Canadian soldiers cannot avoid combat if they are to remain in the southern Afghan province of Kandahar beyond February 2009, Canada's chief of defence staff said Friday.  

The Opposition Liberals have called for an end to Canadian combat operations by that date, but Gen. Rick Hillier said it was impossible for the military to perform strictly humanitarian and development missions in the volatile area.

"If you're in Kandahar, you're going to be in combat operations," Hillier told reporters after an address in Ottawa. "If you're there, you're going to be in the middle of a firefight some way or another."

The Harper government has said Canadians will continue in a combat role beyond their scheduled pullout next February if other NATO countries provide up to 1,000 reinforcements and the military can acquire combat helicopters and unmanned surveillance aircraft — conditions recently recommended by the panel headed by former Liberal cabinet minister John Manley.

Hillier hailed the Afghan army for making great progress, noting that a recent operation was supported by three Afghan battalions, compared with the NATO-led Operation Medusa in 2006, which had none. 

But he said Afghan forces are simply not capable of supporting their own counter-insurgency operations yet.

Reports of rift with PM dismissed

Hillier also refused to comment on the number of detainees currently being held by Canadian Forces at their military base in Kandahar, citing the need for operational security. 

An investigator with the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission told CBC Radio's As It Happens on Thursday that about 18 or 20 Afghan detainees were being held at the base since Canada quietly halted the transfer of prisoners to Afghan authorities on Nov. 6.

The transfer agreement was suspended after evidence emerged that a prisoner in Afghan custody had been beaten unconscious with an electrical cable and a hose.

"We do our business to make sure that our soldiers … handle folks we detain on operations who are trying to kill us — or attack the Afghan police or army or other folks who are trying to rebuild the country — responsibly," Hillier said.

"Obviously, we want to get back to a resumption of these transfers as soon as possible."

According to the Globe and Mail, among Afghan officials alleged to have participated in torture of detainees is Assadullah Khalid, the governor of Kandahar whose responsibility includes all provincial detention facilities.

"Allegations are just that — allegations," Hillier said. "Obviously, we have worked with him because he is the governor there, and we have seen some phenomenal changes in the province."

He also dismissed reports of an angry phone conversation with the prime minister over the government's handling of the Afghan detainee issue, saying his relationship with Harper was "solid and good."

The general said he heard about the reports when he was on vacation in the Dominican Republic with his wife.

"I was on my third rum and Coke and I really didn't give a damn," he said with a chuckle.

The Newfoundland-born Hillier said he can accept whatever decision the federal government ultimately makes, as long as it honours the sacrifices made by the Canadians killed in Afghanistan.

With files from the Canadian Press