My apologies for having not written for quite some time, but I’m back and hopefully we can have some more comments from global leaders past and present.
In 2007, a platoon of US Airborne soldiers was stationed in the Korengal Valley of Southern Afghanistan for a 15-month period. In the harsh mountainous terrain, they endured some of the fiercest combat the US has seen since the invasion of Afghanistan. Sebastian Junger and Tim Hetherington were embedded with those men, on-and-off for several months during their tour, filming and writing about the combat they experienced, as well as their personal interactions, how they dealt with emotions and so much more. WAR by Junger, and the documentary Restrepo by he and Hetherington are the product of their time there.
Watching the doc last night for the first time, my esteemed colleague Capt. Heff pointed out, that the platoon commander – a captain himself – was a “meat-head.” Sure, he came across as incredibly tough, devoted to his interpretation of the mission, as well as his men and the true essence of what America considers its invention, manoeuvre warfare. But, as the documentary developed we watched as he fumbled words and showed incredible levels of disrespect and ignorance towards local elders. Frustrated he may be, his soldiers were being shot at, some killed or having limbs blown off, he failed to grasp the key principles of counter-insurgency (COIN). Locals worked for or with the Taliban, harbouring them, feeding them, likely even being related to them. However, the brash and abrasive attitude the Captain took did much to undermine his role with the locals, as well as that of the ISAF, the Afghan Government and Afghan Security Forces. While speaking to tribal elders, the governing class in tribal Afghanistan, he was constantly shown to be yelling/swearing at them, reacting with insincere and sarcastic body language, and effectively alienating the very men he needed to win over. This fragile relationship was further placed under duress through air strikes against suspected targets within a civilian population, which led to several deaths and a number of children being wounded. The next day, the elders declared they would join the jihad against the Americans.
Coalition forces need to be more astute in their undertaking of COIN operations in regions of Afghanistan – or for that matter the Congo, Sudan, Somalia, the Balkans or wherever else such operations might occur in the future – where tribal and ethnic groups supersede any sense of “nationalism.” Conducting police actions through military force without first accounting for the difficulties the relationship between an abstract idea of national government and local leadership structures established centuries ago shows a profound sense of ignorance and naiveté. It’s a shame that nearing a decade of military operations in Afghanistan, that concept is still being ignored. Even Canada’s top commander in Kandahar who is returning home, recently claimed “victory” for Canadian and Coalition troops in Afghanistan. Idiot.
One last thing I would like to comment on when it comes to Restrepo, is the level of courage and tenacity demonstrated by the soldiers. This is the true lesson of the film, for those men fought day after day in unrelenting pressure from those who tried to kill them. Surely that is a testament of the warrior ideal more so than any pro-athlete flattered with the same term. Facing fatigue, hunger, cold and heat, wounds of the body as well as mind and soul, they fought with love in their hearts for their brothers in arms, and for those whom they longed for at home. We as a society should always be cautious for how we treat those ready to sacrifice for our ideals, or national security, or whatever you want to call the casus belli. That we only commit to conflict when absolutely necessary, not for the luxury of playing with expensive toys, international dick-swinging, special interest groups or ignorance of uneducated politicians, should be written in stone. Ultimately, the men and women asked to fight have volunteered, but that does not give anyone the right to misuse that courage.
And so, with that, I thank you for reading and if you’re interested in watching some clips from Restrepo, you can check out http://www.restrepothemovie.com/. There’s actually a really interesting clip up right now about the first living Medal of Honour recipient since Vietnam, who was a member of the platoon filmed in the documentary.
