Pretty sure no one outside of Canada going to notice this

Canada to End Bombing in Iraq and Syria, Expand Training Troops

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau | Photo: Reuters

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that people suffering at the hands of the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria need Canada’s help. Referencing a “difficult decade in Afghanistan,” Trudeau announced Monday that his country will end airstrikes against the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria, while vowing to triple Canadian forces on the ground to train Kurdish troops in Iraq.

The decision will put a stop to all coalition bombing being carried out by six Canadian jets in Iraq and Syria by Feb. 22, while expanding training forces for the next two years.

“It is important to understand that while airstrike operations can be very useful to achieve short-term military and territorial gains, they do not on their own achieve long-term stability for local communities,” Trudeau said on Monday, according to Canada’s public broadcaster CBC.

“Canadians learned this lesson first hand during a very difficult decade in Afghanistan, where our forces became expert military trainers renowned around the world,” Trudeau added.

Trudeau, elected last October on promises to revise Canada’s role in bombing ISIS, plans to increase the number of soldiers training Kurds in northern Iraq to about 210. Surveillance and refueling aircrafts will also remain in the region.

“The people terrorized by ISIS every day don't need our vengeance, they need our help,” said Trudeau.

The combat plan will contribute over US$1.1 billion and will be in place for two years initially before being reassessed.

Washington welcomed the announcement on Monday and U.S. press secretary Peter Cook said the Canadian example “sets a good tone” for other countries considering stepping up their involvement in the combat mission.

Conservative politicians in Canada rejected Trudeau’s move as a “shameful step backward,” while the social democratic NDP slammed Trudeau for sending Canadian soldiers on an “open-ended combat military mission in Iraq," CBC reported.

The Canadian public is divided on the issue of military involvement in the Middle East, according to opinion polls cited by Reuters.

Canadian airstrikes against the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria were launched in 2014 under former Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

Canada’s troops were involved in the war in Afghanistan for 10 years, during which 158 Canadian soldiers were killed.

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