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Canadian helicopter crews and support personnel are headed to Mali and while there are dangers associated with any operation they have a much better chance of avoiding casualties than do the United Nations soldiers from Africa who are being killed on the ground, says a defence analyst who just finished working with the United Nations.

Canada announced Monday it would send two RCAF Chinook helicopters from the military base at Petawawa, Ont. as well as four armed Griffon helicopters to act as escorts for those larger aircraft. There will also be support personnel for the helicopters being sent to Mali, a country that since 2013 has been dealing with insurgents and armed Islamic extremists.

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Of the 164 military personnel killed in the Mali mission, 71 were from accidents or from illnesses, according to the Department of National Defence.

“Most (combat) fatalities are for African troops in vehicles hit by IEDs,” said Walter Dorn, a professor at the Royal Military College who has just returned from Africa where he was conducting research for the UN. IED refers to improvised explosive device or roadside bombs.