Return to Death Valley Our War


Return to Death Valley

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This programme contains very strong language.

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This programme contains scenes which some viewers may find upsetting.

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The men of C Company,

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2nd Battalion, The Mercian Regiment,

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are some of the most recent soldiers to have returned from Afghanistan.

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While they were there, they filmed every moment

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of their six-month tour.

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Everything I've seen, I think about every day,

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but it's just a quick, two-second image.

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GUNFIRE

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I still can't believe I've been to Afghanistan

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and fought against the Taliban. That just seems crazy to me, even now.

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Get down!

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Let's go.

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British combat operations are due to end in 2014,

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but two young officers and best friends led their platoons

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to Helmand Province to find a war that is far from over.

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GUNSHOTS

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Come here, buddy.

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After days back in the UK,

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this is the first time they've spoken

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about what happened to them.

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What socks are you wearing?

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-Issued socks.

-What?

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Well that's...that's the dress code, Jimmy.

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Two platoons make up C Company. Seven Platoon's Luke Beetlestone

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and Jimmy Clark of the Assault Pioneers

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are the platoon commanders in charge.

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They're like teenage girls, those two.

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They loved each other, they did.

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They got on real well.

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It was good to see that with superiors there, as well.

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They kind of like...

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I imagine they spend a lot of time out of work together,

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like me and Tom do.

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We have talked about, in the mess, trying to get a double room

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and then having two beds in it,

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because we do spend so much time together that it would make it

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so much easier, kit-wise, and organisation...

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We're always sharing kits. Yeah.

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Yeah, but that's been vetoed. That would be weird, apparently.

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Yeah.

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-You'll get used to that.

-Hurry up! Come on!

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Before they left the UK, Luke, Jimmy and their men

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made final preparations for their six-month tour.

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Right. What do we do now?

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Get photos for when we get slotted.

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Have our pictures in the paper.

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-And how many shirts have you got?

-One.

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Come on, it don't take 30 seconds to put a shirt on.

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If you try to get any other job to do, they have to take your photo

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just in case you die in the next six months.

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It probably wouldn't go down as well as it would go with us lot.

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-He's probably the most likely to get slotted.

-Yeah.

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That was still a few weeks before we got any serious news

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of where we were going.

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The holiday spirit was there then.

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Passport!

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The two platoons were leaving their barracks together,

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heading for Helmand Province, Afghanistan.

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ID disks!

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It is a massive adventure.

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All of us,

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in different ways, were very excited by the prospect

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of going out, and showed it.

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-How do you feel, Jeff?

-I feel fucking great and I can't wait

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to start dropping Taliban.

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Mum, if I don't see you again, it's been a good 18 years.

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Off we go!

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-Our departure.

-Fucking hell, man. This is it now.

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-This is it.

-This is real now.

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You know then, right? We're going to war.

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-How are you feeling?

-Good.

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"Good, I'm feeling good."

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Sounds like he's about to cry.

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"I'm feeling good."

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I certainly made it clear to my soldiers,

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"Don't have anything outstanding."

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I'm going to be snatched out of that life

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for seven months and I might not get thrown back into it.

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Do everything you want to do.

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The main thing I did, I went to the Ritz Hotel in London.

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I just thought I'd go somewhere

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which was going to be really nice

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and something I'd remember and enjoy remembering whilst I was out there,

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to have good memories with.

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Crowder took his girlfriend to the Ritz, didn't he?

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And Maguire proposed.

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We'd been together for four years

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and something like this really puts it into perspective.

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You think that you may never come back.

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So you think, "Right, this is the woman I love.

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"This is the woman I want to be with.

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"Will you marry me?"

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Finally, we move to Helmand. Come on, let's get some!

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For Jimmy, Luke and most of their men,

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this would be their first and possibly only tour of Afghanistan.

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British combat troops won't be sent to fight there after 2014.

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The mission now is to prepare the country for handover

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to Afghan forces.

