Afpak Photo War
Archive 17

[Above and two below] United States Marines from the 2nd Battalion, 2nd Marines "Warlords" take position during an operation to hunt for insurgents following an exchange of fire in the Garmsir district of the volatile Helmand province, southern Afghanistan, Sunday, Dec. 20, 2009. AP

Spc. James Lollis, right, who was on his way to the gym, and Pfc. Dufour from the 2nd Battalion 12th Infantry take cover as incoming fire hits inside Command Outpost Michigan at the Pech River Valley in Kunar Province, Afghanistan, Saturday, Dec. 19, 2009. AP

Sgt. David Nix, from Charlotte, NC, from the 2nd Battalion 12th Infantry aims his gun towards the hills as incoming fire hits inside Command Outpost Michigan at the Pech River Valley in Kunar Province, Afghanistan, Saturday, Dec. 19, 2009. AP

An Afghan national army soldier carrying a bag of rocket propelled grenades shakes hands with U.S. army soldier LT Swisher from Task Force Denali Platoon 1-40 CAV as they arrive for patrol at Manzai village in Khowst province, Afghanistan, December 19, 2009. Reuters

An Afghan man smiles as he is searched by a United States Marine from the 2nd Battalion 2nd Marines "Warlords" during an operation in the Garmsir district of the volatile Helmand province, southern Afghanistan, Friday, Dec. 18, 2009. AP

Flight medic Sgt. Aaron Burrows of Amarillo, Texas with C Company Dustoff 3rd Battalion of the 82nd Combat Aviation Brigade 82nd Airborne Division treats a young Afghan boy, his body rigid from tetanus, as he rides on a MEDEVAC helicopter to a field hospital December 17, 2009 near Delhi, Afghanistan. The MEDIVAC unit is tasked with evacuating sick and wounded coalition forces and local nationals throughout Helmand Province where driving is often difficult and dangerous. Getty

U.S. Marine Lcpl Kirby Neuman of Casper, Wyoming with G Company 2nd Battalion 2nd Marine Division is carried into a field hospital by the staff of Alpha Surgical Company at Camp Dwyer after arriving in a MEDEVAC helicopter complaining of groin pain while on patrol December 17, 2009 near Delhi, Afghanistan. The hospital is tasked with treating sick and wounded coalition forces and local nationals in Helmand Province. Getty

A transfer case containing the remains of Pfc. Jaiciae L. Pauley sits on a loader Saturday, Dec. 12, 2009 at Dover Air Force Base, Del. According to the Department of Defense, Pauley, of Austell, Ga. , died while supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. AP

A transfer case containing the remains of Pfc. Jaiciae L. Pauley sits on a loader Saturday, Dec. 12, 2009 at Dover Air Force Base, Del. According to the Department of Defense, Pauley, of Austell, Ga. , died while supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.

An Army carry team stands near a transfer case containing the remains of Pfc. Jaiciae L. Pauley Saturday, Dec. 12, 2009 at Dover Air Force Base, Del. According to the Department of Defense, Pauley, of Austell, Ga. , died while supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.

A transfer case containing the remains of Pfc. Jaiciae L. Pauley sits on a loader Saturday, Dec. 12, 2009 at Dover Air Force Base, Del. According to the Department of Defense, Pauley, of Austell, Ga. , died while supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. AP

An Army carry team carries a transfer case containing the remains of Pfc. Jaiciae L. Pauley Saturday, Dec. 12, 2009 at Dover Air Force Base, Del. According to the Department of Defense, Pauley, of Austell, Ga. , died while supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. AP

An Army carry team follows a transfer vehicle holding a transfer case containing the remains of Pfc. Jaiciae L. Pauley Saturday, Dec. 12, 2009 at Dover Air Force Base, Del. According to the Department of Defense, Pauley, of Austell, Ga. , died while supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. AP [Heading for the Mortuary Center.]

