KABUL (CP) - For sale: One Canadian army camp on a prime piece of Afghan real estate, complete with clean water supply, sewage system, hot showers and bunker space for 2,400. 

Camp Julien, the main Canadian base in Afghanistan, is up for sale about six months after it was built at a cost of $42 million Cdn. The camp has another $50 million in nearly new tents, kitchens, generators, toilets, showers, and water and sewage systems - all portable items that can be had for the right price. 

Officials from NATO and the U.S. army have expressed interest in the base, but negotiations are far from complete. 
If no deal is found, Camp Julien could be nearly empty when the Canadian contingent of 2,100 soldiers is reduced in August to about 500. The government has yet to announce what role new troops will play or where they will live. Canada also has Camp Warehouse, a smaller base housing about 400 soldiers near the Kabul airport. 

In recent days, U.S. soldiers have inspected Camp Julien. About 250 of their troops will move in over the next month to take advantage of extra space. The soldiers are instructors who work with Canadians to train a nearby brigade of Afghan troops. 

Col. Alain Tremblay, the commanding officer of Canadian troops in Afghanistan, said a number of options remain open, but he is confident most of the construction cost will be recovered in a sale or lease arrangement. 

"It's quite an appealing piece of real estate," Tremblay said Monday, adding that the camp would need to be sold in the next 60 to 90 days. 

"I don't think this is going to be a gift to anyone, obviously," he said. "The intent is to prepare ourselves for another mission, one way or another." 

One option would be to pack up the camp and move it back to a storage base in Italy "if nobody is willing to pay the right price," Tremblay said. Another would be to leave the 500 troops there and lease out part of the camp. 

The equipment at the camp had previously been used in Kosovo and Eritrea. 

"It was a long endeavour to build that capability for Canada," Tremblay said. "We're not willing to let it fade away." 

Camp Julien sits in a former battlefield on a plateau between two bombed-out Kabul landmarks, the so-called King's and Queen's palaces. 

When troops from the 1 Engineer Support Unit arrived from Moncton, N.B., in June, they found a field that had recently been cleared of landmines. They levelled the field and dumped about $2-million worth of dirt and gravel to help drainage and to leave any leftover mines under about 70 centimetres of cover. 

The engineers surrounded the base with thick walls made out of cloth and steel-mesh sand containers, each about half the size of a garbage dumpster. A long fence of corrugated steel was put on top to block the view to potential snipers. 

Turrets and bunkers were built in case the base ever came under attack. The Canadian military flew in about $50 million in temporary buildings, including a modern hospital with an operating room and X-ray machine and three kitchens that each serve about 700 people at every meal. 

A few dozen bathrooms that fold into one truck-sized shipping container arrived with flush toilets and hot showers. Each costs about $100,000. The army also set up several hundred tents for offices and sleeping quarters. The tents cost about $20,000 each and are well insulated against the Afghan winter. 

As a bonus to any potential buyer, army weather forecasters say prevailing winds tend to push dust and other air pollution from Kabul away from the camp. 

The most valuable part of the camp may be water and sewage systems that are designed to meet Canadian environmental standards, said Maj. Dave Lauckner, a combat engineer with 5 Mechanized Brigade, based in Valcartier, Que. While Kabul has little clean water, three wells at Camp Julien have enough capacity to supply 6,000 soldiers. 

Engineers plan to start bottling water at the base to eliminate the $90,000-per-month expense of importing water from Dubai or Pakistan. 

The base is the best equipped in Afghanistan and the only foreign military camp in western Kabul, Lauckner said. Experienced soldiers say it is the best camp Canadian soldiers have had in decades. "It's unfortunate a lot of the brand-new soldiers think this is the standard," Lauckner said. 

"But this is by far the best and most expensive camp we've constructed. But we've had 10 years of practice in Bosnia, Eritrea and Kosovo." 

Some senior U.S. soldiers about to move in say they admire the base for its modern hospital and strong defensive measures. 

"The camp is outstanding," said Sgt.-Maj. Joe Stover of the 179 Infantry Division based in Oklahoma. Stover's unit is in Afghanistan to train the national army. 

"It's at the starting point of the valley, so we have easy access in and out," Stover said. "I believe it is a well-defended camp. 

"And the dining facility is excellent." 

The battle for hearts and minds is being won in Afghanistan, says a top Canadian military man. Case in point: the Afghan capital Kabul is gaining 10,000 people a month. 

"People are flocking to Kabul because Canadian soldiers are providing that security," said Maj.-Gen, Andrew Leslie during a speech at the U of C yesterday. 

He served as deputy commander of the International Security Assistance Force. 

