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Soldiers take their search to the border
From Sean Callebs (CNN)
SOMEWHERE NEAR THE PAKISTAN BORDER, Afghanistan (CNN) -- The war against terror in Afghanistan has come to ground level, with soldiers going door-to-door in villages, looking for holdout Taliban and al Qaeda fighters. The soldiers, from the Army's 82nd Airborne Division, have established FOB Salerno -- a forward operating base -- at an undisclosed spot near the Afghanistan-Pakistan border. They are here to catch Taliban or al Qaeda fighters who may be trying to slip back into the country from Pakistan. The post is situated far from Kabul or Kandahar, out in the country so soldiers can move quickly by helicopter to border-area villages. Establishing an operating post makes the troops' search easier, said Lt. Col. Martin Schweiter. "It gives us another location to project combat power from in the region," he said. "Every aspect of combat operations are made easier in terms of support and execution because of the locale." The base also serves as a spot from which night excursions take off. They are the first the 82nd has conducted since arriving in the region in July when it took over from the 101st Airborne Division, said Lt. Clay Novak. "Any of the enemy, al Qaeda and Taliban, that are in the area probably have caught on to the fact that we are operating mostly in the daylight," he said. "And to change things up -- to start running operations at night -- will keep them on their toes a bit more and hopefully be a bit more fruitful for us." Night patrols, even with the element of surprise and night-vision equipment, are no safer than day excursions, Novak said. "Take into consideration: How would you feel if someone landed a helicopter in your back yard and knocked on your door in the middle of the night?" he asked. Hoping to lessen some of the tension that such searches create, the 82nd has female officers interview and search village women.
"They are kind of scared at first," said Lt. Jennifer King, who has dealt with reluctant Afghan women. "But once they realize I am a female and that I don't rough-handle them, they kind of cooperate and calm down." Yet even the best tactics don't always yield results. In a recent 30-hour mission, soldiers went door-to-door at a border village, but found no al Qaeda or Taliban fighters. One house they searched contained a poster of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein and a small collection of arms and ammunition. A soldier turned to the man inside and demanded: "Do you have more items here related to Saddam Hussein? Yes or no?" The man apparently gave the wrong answer. The troops took him into custody.
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