Its counterproductive for either side to target civilians. I don't believe our news regarding this conflict. Both sides kill civilians in the crossfire. In general, neither side intentionally targets civilians.
I support the original stated reasons for Canadian troops being in Afghanistan, but I don't support imposing our culture and values on Afghans. The people responsible for 9/11 must be brought to justice. We have no right to impose our values and morality on Afghans.
BTW, the Taliban weren't our enemy until we attacked them. The Taliban had nothing to do with the events of 9/11. The Taliban refused to hand over members of al Qaeda who were staying in Afghanistan as their guests. Since we attacked the Taliban, they have every right to defend themselves. Every Taliban we captured should have been granted POW status.
I disagreed with starting a fight with the Taliban because I believe we could have settled our differences with them diplomatically. We should have been sensitive to their culture. The Taliban had an obligation to protect their guests. But they could ask their guests to leave. It was wrong to insist they hand them over or face the consequences and now we are involved in an unwinnable war. They can't win militarily, but they can outlast us. So their victory was inevitable from the beginning and our leaders should have realized this from the start.
I am well aware of the Taliban's oppressive philosophy. But they aren't that different from mainstream western viewpoints from 200 years ago. In time they will change and become more open minded.
The Taliban's viewpoint on women's rights has nothing to do with bringing those responsible for 9/11 to justice. We should have stayed focused on the primary objective, not got bogged down in a war to impose western morality on people who aren't ready for this change.