Canada's 125th Casualty Pte Sebastien-Courcy May he Rest in peace in the advance party Condolences to his Mother and Loved ones.
A Canadian soldier fell to his death Thursday while conducting operations in the Panjwaii district of Afghanistan, the Canadian Forces said.
Pte. Sbastien Courcy from 2nd Battalion, Royal 22nd Regiment, based in Quebec City, was killed in an incident that occurred approximately 17 kilometres southwest of Kandahar city at around 6 a.m., the military said in a statement.
He was the fifth Canadian soldier to die in Afghanistan this month, along with at least 42 other NATO military personnel.
Courcy, 26, arrived in Afghanistan in April and was part of an operation to separate the insurgency from the population in Panjwaii district, said Brig.-Gen. Jonathan Vance.
During this operation, Sbastien fell from the position he was occupying on a piece of high ground, resulting in his death, Vance said.
The young soldier had joined the military in 2006. This was his first deployment in Afghanistan.
Pte. Courcy served valiantly alongside his comrades to help build a better and brighter future for Afghans, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said in a statement. His tragic passing illustrates some of the risks that the selfless men and women of the Canadian Forces face every day in carrying out their duties.
Courcy is survived by his mother, Ginette, and his sister, Julie. He is the 125th Canadian soldier to die since the Afghanistan mission began in 2002.
We are only half way through the month of July and casualties for the NATO Coalition are rising rapidly. July is shaping up as the deadliest month of the Afghan operation for NATO international forces, with the number killed already matching the highest full-month toll of the nearly eight-year conflict, according to figures compiled by The Associated Press.
The latest reported deaths occurred Tuesday. They include a U.S. soldier who was killed by a roadside bomb in eastern Afghanistan and two Turks, including a colonel, who died in a traffic accident in the north of the country.
British forces, meanwhile, have been locked in fierce combat with Taliban fighters in another part of the province of Helmand. Britain's 9,000-strong military force in Afghanistan has lost 15 soldiers this month including eight in a 24-hour period. Those deaths have prompted national debate in Britain over whether the Afghan conflict is winnable.
Other deaths this month among international forces include four Canadian soldiers and one Italian paratrooper. In addition, six Ukrainian civilians and a six-year-old Afghan were killed Tuesday when a Mil Mi-6 transport helicopter crashed in southern Afghanistan. The helicopter's owners in the former Soviet republic of Moldova said the helicopter was shot down, and the Taliban claimed responsibility.
With all the sadness of losing troops and a child. We must draw together as a Nation. Please say a prayer or a few words at Chapel, Synagogue, Temple, Mosque, or wherever you pray. Show support for our Guys and Gals serving YOU, Canada and indeed the world in very dangerous places. God Bless them one and all. May they all return safely to the arms of their loved ones.
Nil Sine Labore
Robby
