Soldier: dealing with death 'is our job'

Channel 4 News

Trooper Pete Sheppard, on the front line in Afghanistan, writes: "It's crazy to think that one minute someone is there and the next he's not. But this is what we sign up to do and it is our job."

Trooper Pete Sheppard is a radio operator with the Brigade Reconnaissance Force (BRF), which is part of Operation Moshtarak against insurgents in Helmand Province.

The Ministry of Defence announced Sergeant Paul Fox, attached to the BRF, was killed on Friday 26 February following an explosion in Nad Ali.

It was a weird day on Sunday, weather-wise. It has been nice and hot for the past few days and then over night there was a lot of thunder and lightning lighting up the sky.

It was shortly followed up by a large outburst of heavy rain/hail stones. It only lasted a couple of hours and in the morning the weather has gone back to normal again with clear blue skies.

Was speaking to one of the lads who was in Foxy's troop and he was saying how it hasn't even sunk in yet what had happened. He then said it probably will soon though. I think that is generally the same feeling across most of us.

It's crazy to think that one minute someone is there and the next he's not. But this is what we sign up to do and it is our job.

The local children are jumping into the small canal near us to cool down. They seem oblivious to our presence and are enjoying themselves, somersaulting into the cool water. One of the interpreters joined in and was jumping in as well, while we just observed.

The lads were talking about getting to Cyprus. We all are looking forward to coming home now. Just counting the days down still.

Everyday is just one closer to coming home.

Can't wait.

First steps for stability in Marjah?

Mr Khalili (c) looks on as a US marine gave medical treatment to an Afghan mine victim in Marjan

By Chris Morris
BBC News, Marjah, Afghanistan

Afghanistan's Vice-President, Abdul Karim Khalili, has visited the town of Marjah in Helmand Province, days after the national flag was raised over the former Taliban stronghold.

Nothing too surprising about that, you might think.

After all, Marjah has been the main focus of Operation Moshtarak, the largest military operation carried out by Nato and its Afghan allies since 2001.

But Mr Khalili's fleeting visit - accompanied by Nato commander, Gen Stanley McChrystal and senior civilian representative, Mark Sedwill - draws attention to one of the most critical issues in this entire campaign.

Can the Afghan government, the central government in Kabul, actually deliver on its promises?

After stepping off a Nato helicopter, Mr Khalili certainly sought to reassure a crowd of local men gathered in a field on the edge of town.

'Only the beginning'

"We will bring peace and stability," he said.

"It is not going to be like the past. We will stay, and we will build and we will defend you.

"This," he said, "is only the beginning."

But do they believe him? Should they believe him?

There is no question that people have been badly let down before.

Mr Khalili's audience was polite but subdued. There were complaints about family members who were killed in the military operation, and about property which had been damaged or destroyed.

There is clearly a long way to go to establish trust. But Nato commanders hope something positive is beginning to happen.

Having a senior politician from Kabul visiting an area where the Taliban had held sway for so long in the absence of any government presence is a good first step.

"He came down to see Marjah and to represent the president," Gen McChrystal said as he watched from the sidelines, "[…] and, particularly in a difficult security environment, to get direct feedback from the people is really key".

For the full report click here for BBC Online

British soldiers take out Taliban bombers

An image from an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) of the successful strike on the insurgent IED-laying team

An experienced Taliban IED-laying team was recently destroyed by a Royal Artillery strike after having been discovered by soldiers from 1st Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland (1 SCOTS) on a routine patrol.

One of the men killed in the strike, the unit's commander and IED-facilitator, has been linked to a number of attacks on ISAF troops and Afghan nationals in the Wishtan area of east Sangin, Helmand province.

They were discovered when a ground patrol from 6 Platoon, B Company, 1 SCOTS, based at Forward Operating Base (FOB) Wishtan, near Sangin, searched an outhouse in a derelict compound.

Inside was an IED pressure plate, along with a gas bottle and magazine boxes for a PKM Soviet machine gun.

While extracting the cache, the British soldiers were aware they were being closely observed by suspected Taliban informants, but they returned to FOB Wishtan without incident.

The British soldiers kept the compound and outhouse under surveillance though and within two hours a man was seen entering the compound and making his way to the outhouse from which the IED-making equipment had been removed.

The suspected bomber was soon joined by another three men, completing the four-man-team typical of the IED-laying units which traditionally operate in the Wishtan area.

From Patrol Base Chakaw, one kilometre to the east, soldiers from B Company, 1 SCOTS, were able to watch as the suspected insurgents began digging at the base of a compound wall.

For the full article click here for the MOD website

Operation Moshtarak: finally working together?

Operation Moshtarak is different to other operations in the Afghan war because of the role taken by Afghan troops, writes former Paratrooper and video journalist Josh Fortune.

