2RHPZ
05-10-2004, 10:15 AM
Elite Canadian Commando Force Planned Attack on Peru Terrorists
Top-secret military unit had secret plan to ambush guerrillas after hostage-taking
[S.I.S.I.S. note: The following mainstream news article may contain biased or
distorted information and may be missing pertinent facts and/or context. It is
provided for reference only.]
The Ottawa Citizen, Nov. 4, 1998, by David Pugliese
Canadian commandos planned to ambush Peruvian guerrillas during a 1996 hostage-taking
incident in Lima, according to a book to be released today.
The ambush by members of Canada's top secret Joint Task Force 2 anti-terrorist
unit was to take place if the guerrillas, holding 500 people hostage at the home
of the Japanese ambassador in Peru, accepted an offer of safe passage from the
Canadian government, according to the book, Tested Mettle, Canadian Peacekeepers
at War. The book's authors, Esprit de Corps military magazine editor Scott
Taylor and journalist Brian Nolan, write that the ambush plan was aborted after
negotiations for Canada to provide safe passage to the Tupac Amaru guerrillas
fell through.
A separate Citizen investigation has also determined that during the last
several years JTF2 commandos have been put on alert to deal with the threat
posed by Mohawk Warriors and in 1996 the unit was sent to Haiti to train and
advise the Haitian police SWAT unit. In Haiti, the Canadian commandos went on
raids to find arms caches held by extremists who threatened the stability of the
newly elected Haitian government. JTF2 soldiers also helped in guarding Haitian
president Rene Preval.
The commandos also deployed to the Oka and Cornwall areas to deal with the
threat from the Mohawk Warriors, and although it is not known exactly what they
did there, it is believed the unit conducted surveillance missions against the
natives involving in gun smuggling and organized crime.
The military has maintained a cloak of secrecy on JTF2, which based at Dwyer
Hill, just outside Ottawa, since its creation as an anti-terrorist team in 1992.
In 1995, the Citizen revealed that the unit had planned a raid to rescue 55
Canadian peacekeepers held hostage by the Bosnian Serbs. The JTF2 attacks on
Serb positions were aborted after the peacekeepers were released unharmed.
As a policy, the Canadian Forces does not comment on JTF2 activities.
In the years following the creation of the anti-terrorist unit, the Defence
Department has secretly expanded the unit to include roles similar to those
conducted by other special forces units such as Britain's Special Air Service.
The military has more than doubled the unit's size to 250 soldiers and the
commandos are deployed on each and every large-scale peacekeeping operation.
They have gone on secret intelligence-gathering missions in Bosnia. As well, the
unit provided bodyguards for Gen. Maurice Baril during the aborted Zaire mission
in 1996 and last year guarded Defence Minister Art Eggleton during his visit to
Bosnia.
The government has spent more than $40 million on the unit, although exact
figures are classified.
According to Tested Mettle, during the Peruvian mission an advance group of JTF2
soldiers was sent to Lima to do plan the ambush. The military's plan called for
the main commando force to be flown in a Canadian Forces aircraft as a kind of
"modern-day Trojan Horse," Mr. Taylor and Mr. Nolan write. According to the
book, when the Tupac Amaru guerrillas boarded the Canadian aircraft as part of a
deal for safe passage they would be most vulnerable to a surprise attack and
could be ambushed by the commandos. News reports at the time suggested that
Canadian troops would be used to guarantee safe passage for the guerrillas to
Cuba country.
When negotiations for Canada to provide safe passage for the guerrillas failed,
the JTF2 plan was aborted. The guerrillas were holding their hostages in an
attempt to force the Peruvian government to release Tupac Amaru members held in
prison. The hostage drama ended when Peruvian commandos swarmed into the
Japanese ambassador's home, killing all 14 guerrillas in the attack and rescuing
the hostages. The Peruvian commandos were being advised by members of the
British Special Air Service, one of the elite units that Joint Task Force 2
regularly co-operates with.
According to Tested Mettle, JTF2 commandos were also used on an aborted raid on
the Spanish trawler Estai during the March 1995 turbot fish war. The commandos
tried and failed three times to board the Estai because of high seas and poor
weather. The Spanish trawler was eventually stopped when a member of the
Canadian Coast Guard fired a stream of machine-gun bullets across the ship's
bow. The Spanish trawler stopped and surrendered to Canadian authorities and the
incident sparked a diplomatic row between Spain and Canada.
The book also reports that during the 1994 United Nations mission to Rwanda,
JTF2 soldiers provided security and set up an advanced operational base in
Uganda to launch long-range, covert intelligence patrols into Rwandan territory.
As well, during a 1994 visit to Canadian troops in Visoko, Bosnia, two teams of
JTF2 commandos watched over Prime Minister Jean Chretien. At one point,as the
prime minister toured the camp, just outside the base Muslim soldiers executed
one of their own they accused of being a traitor. Mr. Taylor and Mr. Nolan write
that the JTF2 snipers did not open fire on the Muslim killers as they did not
pose a direct threat to the prime minister.
Mr. Taylor and Mr. Nolan wrote the 1996 bestseller Tarnished Brass: Crime and
Corruption in the Canadian Military. Tested Mettle chronicles the often-heroic
efforts of Canadian troops to do their jobs overseas despite poor military and
political leadership at home.