U.S. Navy Capt. Ted J. Lucas, commodore of Explosive Ordnance Disposal Group 1, presents the Purple Heart to Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Jesse A. Cottle at Naval Medical Center San Diego Nov. 7, 2009. This is Cottle's second Purple Heart. His first was awarded Jun. 16, 2009. Both medals were awarded for injuries received while serving in Afghanistan. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Jake Berenguer/Released) Date Posted: 12/4/2009

Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus visits wounded warriors at Camp Leatherneck, Afghanistan, Nov. 26, 2009. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Kevin S. O'Brien/Released) Date Posted: 12/4/2009

A Coalition Soldier [Special Forces] provides security, with an all-terrain vehicle, inside a school, in Jalrez, Afghanistan, Nov. 11, 2009. The school was the site for an Afghan Medical Personnel Skills Improvement Mission taking place between November 12 and 13. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Teddy Wade/Released) Date Posted: 12/4/2009

Coalition Soldiers provide security, with an all-terrain vehicle, inside a school, at Jalrez, Afghanistan, Nov. 11, 2009. The school was the site for an Afghan Medical Personnel Skills Improvement Mission, taking place between November 12 and 13. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Teddy Wade/Released) Date Posted: 12/4/2009

U.S. Army 1st Lt. Alicia Morrison, right, and Sgt. Jesse Roney, assigned to Alpha Company, 7th Brigade Support Battalion, 10th Mountain Division, discuss their next objective, during a dismounted patrol, in Logar province, Afghanistan, Nov. 19, 2009. The mission's objective was to conduct village assessments in Logar province. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. 1st Class Leonardo Torres/Released) Date Posted: 12/4/2009

U.S. Army 1st Lt. Alicia Morrison, right, pauses, during a dismounted patrol, in Padkhap-E-Shenah village, at Logar province, Afghanistan, Nov. 19, 2009. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. 1st Class Leonardo Torres/Released) Date Posted: 12/4/2009

U.S. Marine Staff Sgt. Abreu, assigned to Embedded Training Team 1-12th, provides security, outside a school, during Afghan Medical Personnel Skills Improvement Mission, in Jalrez, Afghanistan, Nov. 12, 2009. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Teddy Wade/Released) Date Posted: 12/4/2009

U.S. Army Spc. Christopher Carroll, a rifleman with the Texas Agribusiness Development Team (ADT) at Forward Operating Base (FOB) Ghazni, waits to unload from a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter Nov. 21, 2009, in Jaghatu, Afghanistan. The ADT was in Jaghatu to perform a final quality check and document the construction closeout of the Jaghatu Veterinary Clinic. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech Sgt. Rebecca F. Corey/Released) Date Posted: 12/4/2009

A U.S. Army Soldier from U.S. Special Forces points an MK 12 sniper rifle during training in Rawah, Iraq, Sept.7, 2007. (U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Eli J. Medellin) (Released) Date Posted: unknown

U.S. Army Spc. Nathan Lamer adjust his gunners safety harness in preparation prior to a patrol in the Kapisa province of Afghanistan, Nov. 25, 2009. Lamer is assigned to the 410th Military Police Company (MP), 720th MP Battalion, 89th MP Brigade. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Matthew Freire / Released) Date Posted: 12/10/2009

U.S. Navy Diver 2nd Class Zachery Dojaquez gets out a river near Forward Operating Base Todd, Afghanistan, after searching for a missing Soldier from the 82nd Airborne Division Nov. 27, 2009. Members of a diving team with Mobile Diving and Salvage Unit 2, the Army's 82nd Airborne Division, coalition forces and Afghan National Security Forces are participating in Operation Hero Recovery, attempting to recover the remains of Army Sgt Brandon Islip, who was lost in a river Nov. 4, 2009. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Matthew Bash/Released) Date Posted: 12/2/2009

U.S. Army Soldiers with Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 17th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division construct a defensive fighting position at a combat outpost in Rajankala, Kandahar province, Afghanistan, Nov. 26, 2009. The Army operates from combat outposts to add flexibility to operations in their sectors. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Francisco V. Govea II/Released) Date Posted: 12/1/2009

A 60mm mortar round is launched from the mortar tube, on Combat Outpost Cherkatah, at Khowst province, Afghanistan, Nov. 26, 2009. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Andrew Smith/Released) Date Posted: 11/30/2009