Josh Fortune is a former paratrooper who is now working for NATOchannel.tv as a video journalist. He has been in Afghanistan since April 2008.

"They look awfully like UFOs," I thought, looking up at the six glowing lights in the sky, which were hanging ominously above us several kilometers away like some sort of silent sentinels.

They were the next wave of Canadian and British Chinook helicopters, preparing to swoop down and deliver their load of Afghan and British soldiers into Northern Nad Ali to mark the start of Operation Moshtarak – which means "together" in Dari, one of the primary languages spoken in Afghanistan.

Moshtarak was supposed to herald the first truly joint operation where Afghan and ISAF forces would live, work, and fight alongside each other in clearing out the Taliban and bringing security to parts of central Helmand.

I must admit that prior to the mission I was sceptical. I had been involved in the heli-borne air assault on Operation Khanjar last summer, where 4,000 Marines were dropped into parts of Southern Helmand. That operation was supposed to be joint as well.

However, it rapidly became clear to me that in the area I was in the only Afghan presence was a couple of token border police. They had very little role in the proceedings and only ever seemed to hinder the Marines as opposed to helping them.

After two years over here – and many operations in Helmand - my cynical edge seemed intent on telling me that Moshtarak would be more of the same, that the Afghan forces would have little effect, and that ISAF would be doing all the work with the Afghan soldiers unwillingly riding the coat tails of their coalition counterparts.

The eerie lights in the sky wheeled into the Camp Bastion helipad, and the Estonian and Afghan soldiers I was embedded with began to make their way to their assigned Chinook.

As we ran towards the overwhelming heat and noise of the Chinook, I struggled to think of any time in the past that I had heard of Afghan and ISAF forces involved in an air assault together – I had certainly never seen anything like it, and I doubted that it had ever happened on such a large scale before.

The ride to our LZ (or Landing Zone) was a brief one, and after six or seven minutes of staring into the dimly lit face of the Afghan soldier sitting opposite me, an Estonian soldier pounded my shoulder and bellowed "ONE MINUTE" in my ear.

I put my thumb up and duly passed the message on down the line. The Chinook touched down, and we all bundled out – into thick, wet mud.

For the full article click here for Channel 4

Princess Royal visits troops in Camp Bastion, Afghanistan

Her Royal Highness Princess Anne, The Princess Royal, has today visited troops at their base in Camp Bastion, Afghanistan.

She met with soldiers and officers of The Queen’s Own Ghurkha Logistics Regiment, The Royal Army Veterinary Corps, 9 Regiment Royal Logistic Corps, 1 Battalion Coldstream Guards, The Household Cavalry Regiment, 205 (Scottish) Field Hospital and staff of the Joint Force Support Headquarters.

The Princess Royal, accompanied by Vice Admiral Tim Lawrence, spoke with dog handlers of The Royal Army Veterinary Corps and met the working dogs. She spoke with officers and soldiers of the Queen’s Own Ghurkha Logistic Regiment, who welcomed her with a traditional battle display.

Soldiers and officers of 9 Regiment Royal Logistic Corps, Coldstream Guards and Household Cavalry Regiment explained the role of their units in Afghanistan and showed examples of the equipment currently in use.



She later met with staff and patients of Camp Bastion Field Hospital.

Speaking after the visit, Captain Jo Barr, Adjutant of Bastion Joint Operating Base said:

“This visit has been a great morale boost for the troops. They see that dignitaries like the Princess Royal are genuinely interested in what we do out here.”

Corporal Edward Kingsland, Dog Handler, Royal Army Veterinary Corps said:

“The importance of today’s visit cannot be underestimated. The Princess Royal has taken a real interest in our work and experiences. I am personally delighted that the dog unit is getting the recognition it deserves. It will be the same for all of those units who don’t necessarily make it into the headlines.”

Picture credit: Corporal Tim Hammond/MOD

General McChrystal visits Camp Bastion

Today, General Stanley McChrystal undertook a whirlwind tour of Camp Bastion. He linked up with senior US Commanders, briefed coalition troops and met staff at the Field Hospital. It was a real bang for your bucks visit that allowed military staffs to have an extensive insight into Commander ISAF’s current thinking.



He told the mixed audience of British, US, Danish, Estonian and French troops that the most important thing that they can do is “to put yourself in the position of the local Afghans”. He outlined that he spent 75% of his time understanding the people and argued that by doing this, it significantly reduced the need to deploy soldiering skills. Only by understanding the Afghan people can you enhance credibility.

He then talked of Operation Moshtarak. “2009”, he said, “was all about condition setting. We knew that we had to take a different approach to the operations in Marjah and Nad-e-Ali. We were keen to let locals and the taleban know three things: firstly, we are going to stay, secondly, we are going in as a partnership and thirdly, Afghan forces are making the decisions”.

