The Region : Wounded Afghan Rebels Flown to L.A.

Seven wounded refugees from Afghanistan were flown to Los Angeles for medical treatment of injuries they suffered at the hands of Soviet soldiers in fighting in their homeland. “We want the government of the United States to help us politically and militarily to put pressure on the Soviet Union” to end the fighting, a refugee strapped to a stretcher and identified only as Dayachee told reporters. Rep. David Dreier (R-Calif.) who is coordinating the medical treatment with several area hospitals, met the men at Los Angeles International Airport. Dreier said doctors have volunteered their services to treat injuries ranging from the loss of a foot in a land mine explosion to replacement of a hip destroyed by bomb fragments. He said the medical project is crucial to the freedom fighters “because it counters a key aspect in the Soviet strategy, defeating the resistance by preventing treatment of the wounded.”