Helicopters flying high over the Arghandab River Valley fired rockets at Taliban positions a mile or so west of the river, indicating that insurgents were much closer to the district center than . Dale Goetz, 43, was killed in the Arghandab River Valley in Afghanistan, when the convoy he was traveling in was struck by an improvised explosive device, according to the Department of Defense. Human Rights Watch has . Staff Serggeant Matthew J. On the morning of Oct. 6, 2010, three villages in the Arghandab River Valley of Afghanistan were filled with insurgents and dozens of IEDs. I was one of the first American . Theater. 1st Class Phillip Carroll, with the 101st Airborne Division, patrols in the Arghandab River valley outside Kandahar, Afghanistan, this week. was assigned to Forward Support Company, 1st Battalion, 66th . ARGHANDAB RIVER VALLEY, Afghanistan — The view west from the roof of the Arghandab district center at sunset in mid-autumn is breathtaking, the remaining leaves turning the valley into a sea of. The Arghandab river valley was considered critical to an upcoming NATO and U.S. battle in Kandahar city to the southeast, as insurgents there were able to slip into the city using the valley's . Since 2006 Canada has had a sustained presence in the Arghandab River Valley, even in Arghandab district where he is writing from. One of five soldiers killed by a roadside bomb in the Arghandab River Valley of Kandahar province. U.S. Army Sgt. Died of wounds suffered when enemy forces attacked his vehicle with a roadside bomb in the Arghandab River Valley, Kandahar province, Afghanistan, on December 18, 2009 Cpl. We use cookies, just to track visits to our website, we store no personal details. The river's valley is an important farming area. West, 36, of Conover, Wisconsin, died August 30, 2010, in the Arghandab River Valley, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when insurgents attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device. Armies from at least three countries have ventured into the Arghandab River Valley: British, followed by Soviets, and more recently Canadians; all were unsuccessful. Huntington Soldier Among Latest Casualties in Afghanistan Conflict By Scott Sarvay By Jeff Neumeyer . 1st Class Michael P. Shannon 52 The brigade was stationed in the Arghandab river valley, aired regions of Kandahar and Zabul's high desert terrain for the first half of their deployment. The 508th Infantry Regiment (508th PIR, 508th AIR, or 508th IR) ("Red Devils" or "Fury from the Sky") is an airborne infantry regiment of the United States Army, first formed in October 1942 during World War II.The 508th is a parent regiment under the U.S. Army Regimental System, and two battalions from the regiment are currently active: the 1st Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment (1 . Air Force Senior Airman Dan Johnson Age: 23 Hometown: Cottage Grove Died: Oct. 5, 2010. . At least four soldiers were killed and two dozen more were seriously injured, according to soldiers in Arghandab. "The operation took several weeks and went the entirety of the High Holidays. John Clayton with 2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division makes his way through a river while on a joint patrol with soldiers from Charlie Company . Died when an improvised bomb detonated west of Kandahar. Died when an improvised bomb detonated west of Kandahar. The deceivingly beautiful landscape, however, was laden with improvised explosive devices and the brigade would suffer the majority of their casualties in the first half of their deployment. The "Strike and Destroy" brigade began operations in Kandahar Province and quickly found itself in combat against a determined, lethal enemy. Iraq, from Operation Iraqi Freedom to Operation New Dawn Sept 1, 2010 There have been 4,743 coalition deaths -- 4,424 Americans, 2 Australians, 1 Azerbaijani, 179 Britons, 13 Bulgarians, 1 Czech, 7. It's hard to understand how turning . The crew debated whether to attempt to complete the mission. It was Johnny's first job as an interpreter for U.S. forces. . Senior Airman Dan Johnson Age: 23 Hometown: Cottage Grove Died: Oct. 5, 2010. A scourge upon the Taliban, they. . Staff . Sgt. He had attended Chicago State University and Kennedy-King College before joining the Army. The Arghandab river after which the district is named supplies most of the water for the city and some of its districts. Some may argue that it's the entire point of the misbegotten exercise. It's hard to understand how turning an entire village into dust fits into America's counterinsurgency strategy — which supposedly prizes . OC OIF Story. This was true throughout the Arghandab river valley , a corridor of wheat and marijuana . Having just graduated high school and with no formal training, Johnny drew the very short