Following the practice of this blog, I note the death of Trooper Larry John Zuidema Rudd, killed by a roadside Improvised Explosive Device in Afghanistan, near Kandahar, on 24 May. Trooper Rudd served with the Royal Canadian Dragoons and was attached to 1st Bn, The Royal Canadian Regiment. He was from Brantford, Ontario, and was known to his comrades as a ” ‘Gentle Giant’ because of his intimidating size but friendly demeanour”. trooper Rudd becomes the 146th Canadian soldier to be killed in Afghanistan.
My brother the Mad Colonel put me on to this amazing CNN interactive map, showing all NATO and allied casualties in Afghanistan and Iraq since 2001 and 2003 respectively. It is a sobering thing to look at.