Kajaki

Marine lieutenant in Kajaki played football at Navy

By Dan Lamothe on April 18, 2012 Afghanistan, Embedded journalism, Infantry, Kajaki, Marines

KAJAKI, Afghanistan – Second Lt. Jeff Lenar is a long way from the bright lights of college football at the U.S. Naval Academy, and it took serious discipline to get there. The infantry officer with 1st Battalion, 8th Marines, leads 2nd Platoon, Alpha Company, overseeing Marines in combat who patrol near the landmark Kajaki Dam in Helmand province. Since deploying early this year, he has led his platoon in raids into Taliban-held area and overseen surveillance missions used to collect information about insurgents. His trip there was complicated: to join his fellow Marines, Lenar shed dozens of pounds from his…

Marines in Afghanistan light up the sky — and the Taliban

By Dan Lamothe on April 17, 2012 Afghanistan, Embedded journalism, Infantry, Kajaki, Marines, Weapons

FORWARD OPERATING BASE ZEEBRUGGE, Afghanistan – The job was called in like many others: “We’ve got a mortar mission now!” yelled Staff Sgt. Gregory Sanders, the platoon sergeant for the fires team here. With that, a handful of Marines with Golf Battery, 2nd Battalion, 11th Marines, out of Camp Pendleton, Calif., scrambled through the darkness Sunday night to an 81mm mortar tube on this mountainside base in Kajaki district, Afghanistan. A small group overseen by Cpl. Wesley Neville, a squad leader, launched a series of illumination rounds over a rocky ridgeline and lit up the sky. The rounds exploded in…

General: Marines targeting Afghan drug smugglers ahead of spring poppy harvest

By Andrew deGrandpre on April 16, 2012 Afghanistan, Camp Leatherneck, Embedded journalism, Infantry, Kajaki, Marjah

We trust you’ve been reading — and enjoying — senior staff writer Dan Lamothe’s numerous dispatches from Afghanistan, where he and photographer James Lee are embedded presently with members of 1st Battalion, 8th Marines, out of Camp Lejeune, N.C. Thanks so much for your continued interest in their work. Today, over on Marine Corps Times’ home page, we’ve rolled out Lamothe’s first hard-news report from this trip to the war zone. It details aggressive efforts to curtail the flow of stored poppy out of Afghanistan ahead of the spring harvest, now just weeks away. Before shipping out last week to…

Afghanistan’s Kajaki Dam offers landmines, breathtaking scenery

By Dan Lamothe on April 15, 2012 Afghanistan, Embedded journalism, Infantry, Kajaki, Marines

FORWARD OPERATING BASE ZEEBRUGGE, Afghanistan — After three nights visiting Marines at Observation Post Shrine, photographer James Lee and I have returned to this base overlooking the scenic Kajaki Dam. How scenic, you ask? Four nights ago, we took Polaris Ranger all-terrain vehicles with two Marines to the summit of Zeebrugge. Observation Post Athens is on top, providing Marines with a breathtaking view of the surrounding area — and a good chance of seeing any insurgent activity from on high. I hopped in an ATV with Staff Sgt. Gregory Sanders, a platoon sergeant with Golf Battery, 2nd Battalion, 11th Marines, which has…

Canine kisses in Kajaki

By James J. Lee on April 13, 2012 Afghanistan, Animals, Battle Rattle, Embedded journalism, Infantry, Kajaki

Lance Cpl. Richard Bissett gets some love from Camo, an improvised explosive detection dog at Observation Post Shrine in Kajaki, Afghanistan, on Friday. (James J. Lee / Staff) OBSERVATION POST SHRINE, Afghanistan – I miss my dog, but I didn’t realize how much until I met Camo, an improvised explosive detection dog. This little position on a hill overlooking the Taliban-held area of Zamindawar is referred to as a “static ambush position,” so Camo doesn’t get much of a chance to do her thing up here. After sitting for hours at the feet of handler Lance Cpl. Richard Bissett as…

Afghan police drive Ford ‘Danger Ranger’ in combat with Marines

By Dan Lamothe on April 13, 2012 Afghanistan, Embedded journalism, Infantry, Kajaki

OBSERVATION POST SHRINE, Afghanistan – With a few minutes of downtime here in Kajaki, I wanted to touch base on something for the truck lovers out there. What you see above is a photograph of the vehicles the Afghan police drive while on duty. It’s a green Ford Ranger pickup truck, and they can be found across Helmand province. It’s no normal Ranger, however. The truck has four doors and operates on diesel fuel. If there are any similar trucks in the U.S., they are few and far between. Marines jokingly call the trucks “Danger Rangers.” Considering the Afghan police…

Afghan police drive Ford ‘Danger Ranger’ in combat with Marines

By Dan Lamothe on April 13, 2012 Afghanistan, Embedded journalism, Infantry, Kajaki

Marines defend Kajaki at “The Shrine”

By Dan Lamothe on April 12, 2012 Afghanistan, Battle Rattle, Embedded journalism, Infantry, Kajaki

OBSERVATION POST SHRINE, Afghanistan – Somewhere on the edge of Taliban country, we’ll be spending the night amidst the sound of coyotes, crickets and Afghan music. Photographer James Lee and I reached this small outpost in Kajaki district today, and will be staying with members of 1st Battalion, 8th Marines, out of Camp Lejeune, N.C. An element from 1/8’s 2nd Platoon, Alpha Company, calls “The Shrine” home. They are tasked with partnering with soldiers from the Afghan National Army to keep insurgent fighters in the countryside from coming closer to the landmark Kajaki Dam and civilians in the nearby area.…

Journalist wear-tests “combat diaper” with Marines

By Dan Lamothe on April 11, 2012 Afghanistan, Embedded journalism, Gear, Infantry, Kajaki, Marines

KAJAKI, Afghanistan – It’s time to make a confession: I’ve been wearing a diaper in combat. Not because I can’t handle being in Afghanistan, mind you. Bad things can happen here, but you have to make peace with that before you step on the plane. No, I’m wearing an armored “diaper” because it has become a requirement for many Marines in theater. When I asked Lt. Col. Kevin Trimble, commander of 1st Battalion, 8th Marines, out of Camp Lejeune, N.C., about the new gear fielded to protect Marines’ groins from blast injuries, he issued the armor to photographer James Lee…

Journalist wear-tests “combat diaper” with Marines

By Dan Lamothe on April 11, 2012 Afghanistan, Embedded journalism, Gear, Infantry, Kajaki, Marines

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