Top-secret military unit had secret plan to ambush guerrillas after hostage-taking
[S.I.S.I.S. note: The following mainstream news article may contain biased or
distorted information and may be missing pertinent facts and/or context. It is
provided for reference only.]
The Ottawa Citizen, Nov. 4, 1998, by David Pugliese
Canadian commandos planned to ambush Peruvian guerrillas during a 1996 hostage-taking
incident in Lima, according to a book to be released today.
The ambush by members of Canada's top secret Joint Task Force 2 anti-terrorist
unit was to take place if the guerrillas, holding 500 people hostage at the home
of the Japanese ambassador in Peru, accepted an offer of safe passage from the
Canadian government, according to the book, Tested Mettle, Canadian Peacekeepers
at War. The book's authors, Esprit de Corps military magazine editor Scott
Taylor and journalist Brian Nolan, write that the ambush plan was aborted after
negotiations for Canada to provide safe passage to the Tupac Amaru guerrillas
fell through.
A separate Citizen investigation has also determined that during the last
several years JTF2 commandos have been put on alert to deal with the threat
posed by Mohawk Warriors and in 1996 the unit was sent to Haiti to train and
advise the Haitian police SWAT unit. In Haiti, the Canadian commandos went on
raids to find arms caches held by extremists who threatened the stability of the
newly elected Haitian government. JTF2 soldiers also helped in guarding Haitian
president Rene Preval.
The commandos also deployed to the Oka and Cornwall areas to deal with the
threat from the Mohawk Warriors, and although it is not known exactly what they
did there, it is believed the unit conducted surveillance missions against the
natives involving in gun smuggling and organized crime.
The military has maintained a cloak of secrecy on JTF2, which based at Dwyer
Hill, just outside Ottawa, since its creation as an anti-terrorist team in 1992.
In 1995, the Citizen revealed that the unit had planned a raid to rescue 55
Canadian peacekeepers held hostage by the Bosnian Serbs. The JTF2 attacks on
Serb positions were aborted after the peacekeepers were released unharmed.
As a policy, the Canadian Forces does not comment on JTF2 activities.
In the years following the creation of the anti-terrorist unit, the Defence
Department has secretly expanded the unit to include roles similar to those
conducted by other special forces units such as Britain's Special Air Service.
The military has more than doubled the unit's size to 250 soldiers and the
commandos are deployed on each and every large-scale peacekeeping operation.
They have gone on secret intelligence-gathering missions in Bosnia. As well, the
unit provided bodyguards for Gen. Maurice Baril during the aborted Zaire mission
in 1996 and last year guarded Defence Minister Art Eggleton during his visit to
Bosnia.
The government has spent more than $40 million on the unit, although exact
figures are classified.
According to Tested Mettle, during the Peruvian mission an advance group of JTF2
soldiers was sent to Lima to do plan the ambush. The military's plan called for
the main commando force to be flown in a Canadian Forces aircraft as a kind of
"modern-day Trojan Horse," Mr. Taylor and Mr. Nolan write. According to the
book, when the Tupac Amaru guerrillas boarded the Canadian aircraft as part of a
deal for safe passage they would be most vulnerable to a surprise attack and
could be ambushed by the commandos. News reports at the time suggested that
Canadian troops would be used to guarantee safe passage for the guerrillas to
Cuba country.
When negotiations for Canada to provide safe passage for the guerrillas failed,
the JTF2 plan was aborted. The guerrillas were holding their hostages in an
attempt to force the Peruvian government to release Tupac Amaru members held in
prison. The hostage drama ended when Peruvian commandos swarmed into the
Japanese ambassador's home, killing all 14 guerrillas in the attack and rescuing
the hostages. The Peruvian commandos were being advised by members of the
British Special Air Service, one of the elite units that Joint Task Force 2
regularly co-operates with.
According to Tested Mettle, JTF2 commandos were also used on an aborted raid on
the Spanish trawler Estai during the March 1995 turbot fish war. The commandos
tried and failed three times to board the Estai because of high seas and poor
weather. The Spanish trawler was eventually stopped when a member of the
Canadian Coast Guard fired a stream of machine-gun bullets across the ship's
bow. The Spanish trawler stopped and surrendered to Canadian authorities and the
incident sparked a diplomatic row between Spain and Canada.
The book also reports that during the 1994 United Nations mission to Rwanda,
JTF2 soldiers provided security and set up an advanced operational base in
Uganda to launch long-range, covert intelligence patrols into Rwandan territory.
As well, during a 1994 visit to Canadian troops in Visoko, Bosnia, two teams of
JTF2 commandos watched over Prime Minister Jean Chretien. At one point,as the
prime minister toured the camp, just outside the base Muslim soldiers executed
one of their own they accused of being a traitor. Mr. Taylor and Mr. Nolan write
that the JTF2 snipers did not open fire on the Muslim killers as they did not
pose a direct threat to the prime minister.
Mr. Taylor and Mr. Nolan wrote the 1996 bestseller Tarnished Brass: Crime and
Corruption in the Canadian Military. Tested Mettle chronicles the often-heroic
efforts of Canadian troops to do their jobs overseas despite poor military and
political leadership at home.