COMBAT STORIES FROM Afghanistan

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Showing : Afghanistan Videos

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  James Ferguson - Marines +10 Total Videos

  3rd Battalion, 12th Marines

  James Ferguson was already feeling the call to serve while in high school, then the attacks on 9/11 happened. His mother had an appointment at the World Trade Center that day but it was cancelled, thankfully. In his Long Island town, though, there were other parents who never came home.

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  Patty Justice - Army +4 Total Videos

  7303rd Medical Training Support Battalion, 1st Medical Training Brigade

  Justice details a too-close-for-comfort interaction with a vehicle-borne IED. The IED came as a complete surprise and the entire F.O.B. fell into what Justice could only describe as “chaos” immediately following the explosion. She suffered several injuries and had to work with the nurses back in Bagram and depend on the friendship of comrade Colonel Ellison to come back from the injuries.

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  Scott Wealing +7 Total Videos

  Multiple Units

  As a veteran of elite military units, as well as the CIA and Blackwater, Scott Wealing has a unique perspective on the global war on terror and some definite opinions on what went wrong.

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  James Ferguson - Marines +10 Total Videos

  3rd Battalion, 12th Marines

  One of James Ferguson's squad leaders was a Marine that everyone in the unit looked up to, a mentor and a natural leader. One night, they were setting up a two pronged ambush when a huge blast shook the earth. That Marine was mortally wounded and still continued to direct his squad.

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  Jon Eckert - Marines +1 Video

  India Battery, 3rd Battalion, 12th Marines

  Jon Eckert describes a tragic day in Afghanistan when he and his dog were leading a patrol to prevent anyone from hitting an IED when the unthinkable happened and they lost fellow Marine CPL Jorge Villarreal. (Caution: strong language)

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  Joshua Rodriguez - Army +19 Total Videos

  Multiple Units

  He had a greater appreciation for life when he returned from his first tour of Afghanistan. But Josh Rodriguez had to readjust to family and finances and continue with his career. He wanted more than anything to get back into combat as a company commander.

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  James Ferguson - Marines +10 Total Videos

  3rd Battalion, 12th Marines

  The way our years long struggle in Afghanistan turned out is very frustrating to James Ferguson, who served there as a Marine platoon leader. He has some observations about that war and some serious advice about any future ones. (Caution: strong language)

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  Changiz Lahidji - Army +8 Total Videos

  Green Beret

  Retired Green Beret Changiz Lahidji was working security at Lockheed-Martin when the 9/11 attacks shocked the nation. He immediately resigned and started working his contacts to get involved.

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  James Ferguson - Marines +10 Total Videos

  3rd Battalion, 12th Marines

  After the attacks on 9/11, James Ferguson was determined to get in the fight. He decided on the Marines because he knew they would be leading the way in whatever followed. His dad convinced him to go to college first, which he did, and so he became a Marine officer, still determined to get some revenge.

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  Jason Wilebski - Marines +18 Total Videos

  Multiple Units

  After being a live fire trainer for a few years, Jason Wilebski got to see the operations side of the Marine Corps in Afghanistan. There were hundreds of thousands of dollars in high tech equipment in the HQ but he still maintained a map with push pins. This impressed the brass. (Caution: strong language)

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  Changiz Lahidji - Army +8 Total Videos

  Green Beret

  After retiring from the Army, Green Beret Changiz Lahidji worked for the State Department. In both Iraq and Afghanistan, he continued to use his talents to counter terrorists. He was nearly killed when his helicopter was shot down in Afghanistan.

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  James Ferguson - Marines +10 Total Videos

  3rd Battalion, 12th Marines

  Apathetic and undeserving. That's the impression of the Afghan people that James Ferguson got while serving there. It gets worse when you look at how the women and children are treated. (Caution: strong language)

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  Jon Eckert - Marines +1 Video

  India Battery, 3rd Battalion, 12th Marines

  Jon Eckert volunteered for another deployment, but this time he was going to be handling IED detecting dogs. When they were later sent to the Kajaki Dam, these Marine canines were critical to finding the multitudes of hidden explosives that were incapacitating American forces on a regular basis.

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  James Ferguson - Marines +10 Total Videos

  3rd Battalion, 12th Marines

  Despite the seriousness of their situation in a remote part of Afghanistan, James Ferguson recalls that there were some more lighthearted times. Like the time his wife sent him some chocolate treats that didn't quite make it intact or the time that the cook served the same meal five days in a row. (Caution: strong language)

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  Andrew Witzel - Marines +8 Total Videos

  4th Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion

  Andrew Witzel got a lot of bonus money to reenlist. All he asked is to not be sent to Camp Lejeune. After a year, the Iraq veteran was deployed to Afghanistan, where he was stationed at a tiny outpost in the desert.

