captured during the operation.
Quinlan said the operation provided an opportunity to bridge ties with local elders in an area where the population still needed to be convinced about the authority of the Afghan government.
The main goal is "convincing the people of Afghanistan there is a legitimate and viable option in supporting the government," he said.
Maj. Fraser Auld said insurgents in the Band-E-Timor area of Maywand were taken by surprise.
"And based on finds and some of the site exploitation going on, any insurgents in the area that did manage to get out had to do so in a hurry because they left exploitable material behind," Auld said.
He was referring to "a large find of IED components, homemade explosives -- a large quantity of that was found and destroyed in place." IED is the acronym for improvised explosive device, which has proved to be deadly against coalition troops.
Auld said the operation also seized narcotics and weapons.
"We know this area of Maywand district is a feeder for other areas" in Kandahar and the neighbouring province of Helmand, he said.
"We knew that if we could get in there for a prolonged period, we would be able to cause disruption that would ripple through and assist in other areas aside from just localized effect in Band-E-Timor."
Most of Canada's 2,500 troops are based in Kandahar province. They are responsible for security in volatile districts such as Zhari and Panjwaii.