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I was looking forward to that kind of stabilisation roll.

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We're going to go and do what we should be doing,

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having been in Afghanistan now for ten years -

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we're going to be...

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we're going to be getting the place ready for transition.

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Yeah, cos that's what it's kind of like switched towards now.

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Afghan's not all about killing everyone in sight,

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it's about actually trying to bring the country on.

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The Afghans should assume lead security responsibility

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across the country as a whole by the end of 2014.

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By 2014, this process of transition will be complete.

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The handover of security to Afghan forces has already begun.

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But when Luke, Jimmy and their men got told where they'd be based,

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it was in an area where transition still seemed a long way off.

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Death Valley kind of gave it away a bit. It was, "Oh, Christ...

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"Here we go."

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The men were heading to an area British troops had handed over

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to Americans in 2010.

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Nicknamed Death Valley,

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the Upper Gereshk Valley has seen some of the fiercest fighting

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of the war.

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-This is going to be cheeky, this is.

-I'm going! Get me there!

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You're really asking yourself some internal questions of "Wow,

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"what's it going to be like?"

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The two platoons arrived at Camp Bastion,

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the main troop base in Helmand,

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to get ready to be sent to their different bases.

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First day of actual Ops, and we're getting the wagons ready,

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ready to fuel up.

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-B-17 plane.

-Banging soundtrack. Yep, that's it.

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-We got separated at Bastion.

-Yep.

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I drove in Mastiffs, Luke ended up flying.

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That was probably the last time I got to see you, and it was for...

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I don't remember saying goodbye to you in Bastion.

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Jimmy, Luke and their men left the safety of Camp Bastion,

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heading for the Upper Gereshk Valley.

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Their checkpoints will be based along the notorious Route 611.

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Major roads like this are a massive target for Taliban fighters,

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desperate to derail the process of transition.

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Luke and 7 Platoon were based at Checkpoint Salaat.

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Jimmy and the Assault Pioneers were 12km away at Checkpoint Pan Kalay.

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The men were taking over from a force of US Marines

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three times bigger.

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When are you off?

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We're leaving on Sunday. Hopefully, get out of this country

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within the next two weeks.

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Bringing ass to the fight, I like it.

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When we ripped in, they were tired and...

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..they'd clearly had quite a rough time.

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Have you got one piece of advice for C Company?

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You need to be flexible and very, very patient.

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On their first day,

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Jimmy and the platoon were taken out in vehicles by the Marines

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on a brief handover patrol.

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As you can see, we're completely static.

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We had a two minute convoy briefing from the Americans.

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To give you an example of how there was a hole in the handover,

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on the first patrol we did with them, Corporal Katia was shot.

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Corporal Dave Katia was one of the most senior men in Jimmy's platoon.

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He was shot in the leg as he crossed from one vehicle to another.

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I heard a gunshot.

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I was like, "Dave, you all right, mate?"

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He was like, "Yeah. There's some sweets in my day sack.

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"Would you grab them for the lads?" I was like, "Dave,

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"you've just been shot by the Taliban, are you all right?"

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I've seen him injected with morphine,

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so he was all over the place, high as a kite.

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I think everyone thought, you know, "Unlucky."

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It's the first time we've gone out on patrol, on joint patrol,

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and he's caught a round in the leg.

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Because it was gunshot wounds, now, because of the IEDs,

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we kind of see that as a lesser thing.

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We'd almost want to be shot.

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Like, "Oh, he's been shot. Yeah, he was alive when left him.

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"He's going to make a full recovery. Happy."

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Corporal Katia was flown out safely

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but the Taliban had wasted no time welcoming the newcomers.

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After it all calmed down and we got cut out of there,

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I was like, "Shit the bed, this is going to be a ruthless tour."

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Over the next few days, all but a few Marines

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withdrew from the area, leaving Jimmy and Luke

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to run things their way.

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They decided to take a very different approach

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in securing the road -

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instead of going out in vehicles, they would patrol on foot.