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  Joe Diomede - Marines +8 Total Videos

  Combat Logistics Regiment 15

  After his train up, Joe Diomede's motor transport outfit joined the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit on a cruise. He spent a lot of time fighting rust on his trucks down in the hold but he had time to visit a lot of interesting ports of call and he got to meet a SEAL team celebrating a successful mission. (Caution: strong language.)

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  James Ferguson - Marines +10 Total Videos

  3rd Battalion, 12th Marines

  India 3-12 was an artillery platoon but, when they got to Afghanistan, James Ferguson's Marines were designated a provisional infantry unit. Assigned to a remote area to protect a dam, they took over the site from the British Royal Marines, who had very restrictive Rules of Engagement. (Caution: rough language)

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  Zack Knight - Army +8 Total Videos

  Georgia National Guard

  The Taliban was warned that if they engaged in attacks during the withdrawal, the Americans would revert to combat operations. There was no response when they did, however, and platoon leader Zack Knight returned home with remorse and anger over how his Afghan allies had been abandoned. His downward spiral increased with the discovery of a hidden injury.

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  Colin Walsh - Army +6 Total Videos

  489th Civil Affairs Battalion

  He had an Iraq tour under his belt, but Colin Walsh wanted something different and he got reclassified into Civil Affairs. The medical and humanitarian aspect appealed to him. He managed to get into a unit that was slated for Afghanistan and began working to get a plum assignment there.

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  James Ferguson - Marines +10 Total Videos

  3rd Battalion, 12th Marines

  It was what Marines call a kinetic environment. They were shot at a lot but the main hazard was IED's. James Ferguson and his men were based in the remote town of Kajaki in Afghanistan and the first couple of months went well. They were hitting the Taliban hard.

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  Michael Trost - Army +7 Total Videos

  489th Civil Affairs Battalion

  The business of a civil affairs unit is trying to win the hearts and minds of a local populace. You have to deal with a lot of things that aren't in the book. Michael Trost had a great team with him in Afghanistan but it was tough in a tribal society. Finding humor in the daily grind provided a little relief, like the trouble he had with a containerized housing unit, or CHU, which housed the showers.

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  Zack Knight - Army +8 Total Videos

  Georgia National Guard

  There were cease fires but the Taliban always did something anyway, which made a farce of the situation. The locals could be friendly and helpful, making short work of a landing pad and painting a mural. To platoon leader Zack Knight, the best were the interpreters, some of whom were killed after the disastrous American withdrawal.

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  James Ferguson - Marines +10 Total Videos

  3rd Battalion, 12th Marines

  The Marines were developing tactics to deal with the Taliban. James Ferguson describes how they would deliberately expose themselves to draw fire and set off charges to simulate the explosion of an IED, which always brought the enemy running. They also had a new rocket system called HIMARS which you could not hear coming. (Caution:strong language)

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  Andrew Witzel - Marines +8 Total Videos

  Multiple Units

  Afghanistan veteran Andrew Witzel is not at all happy about the pullout from that country. How in the world would anyone want to be our ally? He feels remorse for the women and girls who are losing their opportunity to thrive in an open society.

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  Michael Trost - Army +7 Total Videos

  489th Civil Affairs Battalion

  Mobilization is a lot of work for a sergeant like Michael Trost. Paperwork and medical stuff. He nearly didn't make the tour because of high cholesterol. He persevered and he was glad because it had been a long wait for action and he had assembled a great team

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  James Ferguson - Marines +10 Total Videos

  3rd Battalion, 12th Marines

  There was a change in strategy in Afghanistan when Gen. Petraeus took over. He was more open to aggressive operations. James Ferguson recalls how he submitted a plan for coordinated strikes which was approved at the top.

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  Zack Knight - Army +8 Total Videos

  Georgia National Guard

  While in basic training, former police officer Zack Knight sketched out an idea for a business that would make good use of his security knowledge. He got it going in his hometown while undergoing National Guard training and just as it began producing decent revenue, his unit was activated for Afghanistan.

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  Joshua Rodriguez - Army +19 Total Videos

  4th Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Brigade combat Team, 1st Infantry Division

  The fighting was getting intense in his area and it was really evident when Josh Rodriguez responded to a Taliban attack on a small convoy of American contractors and Afghan workers. If only they'd asked for an escort.

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  James Ferguson - Marines +10 Total Videos

  3rd Battalion, 12th Marines

  After a few years back at home, away from the chaos of the war in Afghanistan, James Ferguson began to realize that he would only find closure over what he experienced there by getting back together with the men in his unit. This was the Genesis of the Warrior Reunion Foundation.

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  Joshua Rodriguez - Army +19 Total Videos

  4th Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Brigade combat Team, 1st Infantry Division

  Josh Rodriguez had just rushed his men to the base of a mountain where OP Bari Alai was under furious attack at the top. Helicopter pilots reported that at least one of the defenders looked to be alive, so there was hope. He and his platoon were under fire as they climbed the steep path to the top where they found total devastation. Part 4 of 9.