4 posts tagged “nuristan province”
From Stars and Stripes
Soldiers in Afghanistan settle in at 6,000 feet
By Drew Brown, Stars and Stripes
Mideast edition, Thursday, April 24, 2008
NURISTAN PROVINCE, Afghanistan — Building a combat outpost from scratch on the side of a mountain in Afghanistan means flying everything in by helicopter.
For the troops of Task Force Saber, here in northeastern Afghanistan, the process starts at night as two CH-47 Chinooks drop them and their equipment on a small knoll overlooking a thin, gray ribbon of a river 2,000 feet below.
A few dozen soldiers get off the birds. For the next three days or so, their job will be to carve a small fortress out of the hard-packed stony earth of the mountain, less than a kilometer from the border with Pakistan. The purpose of the outpost is to guard a key bridge and help Afghan security forces re-establish control of a border crossing.
Roughly half the troops remain with the supply pallet at the landing zone, while the rest begin trudging uphill to set up the command post, a listening station and the rear pickets.
It’s only a 200-meter climb, but the going is steep and rocky, and the soldiers resemble pack mules under the bright glare of the full moon. Many of them carry rucksacks that weigh 100 pounds or more, not including their body armor, helmets, weapons and ammunition, which easily add another 40 to 50 pounds.
The altitude is nearly 6,000 feet. The peaks of the high mountains in the distance are covered with snow. As Lt. Col. Chris Kolenda, commander of 1st Squadron, 91st Cavalry Regiment, also known as Task Force Saber, puts it, hiking up and down hill at that altitude, under that much weight, can be “a significant emotional experience.”
The colonel has a talent for understatement. The short trek uphill quickly turns into a slog. Most of these soldiers are infantry troops and are in top shape, but even the best can only take a few steps before they have to stop and catch their breath.
The column reaches a level spot. Capt. Jason Pieri, 30, of Buffalo, N.Y., Capt. Matthew Kikta, 27, of Lake Forest, Calif., and Command Sgt. Maj. Victor Pedraza, 44, of McAllen, Texas, set up their command post under a clump of trees.
Click here to read the rest of the story and view photos.
From The Times Online UK
May 5, 2008
Now Americans attempt to take up The Great Game in Afghanistan
By Richard Beeston in Naray
Chris Kolenda does not own a pith helmet or a red tunic, never carries a swagger stick and is forbidden from growing a moustache and sideburns. In almost every other respect the American army officer could be a character straight from the annals of the British Raj.
In his home on a rocky outcrop in the foothills of the breathtaking Hindu Kush mountain range, Lieutenant-Colonel Kolenda is a modern-day “Man Who Would Be King”. He is master of a remote corner of eastern Afghanistan, the region that his British colonial predecessors fought to control more than a century ago.
The fresh-faced, 42-year-old historian turned soldier laughs at the comparison, but admits there are similarities. Back then, young officers in the Indian Army devoted their careers to taming this frontier region in a struggle known as The Great Game. American troops have notched up seven years in the same pursuit. Many believe that the endeavour will last a generation or more.
When Colonel Kolenda's unit of paratroopers arrived here last summer for a 15-month tour, they were at once embroiled in a fierce battle with local fighters. The Americans, armed with artillery and air power, won each engagement but at a toll of four dead soldiers and thirty-one injured. Even today the mountain gorges echo to the rumble of US artillery fire and the crack of rifle shot.
As he explains - and as the British learnt - firepower alone will not win this counter-insurgency battle. American soldiers have had to become tribal experts, linguists and aid workers in order to win over the local population and isolate the militant groups
“When you get development you see better security,” said the officer, whose men have brought 295 tonnes of aid into this province, where most villages do not have running water, electricity or access to basic services.
The Americans have also built 200km (124 miles) of roads, nine bridges, twenty clinics and sixteen schools. The transformation, in a region neglected during the 30 years of war, is dramatic. One clinic, built a few months ago for a local tribe, has had 9,000 visits in the few months since it opened. In recent days, Afghan workmen were busy building a bridge over the raging Kunar river, after locals had risked their lives to cross on a raft made of inner-tubes and planks.
Sometimes the economic battle against the Taleban and other militant Islamic groups is about the small details. “If the daily rate for a fighter is $5 a day, then I will pay $5.50 for someone to work on a construction site,” said Commander Dan Dwyer, who runs the reconstruction effort in Kunar province.
There is evidence that the US strategy is working. An apprentice school near the regional capital, Asadabad, which teaches carpentry, masonry and plumbing, is full of young men learning a trade who might otherwise have taken up a gun.
“People in my village told me not to work with the Americans, but I decided it was an opportunity I could not turn down,” said Abdul Khaliq, who is training to become a bricklayer. “This is for my future.”
But if America appears to be winning the battle here, it is far from winning the war. As we left a remote US base, the wreckage of a convoy of lorries ambushed by gunmen blocked the road on the valley below.
Britain spent much of a century trying to subdue this rugged land and failed. As the Americans admit, it is early days in their campaign.
From Combined Joint Task Force - 82
Chosen Company spreads their presence in Nuristan
Wirtten by Army Sgt Henry Selzer 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team Public Affairs
Sunday March 9, 2008
NURISTAN PROVINCE, Afghanistan – Just after sunrise on the first day of March, Soldiers of 2nd Platoon, Chosen Company, 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, set out for a long day of patrolling the mountains around their base in search of any signs of enemy activity in the area.
Third Squad set out from Forward Operating Base Bella and moved throughout the valley of Jamachgal-Khwar to begin a long day of traversing the steep mountains of the valley. They completed their patrol late in the afternoon after what looks like a 3-kilometer (1.86-mile) trek on a map, but in reality it was much longer.
These patrols have a purpose. The Soldiers of 3rd Squad conduct these patrols to put boots on ground in the hard-to-reach areas of the valleys and show the Afghans they are available for assistance.
“The purpose of these patrols is to keep the enemy off balance and provide FOB Bella with more security.” said Staff Sgt John Oftinoski, 26, of Middleton, Conn., a squad leader in 2nd Platoon.
By conducting the patrols in the valleys surrounding their FOB, the Soldiers of 3rd Squad are providing the base with more separation from the enemy and strengthening relationships with Afghans in the area.
“We like to make our presence known and let the locals know that we are not going anywhere and we are here to help,” said Spc. James Schmidt, 26, of Decatur, Ill., a gunner and radio-telephone operator for 3rd Squad.
Although the Soldiers of 3rd Squad did not see much activity during the day’s patrol, it helped them become more familiar with the area they will be protecting throughout the summer. “As the summer gets closer and enemy activity becomes more frequent, the length and amount of patrols we will be conducting will increase,” said Oftinoski.
My prayers and sincerest condolences to the families of those who gave their all on Saturday. While the full details have not been released I know there are families around this nation and in Italy who are mourning the loss of ones they love so much. May God hold them in his comforting embrace.