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Jimmy would be patrolling from his base where the Route 611

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meets the canal, which was the enemy's front line.

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Everything to the west of the canal was Taliban territory.

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A few days after arriving in their base,

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Jimmy received a tip-off from a local village,

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telling him an IED had been laid right on the bank of the canal.

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He decided to go and find it.

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I took a risk and said, "Fine, let's go and check it."

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Let's show them that we're here, we're dominating the ground,

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this is our patch, we'll move where we want.

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No, we'll go from the front of the patrol.

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It was the first time most of the platoon had left

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the security of the base, including John Ward,

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whose job it was to look for the IED.

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Obviously, it's a war zone.

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Before I went to Afghanistan,

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it was a thing you played on games, you know.

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But, you know, it is for real now.

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While John searched the ground for explosive devices,

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Jordan Crowder was the cover man, acting as his eyes and ears.

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We thought it was bit weird, but we've got to go and do it

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for the locals, to say,

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"We're not scared, we will check things out."

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The search took them to the edge of the canal,

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but there was no IED to be found.

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Something's not normal, not right. Where is everyone?

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Why are locals telling us there's an IED there?

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Yeah, it was weird.

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Across the canal, they spotted movement.

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Be ready.

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From one atmosphere to another, it can change so quickly.

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So, we were lured out.

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You always have a bad feeling when you are marching around

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in the open in front of various enemy firing points.

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Wardy, you lead off.

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Everyone was getting agitated

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and just really wanted to get out of the area as soon as.

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-How much are you going back?

-Keep going, keep going.

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As they approached the safety of their base, in an alleyway,

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they found themselves channelled and vulnerable.

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GUNSHOTS

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Get down!

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That was an ambush. I heard the gunshot,

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I turned round and saw him on the floor.

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I wasn't sure at that time whether he was dead, hurt or what happened.

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Man down!

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I ran out to grab him.

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The boss joined us, Mr Clark joined us,

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and we ripped his body armour off, trying to find the entry wound.

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Fucking hell, man.

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Near the back of the patrol, Tom Maguire had been shot

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by a sniper from across the canal.

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-Who is it?

-Maguire!

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I looked at him, and he was going whiter and whiter in the face.

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At that point, I was very concerned that he might not make this.

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-Just put me down!

-You all right, man? You all right?

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-He's all right!

-He's all right.

-Was that Maguire?

-Yeah.

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It's just sort of being hit by Mike Tyson with a hammer.

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The bullet shattered on impact

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and shrapnel ricocheted around Tom's body,

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causing massive internal damage.

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So, there was shrapnel in me that stayed there.

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I'd broken three ribs, three vertebrae, lost part of my lung.

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Cracked my shoulder blade, as well.

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They put me to sleep in the end, through my operation.

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I woke up five days later.

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Tom was flown back to the UK. His tour was over.

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I think someone said, "At this rate, we'll have no-one left by the end."

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Which is what it would have been.

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I think we only had 28 blokes to start with in the CP

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and within a week, we had already lost two people,

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and we had to be there for seven months.

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Despite the attacks on Jimmy's men,

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he and Luke were determined to push out on foot.

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They needed to find out the extent of the Taliban threat

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and started patrolling the local villages.

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We needed to know who lived here, and try and distinguish between

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who were the locals, the people we were trying to protect,

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and who were the insurgents.

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But the reception wasn't a warm one.

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Mostly, they're too scared to want to speak to us.

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Just too scared for themselves cos they'd been under that control.

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Shep, don't overextend!

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It was becoming clear why the locals were so nervous.

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The Taliban were watching.

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While the men were trying to build a picture of their enemy,

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the Taliban were doing exactly the same.

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We started going out of the checkpoints, out to the villages,

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out on the ground,

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so then the insurgents' tactics sort of changed

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to try and aim for, you know, our foot soldiers on the ground.

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So, once that started happening, the threat level in the area rose.

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Fucking O!