straw of being assigned to us, Bravo Company, 2-508 Parachute Infantry Regiment of the storied 82nd Airborne Division in the Arghandab River Valley. All 6,840 U.S. service members, click to see casualties. On June 05, 1987, the Manila Standard reported that Afghan forces "lost as many as 1,500 men through desertion and casualties, . Hal Bernton. South Dakota residents killed in Operations Enduring Freedom, Iraqi Freedom and New Dawn: Army Spc. Location: Kandahar, Afghanistan The Hatfields and McCoys of the Arghandab River Valley. Dennis G. Jensen, 21, of Vermillion; assigned to 153rd Engineer Battalion, 196th Maneuver . Died: Aug. 30, 2010. An American-led military unit pulverized an Afghan village in Kandahar's Arghandab River Valley in October, after it became overrun with Taliban insurgents. On June 13, 2008 . Charlie Company which suffered 12 casualties, including one Afghan interpreter, during its 12-month . Twenty-two men in the U.S. Army's 1st Battalion, 17th Infantry Regiment of 800 died in a yearlong Afghan tour ending this summer. By. The Swan was hatched in the Wadis south of Siah Choy, the grape rows were he was raised in fire. The Arghandab river valley in southern Afghanistan is home to 82,000 people and best known for its agriculture, especially the grapes and pomegranates grown here. Marine Cpl. Most were killed last year in the Arghandab, a gateway to the southern city of Kandahar. . Our joint forces were met with moderate resistance, which we expected and unfortunately resulted in several ANSF casualties. Leon started as an operations officer in a state emergency operations center, cutting his teeth coordinating between localities, 911 dispatch centers, and state agencies in response to large . on board a helicopter April 25 in the Arghandab river valley in Kandahar province. They would refuse.". About 70 were injured, all but two in bomb blasts. The brigade's first casualties occurred, Aug. 18, 2009, as two soldiers from the 1st Battalion, 17th Infantry Regiment were killed by a land mine during a dismounted patrol in the Arghandab River . With the Arghandab valley now the scene of heavy fighting, many villagers . Colonel Tunnell would say, "It is our assessment that the enemy has been defeated in the near term in the southern Arghandab River Valley, which has given us a few months' breathing space." . Died of wounds suffered when enemy forces attacked his vehicle with a roadside bomb in the Arghandab River Valley, Kandahar province, Afghanistan, on December 18, 2009 Rifleman James Stephen Brown 18 The ANA casualties the previous afternoon rattled . A year ago, mobile phones worked just fine in the pomegranate orchards and vineyards along the Arghandab river on the outskirts of Afghanistan's second largest city, Kandahar. The picture below is the same location following allied air strikes, which completely obliterated the village. Before and aftermath: The picture above shows the village of Tarok Kolache in the Arghandab River Valley. Late last year, a UN report confirmed that civilian, as well as military, casualties in Afghanistan hit record levels in 2010, jumping by 20 percent in the first 10 months of 2010 compared with 2009. (USAID planted 4,000 trees, but they take five years to bear fruit.) One week in Afghanistan, her team evacuated 24 casualties out of the Arghandab river valley in the southwest region. '11 '10 '09 '08 '07 '06 '05 '04 '03 '02 '01; Casualties by state. The AP count of total OEF casualties outside of Afghanistan is one fewer than the department's tally. A bomb planted beneath the tanker exploded without casualties. Even that level of development might not exist but for the big investment in water infrastructure known as the Helmand-Arghandab Valley Authority project.. For the first time in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, a U.S. military chaplain has been killed in action. The Arghandab Valley, 60 miles northwest of the Pakistan border, in southern Afghanistan, stretches a mile and more on each side of the Arghandab River, to the north and west of Kandahar City. warriors died in combat during . Arghandab River Valley, Kandahar Province of Afghanistan. No civilian casualties were reported, though the pomegranate fields were severely damaged and had to be replanted. Thirty-seven 5th Bde. Throughout various deployments, many of us have seen death in many forms. Casualties by category. . The insurgents had planted an ungodly number of bombs in the interim. . 