Commandant of the Marine Corps Gen. James Conway [right, no helmet], Sgt. Maj. of the Marine Corps Carlton Kent and other Marines exit an MV-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft to visit Marines with India Company, 3rd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment at Forward Operating Base Golestan, Afghanistan, Nov. 26, 2009. The commandant and sergeant major of the Marine Corps are visiting Marines around Afghanistan for the Thanksgiving holiday. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Chad J. Pulliam/Released) Date Posted: 11/30/2009

U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Michael Keller, an aerial combat photographer with the U.S. Air Forces Central Combat Camera Team, watches for threats to an F-15E Strike Eagle aircraft with the 335th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron during landing at Bagram Air Field, Afghanistan, Nov. 26, 2009. Keller is deployed from the 1st Combat Camera Squadron at Charleston Air Force Base, S.C. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Michael B. Keller/Released) Date Posted: 11/30/2009

U.S. Army Soldiers watch a movie, on a portable DVD player, inside of their tent, on Combat Outpost Cherkatah, in Khowst province, Afghanistan, Nov. 26, 2009. The Soldiers are deployed with Delta Company, 3rd Battalion, 509th Infantry (Airborne), 4th Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Andrew Smith/Released) Date Posted: 11/30/2009

A U.S. Soldier with the 4th Battalion, 23rd Infantry Regiment helps an Afghan child try on a shoe in the village of Boragay in the Zabul province of Afghanistan Dec. 4, 2009. The Soldiers are conducting the Bundle Up humanitarian relief project, providing Afghan children with shoes, jackets, blankets, scarves and caps. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Efren Lopez/Released) Date Posted: 12/8/2009

U.S. Soldiers from Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 17th Infantry Regiment, 5th Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division take cover in a riverbed during a security mission in Chabar, Afghanistan, Dec. 3, 2009. The Soldiers are conducting counterinsurgency operations in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Francisco V. Govea II/Released) Date Posted: 12/8/2009

U.S. Army Pfc. Stevie Wise, with Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 17th Infantry Regiment, 5th Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, searches for enemy movement using night vision goggles during a security mission in Chabar, Afghanistan, on Dec. 3, 2009. Wise is conducting counterinsurgency operations in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. DoD photo by Tech. Sgt. Francisco V. Govea II, U.S. Air Force. (Released) Date Posted: 12/8/2009

U.S. Army soldiers navigate a stream during a security patrol in Chabar, Afghanistan, on Dec. 3, 2009. The soldiers are from Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 17th Infantry Regiment, 5th Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division. DoD photo by Tech. Sgt. Francisco V. Govea II, U.S. Air Force. (Released) Date Posted: 12/7/2009

U.S. Navy Sonar Technician (Surface) 1st Class Keith Boise attempts to steer from the bow of a Zodiac inflatable boat while Navy Diver 1st Class Daniel Muhlbach drives the two up river near Forward Operating Base Todd, Afghanistan, Nov. 29, 2009. Members of a U.S. Navy dive team from Mobile Diving and Salvage Unit 2 along with members of the U.S. Army 82nd Airborne Division are currently participating in Operation Hero Rescue attempting to recover the body of U.S. Army Sgt. Brandon Islip. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Matthew Bash/Released) Date Posted: 12/6/2009

U.S. Army Sgts. Michael Marshall, left, and Issac Johnson, both with Charlie Company, 3rd Battalion, 8th Aviation Brigade Task Force Corsair Medical Evacuation Detachment, conduct a preflight inspection on a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter Nov. 29, 2009, at Forward Operating Base (FOB) Wolverine, Zabul, Afghanistan. Soldiers are deployed to FOB Wolverine in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Efren Lopez/Released) Date Posted: 12/1/2009

Charlie Company, 3rd Battalion, 8th Aviation Brigade Task Force, Corsair Medical Evacuation Detachment, conducts a preflight inspection of a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter at Forward Operating Base Wolverine in Zabul province, Afghanistan, Nov. 29, 2009. U.S. Soldiers are deployed to the base to support operation Enduring Freedom. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Efren Lopez/Released) Date Posted: 12/1/2009

A U.S. Army Soldier sleeps, while the first pot of coffee of the day brews, on Combat Outpost Cherkatah, in Khowst province, Afghanistan, Nov. 27, 2009. The Soldier is deployed with Delta Company, 3rd Battalion, 509th Infantry (Airborne), 4th Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Andrew Smith/Released) Date Posted: 11/30/2009

