EvanL
03-19-2004, 02:26 PM
A study in contrasts
Canadian soldiers, legendary Gurkhas patrol together in Afghanistan
By LES PERREAUX / The Canadian Press
http://www.herald.ns.ca/2004/03/19/photos/1035.jpg
Gurkha Cpl. Desh Rai and Canadian Master Cpl. Guy Levesque chat with Kabul residents during a patrol in the Afghanistan capital Thursday.
KABUL - Sgt. Francis Guimond is in pretty good shape as the leader of an elite Canadian infantry unit, but even he watched in awe as a member of Britain's legendary Gurkha brigade strode up a mountain path the other day.
"From time to time he would offer to carry us on his back," said Guimond, a platoon leader in Company A of the Royal 22nd Regiment, the Vandoos, who are leading Canada's mission in Afghanistan.
"I think he would have had no problem. He found it very easy, compared to us."
Canadian troops and Gurkhas are patrolling together in a week-long exchange aimed at sharing techniques and soldiering style.
The Gurkhas are a brigade of renowned Nepalese soldiers who have fought for the British army for two centuries. Their motto is "Better to die than be a coward." They carry a 40-centimetre dagger into battle called the kukri. Legend has it that years ago, a kukri had to "taste blood" if it was drawn in battle. Otherwise, the owner was required to cut himself before putting it away.
The soldiers are handpicked from young men living in the hills of Nepal. About 30,000 people sign up every year for 200 openings. Among the physical tests, the soldiers must run uphill for 40 minutes carrying a 30-kilogram load in a basket.
"Their physical tests are far, far higher than ours," said Guimond, shaking his head in admiration for the strength and stamina of the Gurkhas. "And they consider it a dishonour to fail."
Cpl. Desh Rai of the Royal Gurkha Rifles led a handful of British and Canadian troops on a quiet patrol in eastern Kabul early Thursday morning, collecting intelligence on local religious leaders and mosques. The Gurkha's kukris were not on display.
Desh said he has easily absorbed two Canadian soldiers into his unit. They use the same procedures and tactics as British units, he said.
A typical Gurkha with his short, muscular frame, Desh said the main difference he has noticed is physical.
"The Canadians have big, big bodies so they move a little slow," he said. "Compared to my people, they take a little time to move."
While strength and fitness were not obvious factors on the jeep patrol, Desh still put one Canadian physical attribute to use.
Desh's British jeeps have a hole in the roof so a soldier can keep watch as the patrol drives down the road. Thursday he put his two lanky Canadians in the turret with machine guns.
"They're nice and tall," he said. "They can watch everything."
But Desh clearly has some advantages with his Asian heritage, a fact that becomes apparent on the patrol, which is partly designed to create goodwill with Afghans.
At one mosque he visited, Desh jokingly claimed his ancestry as Hazara, a minority ethnic group that is frequently the target of persecution in Afghanistan. Desh shares the eastern-Asian appearance of the Hazara.
His comment drew laughter from a dozen Hazara men, who slapped their Gurkha visitor on the back and shook his hand. Desh also uses his command of Urdu, a language known to many Afghanis, to help put people at ease.
Canadian soldiers, legendary Gurkhas patrol together in Afghanistan
By LES PERREAUX / The Canadian Press
http://www.herald.ns.ca/2004/03/19/photos/1035.jpg
Gurkha Cpl. Desh Rai and Canadian Master Cpl. Guy Levesque chat with Kabul residents during a patrol in the Afghanistan capital Thursday.
KABUL - Sgt. Francis Guimond is in pretty good shape as the leader of an elite Canadian infantry unit, but even he watched in awe as a member of Britain's legendary Gurkha brigade strode up a mountain path the other day.
"From time to time he would offer to carry us on his back," said Guimond, a platoon leader in Company A of the Royal 22nd Regiment, the Vandoos, who are leading Canada's mission in Afghanistan.
"I think he would have had no problem. He found it very easy, compared to us."
Canadian troops and Gurkhas are patrolling together in a week-long exchange aimed at sharing techniques and soldiering style.
The Gurkhas are a brigade of renowned Nepalese soldiers who have fought for the British army for two centuries. Their motto is "Better to die than be a coward." They carry a 40-centimetre dagger into battle called the kukri. Legend has it that years ago, a kukri had to "taste blood" if it was drawn in battle. Otherwise, the owner was required to cut himself before putting it away.
The soldiers are handpicked from young men living in the hills of Nepal. About 30,000 people sign up every year for 200 openings. Among the physical tests, the soldiers must run uphill for 40 minutes carrying a 30-kilogram load in a basket.
"Their physical tests are far, far higher than ours," said Guimond, shaking his head in admiration for the strength and stamina of the Gurkhas. "And they consider it a dishonour to fail."
Cpl. Desh Rai of the Royal Gurkha Rifles led a handful of British and Canadian troops on a quiet patrol in eastern Kabul early Thursday morning, collecting intelligence on local religious leaders and mosques. The Gurkha's kukris were not on display.
Desh said he has easily absorbed two Canadian soldiers into his unit. They use the same procedures and tactics as British units, he said.
A typical Gurkha with his short, muscular frame, Desh said the main difference he has noticed is physical.
"The Canadians have big, big bodies so they move a little slow," he said. "Compared to my people, they take a little time to move."
While strength and fitness were not obvious factors on the jeep patrol, Desh still put one Canadian physical attribute to use.
Desh's British jeeps have a hole in the roof so a soldier can keep watch as the patrol drives down the road. Thursday he put his two lanky Canadians in the turret with machine guns.
"They're nice and tall," he said. "They can watch everything."
But Desh clearly has some advantages with his Asian heritage, a fact that becomes apparent on the patrol, which is partly designed to create goodwill with Afghans.
At one mosque he visited, Desh jokingly claimed his ancestry as Hazara, a minority ethnic group that is frequently the target of persecution in Afghanistan. Desh shares the eastern-Asian appearance of the Hazara.
His comment drew laughter from a dozen Hazara men, who slapped their Gurkha visitor on the back and shook his hand. Desh also uses his command of Urdu, a language known to many Afghanis, to help put people at ease.