Afghanistan

On 11 September 2001, terrorists hijacked four planes in the United States. They crashed two planes into the World Trade Center towers, one into the Pentagon, and another in rural Pennsylvania. Almost 3,000 people died. Evidence suggested the terrorist group al-Qaeda, led by Osama bin Laden, was responsible. An extremist regime, the Taliban, had provided sanctuary for al-Qaeda in Afghanistan. The Afghan government refused to extradite bin Laden and his militants. The US formed an international coalition to use force against the Taliban. Its goal was to end this safe haven for terrorists, stabilize the country and help the Afghan people after years of conflict. More than 40,000 Canadians would serve in the region. This was the largest deployment of our troops since the Second World War. The conflict lasted more than 12 years— the longest in Canada's history.