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Around Luke's checkpoint at Salaat,

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IEDs were starting to appear.

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19-year-old Chris Scott had volunteered to try find them

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whenever 7 Platoon went out on patrol.

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Your mind needs to be 100% focused.

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You can't start thinking about what could happen.

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You've got to think about what you are doing at that precise moment.

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For a young lad to constantly volunteer to go at the front

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of the patrol and put his life at risk and be happy to get

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that close and find an IED

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to prevent anyone else in the callsign stepping on it,

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that's a big deal.

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On an early patrol, Luke wanted to investigate a compound on the bank

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of the canal that the Taliban were known to use as a firing base.

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He'll point to a specific place, a compound,

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and head towards that direction and he'll let me pick the route.

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The Americans that were there before us, obviously,

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had a lot of problems with the areas around the checkpoint.

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So, we were there, we thought we'd take it over,

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show them what the English can do.

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There's a bridge. We're not going over the bridge.

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Chris led the platoon to the compound on the edge

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of the canal.

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I'd spotted from a distance

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that out of the corner of the compound,

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there was an irregular feature.

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We was really close to the firing points. I mean, we could see them.

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-Boss, watch all that hay and shit.

-Huh?

-Watch all that hay and shit.

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And then, obviously, everything went bad after that.

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You hear those words and your heart just sinks, you start getting angry.

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Fuck!

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On the other side of the compound,

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a US Marine who'd been attached to Luke's platoon had stepped

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on an IED.

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To see the dust cloud and see it disappear,

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at first it didn't seem real. For the first second or so,

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I was like, "What?" Then, obviously, I knew it was real.

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Got a casualty.

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Erm... Double amputee.

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The casualty was in danger of bleeding to death.

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Luke told Chris to clear a safe path to get him out.

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But the quickest way out was across the bridge he'd avoided earlier.

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The Taliban were known to booby-trap the most obvious routes

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for carrying casualties.

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DETECTOR BEEPS RAPIDLY

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Fuck it!

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I'm still not sure how much he cleared that route or how much he...

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He just went for it and walked.

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Bridge is clear.

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Get the stretcher up! Get the stretcher up! Go.

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Get him on the back of that wagon.

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Obviously, I'd walked past that area,

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I was thinking a lot about where it was, what was around at the time.

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I just happened to be at that spot, really unlucky.

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THEY SHOUT

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That's my guy. I've got to go.

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The US Marine was in a helicopter on his way to hospital

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just 12 minutes after the explosion.

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He'd lost one of his legs. And suffered severe injury to the other.

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Everyone didn't really say anything to each other for about five or ten minutes.

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Then we just started easing into it.

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Talking about it.

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I just think to myself, I wish things could happen differently.

0:23:160:23:21

I'm sure that wasn't the only IED in the ground there.

0:23:280:23:33

And it went off.

0:23:340:23:37

That day, it was a success for the Taliban.

0:23:370:23:40

At their base 12km away, Jimmy and his men

0:23:430:23:47

had listened to the whole thing unfolding on the radio.

0:23:470:23:51

The dread... I didn't know if it was Luke,

0:23:510:23:54

just thinking there's nothing I can do.

0:23:540:23:57

And that anger is still with me.

0:23:570:24:01

That feeling of helplessness and anger at a situation

0:24:010:24:05

and the fact that you are helpless. Wow!

0:24:050:24:08

The two platoons had been living separately in their bases

0:24:080:24:12

for just a few weeks, but already they'd taken casualties

0:24:120:24:17

and the enemy were laying IEDs at will.

0:24:170:24:20

They had to hit back.

0:24:200:24:23

And as we eat dinner, Apaches are flying overhead,

0:24:230:24:26

ready to kill the insurgent bastards.

0:24:260:24:29

You get this feeling of aggression and you kind of think, "OK,

0:24:290:24:34

"if it's not going to be peaceful and it's going to be warry,

0:24:340:24:37

"then we're going to get warry."

