PAKTIKA PROVINCE, Afghanistan — To the U.S. infantry soldier north-eastern Afghanistan is unforgiving on many levels - extreme weather, isolation and xenophobic tribes ... but the true suffering begins and ends with the rugged, soul-sapping terrain. It is a country of severe alpine landscapes that seem to go on forever in merciless, jagged waves of cliff faces, boulder fields and stony hillsides – and yet somehow life took root here eons ago and never gave up its hold.
Tiny villages carved into the spring-fed nooks and crannies of this harshest of environments dot the countryside haphazardly like stars dot the sky. In Paktika province alone there are dozens of them, if not hundreds. Leaders on both sides of the 10-year conflict, that has defined this place to the rest of the world, knew early on that the hearts and minds campaign could be won in these bright green pockets of life.
The small village of Derka, near Combat Outpost Zerok, Paktika province, is one of these hidden gems. It’s a bucolic community of earthen homes seemingly epoxied to the hillsides on either side of a valley that is viridescent with crops, fields of grass and tall shady trees. The inhabitants live off the land, making their homes from the earth itself, and earn what income they can by harvesting pine nuts from the diminutive evergreens that cover the mountainsides.
Like the vast majority of Afghanistan’s tiny communities, Derka is extremely difficult to get to, but on Sept. 19, a company of Soldiers from Task Force 2-28, 172nd Infantry Brigade, along with their partners in the local Afghan Uniformed Police and the Afghan National Army, made it their duty to do so.
The dangerous and well-funded Haqqani network, which has close ties to the Taliban, has been invading small villages like Derka for years to use as staging grounds for attacks on Coalition Forces.
“We have reports that the most active Haqqani element in Paktika could be using Derka as a safe haven,” said Capt. Craig Halstead of Sioux Falls, S.D., commander of Company B, TF 2-28. “So going in there could be like taking a baseball bat to a beehive.”
The mission was to clear the village and disrupt possible insurgent activity in the area, but also to make contact and convince the small secluded populace that the government of Afghanistan exists to help them just as much as the large population centers.
Unfortunately for the soldiers stationed at COP Zerok, the vast majority of roads in their area of operation are impassable even to the U.S. military’s high-tech armored vehicles.
“We don’t drive here,” said Halstead. “If we need to get somewhere outside the wire, we walk.”
So in the cool darkness of night, they walked, and walked, and walked some more, avoiding roads altogether to maximize stealth and security. For seven hours the element trudged methodically through jumbled, backbreaking stream beds, crossing the running water dozens of times until every boot was soaked through, and every foot was freezing.
Finally, they slipped into the mouth of the small valley that cradles Derka and waited.
At dawn the villagers woke to find their little pool of life full of strangers.
The ANA and AUP worked fast, sweeping through the buildings and rounding up suspicious individuals before they could rub the sleep from their eyes.
Despite the unavoidable irritation at the intrusion, care was taken to treat each villager as respectfully as possible.
“Whether or not this first mission [to Derka] is going to have hugs and kisses all around, we can still have a positive impact on them so that they want us to come back,” said Halstead.
The home of a wealthy merchant that overlooked the valley was chosen to be the center of operations for the day. The U.S. and Afghan forces set up shop in a courtyard, sharing the space with chickens, goats, a camel and several very unfriendly dogs.
Throughout the morning the intelligence teams collected information as other soldiers pulled security. The hillside gave them good vantage of the village and its shy inhabitants.
Children often hide from strangers in these places, but occasionally a few of the braver boys would come out of the woodwork to peer at the goings on of the day or even approach and speak to the ANA or AUP soldiers. The boys did not approach the U.S. soldiers, as these strangers to them were apparently too intimidating to reach out to. According to what the village elders were saying in the courtyard, Derka had never been visited by U.S. ground forces.
Little girls are even rarer to catch glimpses of, but a few did show themselves – running around in their pretty dresses to feed the camels, fetch water or do other chores. The bravest ventured out just to look at all the action, but would dart back into their hiding places like frightened rabbits, even though the Soldiers would smile or a wave at them from afar.
At one point a picture was snapped of a group of youngsters watching from the roof of a stable. Looks of sheer terror passed over their faces and half of them ran away screaming and crying as if the photographer had pointed a weapon at them.
Around mid-day Derka received another visitor. Brig. Gen. Gary Volesky, 1st Cavalry Division Deputy Commanding General, had been monitoring the operation and decided to put his own boots on the ground.
The sound of his UH-60 Black Hawk landing in the streambed was dramatic enough to bring the children of Derka out into the light. They appeared in clusters on the rooftops, or as little heads peeking around corners and stacked up in doorways. The powerful machine which can inspire awe in soldiers who see it every day, literally landed in their back yard, kicking up a storm of dust and debris.
Volesky emerged from the settling billows and was greeted warmly by Armanshah, Naka District chief of police, AUP. The two strolled up the hillside together and Volesky asked about the enemy activity in the area.
“They are sneaky,” said Armanshah. “They come back and forth across the border and use villages like this one to hide in – but we are good at finding them.”
“Do you need anything?” Volesky asked the police chief.
“Only that you and I be blessed with long, happy lives,” smiled Armanshah.
When asked how the Afghan government can help them, the village elders’ requests were equally simple.
“They asked for things like rice, flour and cooking oil for their poor,” said Sgt. David Vasquez from Killeen, Texas, 504th Military Intelligence Company, 172nd Inf. Bde., who sat and talked with many of the village elders for several hours through an interpreter Mir Hadelli. “After the initial shock I think they were happy we came.”
“They claim they’ve never seen any insurgents around here but many of them have relatives who are involved with either Haqqani or the Taliban,” said Hadelli. “Only time will tell if they told us the truth.”
“God willing, we can keep [the insurgents] out of this district,” said Armanshah. “I don’t know if we’ll find any of them [in Derka] next time. If we do my guys will get rid of them, but the villagers need to help us. They need to stand up and tell [the insurgents] that they are not welcome here.”
Insurgent organizations like Haqqani and the Taliban are the ones who bring the war to the small villages, said Armanshah. The people of Derka and their unexpected visitors were all working toward the same goal, he added, which is, ultimately, peace across Afghanistan for all of its citizens.
By the end of the day, a good portion of the villagers had gone from being openly hostile to having a better understanding of that common purpose.
When the mission ended 26 hours after it began, the people of Derka were left with prayer rugs, winter jackets for their children, and the hope that Afghanistan can finally be peaceful, with Derka resting tranquilly, another jewel in the crown.
| Date Taken: | 09.28.2011 |
| Date Posted: | 09.28.2011 15:36 |
| Story ID: | 77704 |
| Location: | PAKTIKA PROVINCE, AF |
| Web Views: | 1,135 |
| Downloads: | 2 |
This work, Blackhawk soldiers trade blood and sweat for hearts and minds, by Ken Scar, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
