- previous
- 1
- 2
- 3
- | single page
E-mail
Print
Noradeen accepted Miller's offer to tour his compound, where the shepherd pointed out damage to doors and walls. He said he had fled with his sheep after the Taliban took over the compound.
"Oh yeah -- that's true," Miller said, giving Noradeen a yellow slip.
"We spent a week right next to this place. We had to blow it up to get the Taliban out of here."
At the next compound, Abdul Rakani, a bony man with one good eye, complained that the fighting had reduced his opium profits from $10,000 to about $3,000 because he could not harvest all of his poppy crop.
Rakani pointed out damaged windows and doors. Miller gave him a yellow slip but declined to pay for other damage, which the lieutenant said was caused by insurgents who had commandeered the compound.
Down a dirt path, the patrol encountered three young men with wild black beards and the dark turbans favored by Talibs. From a distance, Miller ordered them to roll up their sleeves and raise their robes to prove they were not hiding explosives. They complied.
The men told Miller they were farmers returning from a night's work in their fields. They were afraid to work during the day, they said.
"We're afraid the Marines will kill us," one man said.
Civilian casualties, especially those caused by airstrikes, have enraged Afghans. But in a month of fighting here, the Marines said, only two civilian death claims were filed.
At midmorning, the patrol returned to its mud compound, the Marines' vests drenched with sweat. There would be dozens more patrols before they left Garmser.
U.S. and NATO commanders are discussing which forces -- U.S., NATO, Afghan or some combination -- should replace the Marines, said Col. Peter Petronzio, commander of the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit.
"It's important that they come in and capitalize on our success," Petronzio said. "It'll take a bit of time. You need to eat this elephant one bite at a time."
For Miller, sunburned and exhausted after another three-hour patrol, the hard work his men had put in this spring and summer was too precious to be wasted. He knew the insurgents were eager to return to their former stronghold.
"The key for us is: It can never go back to the way it was," he said.
david.zucchino@latimes.com
"Oh yeah -- that's true," Miller said, giving Noradeen a yellow slip.
"We spent a week right next to this place. We had to blow it up to get the Taliban out of here."
At the next compound, Abdul Rakani, a bony man with one good eye, complained that the fighting had reduced his opium profits from $10,000 to about $3,000 because he could not harvest all of his poppy crop.
Rakani pointed out damaged windows and doors. Miller gave him a yellow slip but declined to pay for other damage, which the lieutenant said was caused by insurgents who had commandeered the compound.
Down a dirt path, the patrol encountered three young men with wild black beards and the dark turbans favored by Talibs. From a distance, Miller ordered them to roll up their sleeves and raise their robes to prove they were not hiding explosives. They complied.
The men told Miller they were farmers returning from a night's work in their fields. They were afraid to work during the day, they said.
"We're afraid the Marines will kill us," one man said.
Civilian casualties, especially those caused by airstrikes, have enraged Afghans. But in a month of fighting here, the Marines said, only two civilian death claims were filed.
At midmorning, the patrol returned to its mud compound, the Marines' vests drenched with sweat. There would be dozens more patrols before they left Garmser.
U.S. and NATO commanders are discussing which forces -- U.S., NATO, Afghan or some combination -- should replace the Marines, said Col. Peter Petronzio, commander of the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit.
"It's important that they come in and capitalize on our success," Petronzio said. "It'll take a bit of time. You need to eat this elephant one bite at a time."
For Miller, sunburned and exhausted after another three-hour patrol, the hard work his men had put in this spring and summer was too precious to be wasted. He knew the insurgents were eager to return to their former stronghold.
"The key for us is: It can never go back to the way it was," he said.
david.zucchino@latimes.com
Digg
Twitter
Facebook
StumbleUpon
Save more than