The government of President Hamid Karzai is stable but the risk of attacks by those loyal to the ousted Taliban is high, Leslie said. 

"The amount of tolerance the terrorists have for other points of view is zero," Leslie said, adding, during his tour he assisted in the funeral for a 26-year-old female French foreign aid worker killed in one such attack. 

"They will try to kill you if you're doing good work." 

And the fact that many Afghans have known only war means it may take as long as 20 years to fully rehabilitate that country, he warned. "Most of them have known nothing but killing for the last 24 years. Convincing them to give up their arms isn't going to be easy." 

OTTAWA (CP) - Canadian reconnaissance troops in Afghanistan were forced to ready their weapons when they were confronted by two angry mobs on Christmas Day after their vehicle struck a pedestrian on a crowded Kabul street, inflicting minor injuries. 

The soldiers, members of the 3rd Battalion, Royal Canadian Regiment battle group, eluded one mob then set up to fire warning shots as the second mob they confronted prepared to assault them with rocks, says a report obtained by The Canadian Press. 

"The situation was deteriorating quickly to the point where warning shots were a serious option and deadly force may have been required," says the report, filed to National Defence Headquarters in Ottawa. The troops withdrew before shots were fired. 

Canadian patrols were involved in 160 traffic accidents through their first six-month rotation in Afghanistan, but the Dec. 25 incident was the only one in which they faced a mob, said Maj. Luc Gaudet, a public affairs officer at ISAF headquarters in Kabul. 

The soldiers, part of a 2,100-strong Canadian contribution to the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force, were in a motorcade moving between headquarters when their unmarked SUV was forced onto a dirt-strip median by a bus. 
The Canadian driver and the pedestrian saw each other. The pedestrian moved right and the SUV moved left, but then the Afghan shifted and stepped directly into the vehicle's path, says the report, filed 3 1/2 hours after the mid-morning incident. 

"The pedestrian impacted on the right front corner of the vehicle leaving a mark on the bumper and tearing the passenger side mirror," the report said. 

The vehicle, travelling between 40 and 50 kilometres an hour, continued on until the detachment commander could verify that the motorcade was not under enemy contact. Then he obtained permission to return to the accident scene. 

"While turning the vehicle around (the detachment) was confronted with an angry mob," says the report. "They broke contact with this mob and returned to the scene of the incident. 

"On arrival, they were confronted with another angry mob, many of which were preparing to assault the detachment with rocks." 

Soldiers readied weapons before the report says a person claiming to be an interpreter for the Greek army told them the victim had been taken to hospital and that the Canadians were only escalating the situation by remaining on the scene. 

The patrol commander warned people off in their native dialect, Farsi, and left the accident site. Other vehicles converging on the scene backed off. 

The soldiers initially thought they had killed the man, but Gaudet said he suffered only minor injuries to his face and ribs. 

"The man . . . has claimed compensation for his medical bills and received monetary compensation," said Gaudet. 

They finished their trip to the KMNB headquarters where military police launched an investigation. 

Many of the accidents involving 20-tonne armoured vehicles and the much-lighter vehicle of choice in Afghanistan - the Toyota - are messy affairs, but they have caused only one fatality. 

On Nov. 29 around 6:15 a.m., a oncoming taxi suddenly veered in front of a Canadian LAV-3 armoured vehicle in an apparent attempt to avoid a pothole. 

The three Afghans inside the taxi were injured and Canadian troops administered first aid. The Afghans were taken to the German hospital at Camp Warehouse, headquarters to the Kabul Multi-National Brigade. 

They were later moved to a hospital in Bagram, about 50 kilometres north of Kabul. MPs determined the collision was attributable to an error on the part of the taxi driver, said Gaudet. One of the Afghans died of head injuries on Dec. 7. 

Besides SUVs and armoured vehicles, the Canadians drive the infamous Iltis - an open or soft-topped light patrol vehicle (jeep) - and the similar new G-Wagon. 

The city, and Afghanistan generally, are known for their adverse driving conditions. 

In transit, Canadians' main defence against suicide bombers and other attacks is speed, limited by speed bumps. Trying to keep up with a convoy in crowded streets, with almost no traffic lights and Darwinian rules of the road, can be challenging. 

The reports warns, however, that vehicle accidents can breed "possible ill feelings towards ISAF personnel in general, Canadians in particular." 

"Locals may become less co-operative," it says. "Could lead to a deterioration of the rapport that has been established." 

OTTAWA -- Prime Minister Paul Martin will tell the UN that Canada is ready to join an international stabilization force in Haiti. 