John Amer, (R) father of Acting Sergeant John Paxton Amer, 30, of 1st Battalion Coldstream Guards, reacts as the hearse carrying his son's coffin passes on December 8, 2009 in Wootton Bassett, England. The repatriation Acting Sergeant John Paxton Amer came on the day the MoD was expected to release the name of a British soldier was shot dead yesterday in Afghanistan, taking the total number killed there this year to 100. The total number of UK troops killed since the start of operations in Afghanistan in October 2001 has now reached 237. Getty

Afghan President Hamid Karzai gestures during a joint press conference with U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates at the presidential palace in Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, Dec. 8, 2009. Karzai repeated his claim that Afghan security forces would take the lead in securing the nation within five years, but said his country would need financial help to pay the salaries and equip the growing army and police force. AP

A woman looks at an installation with pictures of 2009 Nobel Peace laureate Barack Obama, right, and 1964 peace laureate Martin Luther King in the Nobel Field at the Nobel Peace Center in Oslo, Norway Tuesday, Dec. 8, 2009. Obama will receive the Nobel Peace Prize on Thursday. AP

U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates (L) speaks to reporters aboard his plane while flying over the Atlantic Ocean enroute to Kabul, Afghanistan December 7, 2009. Gates flew unannounced to Kabul where he met Karzai, the most senior visit by a U.S. official since President Barack Obama announced a new strategy last week, sending 30,000 extra troops but pledging to begin withdrawing them in 18 months. Picture taken December 7, 2009. Reuters

A grenade and wooden cross are seen on the body armor of United States Marines Cpl. William Lins from the 2nd MEB, 4th Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion during a patrol near Khan Nashin in the volatile province of Helmand, southern Afghanistan, Sunday, Dec. 6, 2009. AP

http://www.defense.gov/home/features/2009/1209_afghanbuildup/

An Army carry team lifts a transfer case containing the remains of Army Sgt. Brandon T. Islip Saturday, Dec. 5, 2009 at Dover Air Force Base, Del. According to the Department of Defense, Islip, of Richmond, Va. , died while supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. AP

Joan Baxer of Ramsey, New Jersey holds a photograph of her son Sergeant Brian Baxer, 22, who has done two tours in Iraq and is awaiting deployment to Afghanistan, attends a rally against the plan to try those accused of plotting the 9/11 attacks at New York's Federal Court, in New York December 5, 2009. Reuters

[Above and below] United States Marines from the 2nd MEB, 4th Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion escort new Afghanistan National Police officers to their base in Khan Neshin in the volatile province of Helmand, southern Afghanistan, Saturday, Dec. 5, 2009. The police officers will be part of a mentoring program and work alongside the Marines. AP

United States Marines from the 2nd MEB, 4th Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion gather during a patrol where a gun battle with insurgents occurred earlier, near Shabu in the volatile province of Helmand, southern Afghanistan, Saturday, Dec. 5, 2009. AP

Soldiers from the 2nd Battalion the Mercian Regiment parade through Nottingham, England, Saturday Dec. 5, 2009. Christmas shoppers turned out along the metaled road, to welcome the British soldiers back to their home town, who have returned from a six-month tour in Helmand province, Afghanistan. AP

Conservative Party leader Davd Cameron tours the Kabul Military Training Centre in Afghanistan where he saw British soldiers training new Afghan National Army recruits, on December 5, 2009 in Kabul, Afghanistan. Cameron is on a three day visit to the region to meet with British troops and military chiefs in Kandahar, Laskar Gah and Kabul. Getty

U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Garrett Coxwell breaches a door to set up an overwatch position during a local security patrol in Helmand province, Afghanistan, April 9, 2009. Coxwell is assigned to Lima Company, 3rd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment. The Marines are conducting security patrols to prevent enemy freedom of movement. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Pete Thibodeau

Semi-trucks haul goods to eastern Afghanistan along the narrow and dangerous “K-G Pass” that winds through steep mountains and connects Khowst and Paktia provinces, Feb. 25, 2009. A $100 million, 100-kilometer improved road, funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development, is slated to start construction through the pass this summer. Coalition forces will build and improve numerous other roads in Afghanistan in the next few years. DoD photo by Fred W. Baker III