Some 70 members of the Canadian Armed Forces have been deployed to Jamaica to train soldiers from Caribbean Community (CARICOM) countries who will travel to Haiti to try to restore order there.
According to a press release released on Saturday by the Ministry of National Defense, these soldiers were deployed on Friday at the request of the Jamaican government.
The ministry indicated that the deployment will have a minimum duration of one month.
The Hélios mission involves equipping CARICOM troops with peacekeeping and combat first aid skills. The Canadian military will also conduct validation and integration exercises.
This training will help prepare for the Kenyan-led and UN-authorized multinational security support mission in Haiti to support Haitian police “to restore security” in the country.
The Canadian soldiers participating in the deployment mainly come from 1er Royal Battalion 22e Regiment in Valcartier, near Quebec.
CARICOM troops will come from Jamaica, Belize and the Bahamas. As of January, the Canadian Armed Forces had trained nearly 300 soldiers from these countries.
Armed bands have taken control of many sectors of the capital, Port-au-Prince. They sparked violence that led to the collapse of the country.
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