"We'll be there when the conditions are right," Foreign Minister Bill Graham reported on Sunday after embattled President Jean-Bertrand Aristide fled the country after two weeks of rising violence. "It's important to get some forces in there. "I understand from speaking to (U.S. Secretary of State) Colin Powell this morning that the Americans will be landing troops today - at the invitation, of course, of the president." 

In a statement, Martin said Canada hopes Aristide's departure "will halt any further escalation of violence and allow for a new stability to emerge for the people of Haiti. We urge all parties involved to respect constitutional order and the rule of law. 

"Canada will contribute to a United Nations-authorized multinational force for Haiti. The exact nature of this contribution will be determined in the coming days following consultation with partners." 

Martin was to make the offer Monday while presenting a UN commission report on the private sector and development. Government officials said military planners were hammering out specific options for cabinet to consider this week. 
The UN Security Council voted unanimously Sunday to authorize the immediate deployment of an international military force to Haiti for three months to restore order. 
In Haiti, Yves Petillon, head of the Canadian International Development Agency's aid program in the country and one of only five Canadians left working out of the ambassador's residence, said Sunday that only about 60 Canadians had shown up seeking evacuation. 

"Right now, the situation is very tense," said Petillon. "Many groups are looting in downtown Port-au-Prince. 

"Apparently the evacuation plan is going smoothly. The evacuation is going on right now." 

About 1,000 Canadians are registered with the embassy in Haiti, but Petillon said there are likely many more living in the country. They were told of staging points for military-escorted convoys to the airport, but Petillon said most were heading there on their own. 

Most Canadian aid workers have left, said Petillon, the only Canadian CIDA worker still in the country. He said relatively few Canadians have taken advantage of the opportunity to leave because many are missionaries or Haitian-Canadians. 
"The majority of missionaries in this type of situation decide to stay," he said. "The same, also, for people who are Canadian and at the same time Haitian." 

A company of soldiers - about 120 - from 2nd Battalion, Royal Canadian Regiment in Gagetown, N.B., were still standing by in Trenton, Ont., along with members of the Joint Operations Group out of Kingston, Ont. 

Three Hercules transport aircraft dispatched on Saturday were operating out of the neighbouring Dominican Republic, each able to take about 60 people at a time. Graham said there were about 50 Canadian troops in the region as of Sunday. 

An unidentified embassy official at the airport confirmed at noon on Sunday that few Canadians had shown up. She said those who came would be taken to Santo Domingo, capital of the Dominican Republic. 

A Foreign Affairs spokesman said later that there had been two outbound flights by the Hercules transports on Sunday, with 28 Canadians on the first plane and 17 on the second. 
Many routes to the airport had roadblocks and she said the safety of the trip "depends on where you come from." 

Petillon agreed that many routes are not safe, but "with the Canadian soldiers, it's not a problem to go from the new embassy to the airport." 

Canadian troops were at the airport ensuring the safety of Hercules flights in and out. 

Darren Gibb, a spokesman for Defence Minister David Pratt, said the Canadian military is offering "flights of opportunity, meaning should Canadians want to leave, we will help them do that." 

"We're not saying right now when they're going in or where they're going, for security reasons," he added. 

There are two teams on the ground in Haiti - a group of planners co-ordinating the evacuation, and a small unit of JTF-2 special forces troops protecting the ambassador and embassy staff. The Hercs are also supplying those two detachments. 

Graham said Canadian Forces are clearly stretched, with multiple deployments, including Bosnia and Afghanistan. But he said Martin, Pratt and the chief of defence staff, Gen. Ray Henalt, have been considering military options since last Wednesday. 

"I'm confident they'll be able to provide the number of troops necessary to make a real contribution. They've already got some 50 troops down there at the moment, helping in the humanitarian process of removing people." 

Graham said Aristide made no request to Canada for sanctuary, nor was any offered. But Canada will be looking to do as much as it can for Haiti, he said. 

"We do have a special relationship with Haiti," said Graham. 
"Apart from being a francophone country and having our large diaspora in Montreal, we have a good track record in Haiti. 
"I think the prime minister would like to see how we can translate that into making sure that the transition is smooth and that we can try to get Haiti on the way to democracy." 

Graham said there has not been a flood of Haitian refugees looking to get into Canada, nor does he expect one. At the same time, Canada is not deporting Haitian refugee claimants. 

"We want to stabilize Haiti as quickly as possible to prevent people from having to leave the island." 

Petillon said CIDA programs in Haiti are continuing with local workers. The agency has given more than $1 million to the World Food Program, $300,000 to the International Red Cross and another $300,000 to the Pan-American Health Organization. 

Petillon said the agency is considering proposals from several other locally based humanitarian organizations and expects to approve some over the coming days.