A member of the audience questioned him on rules of engagement and the fact that taleban fighters were using civilians as human shields. On the subject of civilian casualties his message was very clear.

“The rules are not fair. If we go after the fly with a sledgehammer we lose. The taleban are goading the coalition forces to over-react.” He said this was a feature of counter insurgency conflicts. The trick according to General McChrystal was to continue to develop our maturity in these matters.

“You almost have to be superhuman. Whilst being shot at you need to see the big picture, ask yourself what is the consequence of retaliation? This is a tough ask for our junior people”

He concluded his time by thanking each and everyone in the room. “Everyone here could be somewhere else probably making more money and being closer to family; instead you are doing something really hard for someone else – that makes you a pretty extraordinary group of people”.

Picture credit: Squadron Leader Dee Taylor

PICTURE of the day: St Davids Day on the front line

Just over two weeks ago the 1 Batallion The Royal Welsh were involved in the largest assault in Helmand since 2001.

But even though the men of B Company, 1 R Welsh are on the front line they still make every effort to celebrate St Davids Day.

For over 300 years the regiments that have come to make up the Royal Welsh have, where ever they are in the world, celebrated this very special day.


To mark the day the soldiers had a lamb stew delivered by one of the routine helicopter flights to the patrol base in the heart in Nad e-Ali. It made a very welcome change from the usual rations.


The officers and SNCO's serve the food to the rest of the company.


Major Ed Hill talks to the soldiers and guests and reads out a number of messages including one from the Queen.


Before the ceremony of the leek takes place the pieces of leek and the 'loving cup' are paraded round the table. The leek is eaten by guests and select memembers of the company.


Rugby, the finest game in the world. The soldiers staged a seven a side competition and while the company provided a handful of teams the French soldiers who work alongside the R WELSH, the Afghan National Army and Afghan National Police at the patrol base gave the Welsh teams a run for their money but the Welsh won the competition this time.


Picture credit: Major Paul Smyth

PICTURE of the day: Gunfire on St Davids Day in Camp Bastion

Soldiers of the 1st Battalion The Royal Welsh start off St Davids Day in Afghanistan with one of many traditions. The officers and senior non-commissioned officers wake up and serve a cup a ‘Gunfire’ to all the soldiers in the battalion.

Senior non-commissioned officers preparing the traditional 'Gunfire' at Camp Bastion in Helmand.

Sergeant Kevin Sharley (right) from Wrexham wakes up Corporal Justin Barrett from Caernarfon and serves him a cup of 'Gunfire'.

Gunfire is a cup of tea with a tot of rum. However, for the troops while serving on operations alcohol is not permitted. Even though there is no rum it is still a cup of ‘Gunfire’.

Where ever they are in the world, St Davids Day is a national celebration. And even though the soldiers are serving on operations in Helmand they take the time to observe the regiments traditions.

St David's Day was declared a national day of celebration in Wales in the 18th century.

Pictures: Maj Paul Smyth

‘Invincible’ Taleban routed in raids on border camps

Anthony Loyd in Peshawar, Times Online

Significant leaders of the Pakistani Taleban have been killed or captured in an onslaught of frontier ground and air attacks, a Pakistani general has told The Times.

“The militant command and control centres and their caches have been dismantled or captured,” said Major-General Tariq Khan, one of the country’s most experienced commanders in the frontier war with the Taleban. “The kind of hits the leadership has taken, the casualties they have taken, the TTP [Pakistani Taleban] is no longer significant,” he said. “It has ended as a cohesive force. It doesn’t exist any more as an umbrella organisation that can influence militancy anywhere.”

The claims come at a time of improved military co-operation between America and Pakistan, in which US drones have killed a number of key Pakistani Taleban commanders, and Pakistani security agents have arrested at least four senior Afghan Taleban leaders over the past month.

It was no coincidence that two US special forces soldiers waited in a courtyard near the general’s office in the Bala Hisar fortress in Peshawar. “The [US] Socom Special Ops Group has a few liaison officers with me,” General Khan said. “They iron out the issues on the border during combat.”

The general commands 45,000 troops from the Frontier Corps, the locally recruited federal paramilitary force based in North West Frontier Province (NWFP).

He is a central figure in Operation Rah-e-Nijat (“Path to Deliverance”) which began in the South Waziristan tribal agency in October, and has been killing or clearing the Taleban of the Mehsud tribe with a speed that British forces fighting there during the last century would have envied. The TTP have found themselves attacked by drones or harried by ground forces throughout all but one of Pakistan’s seven tribal border agencies, known collectively as the FATA.

“The military was keen to smash the myth of the Mehsud invincibility in Waziristan and to be fair it has done so,” said one Western diplomat. “And since, they have gone on to hit the Taleban throughout FATA with a shifting set of operations combining air power, artillery and assault.”

Click here for the fulll report on the Times Online