AFGHANISTAN. Mian Poshteh, Helmand. 2009. A few minutes earlier, Marines on patrol had noticed some suspicious activity. A motorcycle
had driven by slowly, the driver staring at them intently. From a nearby ditch there was clearly
someone watching their movements. As the troops walked down the road, an IED exploded and
several men disappeared into the cloud, but no one was killed or badly hurt.
The Marines gathered themselves and crossed a dry irrigation canal to another road. The
commander ordered five men from the town to come to their position. Five village elders
complied warily. The radio picked up chatter among the Taliban suggesting another bomb was
hidden by the road. At gunpoint the commander questioned the men. To one old man he yelled,
“That bomb went off because you didn’t stop them!” The man responded, pleadingly, “I don’t
know anything, so how could I stop it?” The commander waved him off, “Alright, get away from
here, alright.” After questioning the elders, the Americans forced them to form a human shield.
The Afghans were told to fan out across the road and walk forward in tandem. The Marines
followed cautiously behind. As reporter Dexter Filkins and I began documenting these actions,
the Marine commander halted the patrol and decided to return to base.