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Bombardier Karl Manning, RIP

The 156th Canadian to die in the Afghanistan war was Bombardier Karl Manning, of Chicoutimi, Québec. He was an artillery soldier and radar operator, who spent the better part of a nearly completed tour at a remote base amid the desolate hard scrub villages of western Panjwaii.

Panjwaii is just another Afghan sandpit, a stark, hostile place that for years was a Taliban sanctuary. The Canadian battle group, led by the 1st Battalion of the Royal 22nd Regiment -- the famous "Van Doos" -- pushed into the area last December.

Manning's body was discovered by fellow soldiers at the outpost in the Zangabad area on Friday. Brigadier-General Dean Milner, officer commanding, said "While an investigation is still ongoing to establish the circumstances surrounding his death, foul play and enemy action have been ruled out."

That is the military way of saying Bombardier Manning took his own life. He was the fourth Canadian soldier serving in Afghanistan to do so. His reasons will likely never be known.