5th SBCT, 2nd ID Troops Conduct Patrol in Arghandab River Valley. ARGHANDAB VALLEY Afghanistan — The US forces' enemy is almost invisible in parts of this lush valley in southern Afghanistan. . In their first few weeks in Arghandab, the 101st Airborne took extensive casualties. At least four soldiers were killed and two dozen more were seriously injured, according to soldiers in Arghandab. U.S. Army Spc. One of five soldiers killed by a roadside bomb in the Arghandab River Valley of Kandahar province. First, the number one cause of civilian casualties in Afghanistan is the Taliban -- not air power. Bravo Company's dogged fight for control of the southern end of the Arghandab river valley illustrates a key difficulty facing US forces as they work this summer and fall to squeeze the Taliban out of their . He was assigned to Fort Bragg, N.C. This is the Arghandab River valley, a few miles west of Kandahar city. On June 05, 1987, the Manila Standard reported that Afghan forces "lost as many as 1,500 men through desertion and casualties," and that "a 6,000 strong Soviet-Afghan force launched a massive operation on May 26 against their positions around Kandahar and nearby Arghandab. . . The battle in Arghandab marked the second time in less than a year that the Taliban has tried to take control of the area. . Chances were he wasn't going to survive. John Clayton with 2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division makes his way through a river while on a joint patrol with soldiers from Charlie Company . . An American-led military unit pulverized an Afghan village in Kandahar's Arghandab River Valley in October, after it became overrun with Taliban insurgents. Marine Corporal Justin Cain Age: 22 The literal pulverization of an entire village in Afghanistan's Arghandab River valley in October (see the spectacular photos below) is an example of how "Gen. David Petraeus, the counterinsurgency icon, is prosecuting a frustrating war with surprising levels of violence," Wired reported Wednesday. In their first few weeks in Arghandab, the 101st Airborne took extensive casualties. Seattle Times staff reporter. Sep 16th, 2010: Died Sept. 16 in Kandahar, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when insurgents attacked his unit with a makeshift bomb at Arghandab River Valley, Afghanistan. (Rahmat Gul/AP) # 27. . Before long, his unit, the 82nd Airborne, was sent to the Arghandab valley, the gateway to Kandahar, one the country's largest cities. Soviet and Afghan communist forces never managed to take control of the valley in the 1980s and suffered big casualties against the mujaheddin. Died: Aug. 30, 2010. 43 likes. A colleague, Sgt. The Swan of The Arghandab River Valley, San Francisco, CA. On August 30, U.S. Army chaplain Capt. Cameron St. Onge with Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 17th Infantry Regiment, 5th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division lends a helping hand to a fellow Charlie Company member, Pfc. The American government spent $72 . The Arghandab River Valley is a rare piece of terrain in the Afghan War, in the sense that there is a clear battle line delineated by a double-line of wide irrigation canals, beyond which lies a lush agricultural region on the flanks of the river—the "green zone," in US Army parlance. Canadian troops and their allies regained at least two villages yesterday in their cautious advance up the Arghandab river valley, securing territory seized by the Taliban during a stunning . Kevin Kessler, a 1996 East Canton High graduate, was killed Aug. 30, 2010, in the Arghandab River Valley. JELAWUR, Afghanistan — The men of Bravo Company have a bitter description for the irrigated swath of land along the Arghandab River where 10 members of their battalion have been killed and 30 . At least four soldiers were killed and two dozen more were seriously injured, according to soldiers in Arghandab. They got a call about a young lieutenant who had lost three limbs in an explosion. Tarok Kolache - Before and After US Bombing. The Arghandab River Valley is a rare piece of terrain in the Afghan War, in the sense that there is a clear battle line delineated by a double-line of wide irrigation canals, beyond which lies a lush agricultural region on the flanks of the river—the "green zone," in US Army parlance. They operated in the birthplace of the Taliban along the Arghandab River Valley, west of Kandahar City, a place often ominously referred to as "The Heart of Darkness." The 2nd Battalion 12th Infantry Regiment saw heavy combat throughout. U.S. Army Sgt. The death toll was one of the highest in the Afghan war, and the tough . Arghandab and Shah Wali Kot districts (north of KC) have traditionally been quiet. Dec 18th, 2009: Died in Arghandab River Valley, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when enemy forces attacked his vehicle . We use cookies, just to track visits to our website, we store no personal details. Arghandab Lake This lake is part of the Arghandab River, a 400-kilometre river that flows just north of Kandahar. Jason Patrick Warren 29 [1] -- After a "relentless assault from homemade bombs emanating from" Tarok Kolache, Lt. Col .