0:24:370:24:39

Jimmy and his platoon received new orders to lure

0:24:420:24:46

the Taliban into a trap.

0:24:460:24:48

OK, most of you have been out on the ground.

0:24:480:24:51

We're patrolling to the north through the fields.

0:24:510:24:54

But for the plan to work, the pioneers would have to act as bait.

0:24:540:24:58

You have a foot patrol, which has air support.

0:25:040:25:07

You'd go, get contacted, you're being fired at from a location

0:25:070:25:12

and the helicopter would come in and kill that guy.

0:25:120:25:15

It was quite a shocking thing for all of us to hear that.

0:25:150:25:19

It was like, yeah, right.

0:25:190:25:21

Our job was to get shot at, so...

0:25:210:25:24

-How are you feeling, Martin?

-Awesome.

-Good. Ready to get back out there?

-Yeah, I suppose.

0:25:240:25:29

I don't want to play any more. I wanted to go home.

0:25:290:25:32

-That face says it all, doesn't it?

-I'm Lance Corporal Shepherd.

0:25:320:25:37

This will be the last you see of me. Going on suicide.

0:25:370:25:42

I'm Private Morgan, I'll be picking up Shep's legs.

0:25:420:25:44

LAUGHTER >

0:25:440:25:46

The men set off on what they nicknamed Op Bait,

0:25:500:25:53

knowing exactly where to meet the enemy.

0:25:530:25:56

Jordan Crowder was wearing his headcam.

0:26:010:26:04

Also filming just a few metres behind him was James Hughes.

0:26:040:26:09

We were right next to the canal. Right on top of it.

0:26:090:26:12

And we spotted a few people.

0:26:120:26:14

Literally, just like a stone's throw away.

0:26:140:26:17

Get down.

0:26:170:26:19

Jimmy started sending information

0:26:290:26:31

for the Apache helicopter that was standing by.

0:26:310:26:34

We knew something was going to happen and Corporal Shepherd could see

0:26:340:26:38

somebody looking through a murder hole at him.

0:26:380:26:42

Even though some of the patrol could see the enemy,

0:26:450:26:48

the Apache wouldn't attack until they'd been shot at.

0:26:480:26:53

..When we're pushing through here, OK?

0:26:530:26:56

Once we win the firefight, we can extract the casualty.

0:26:560:26:59

And take the track that runs up through Haji Hassan's compound.

0:26:590:27:03

Everybody understood?

0:27:030:27:06

Once you've put everything in place, that's it. Then you're good to go. So you go.

0:27:060:27:10

Boss gave his orders, what's happening here and everything.

0:27:140:27:18

And then we decided to patrol onwards.

0:27:180:27:22

I think the order went Scholey, Lance Corporal Woodward, the boss.

0:27:220:27:27

Then me, then Hughes.

0:27:270:27:30

Yeah.

0:27:310:27:33

Right, Hughes.

0:27:360:27:39

Let's go.

0:27:390:27:41

EXPLOSION

0:27:410:27:44

Argh!

0:27:440:27:46

Two IEDs had been triggered by a command wire

0:28:050:28:09

pulled from across the canal.

0:28:090:28:12

My brain was over wary, it went off.

0:28:120:28:14

I remember thinking falling to the floor and thinking, "Oh, God!"

0:28:140:28:18

I just thought that was it.

0:28:200:28:21

There was no pain or anything, so I was like, I'm fine.

0:28:270:28:32

But then, like, my concern then turned to Hughes behind me.

0:28:320:28:36

GUNFIRE

0:28:400:28:43

Fucking hell!

0:28:460:28:48

There's only little snippets of memory I've got.

0:28:500:28:53

I remember Crowder trying to grab me and stuff.

0:28:530:28:57

It sounds silly, check my legs, check my arms,

0:29:010:29:03

see I've still got everything.

0:29:030:29:04

And a bit of relief when I found out I've got everything.

0:29:040:29:08

GUNFIRE

0:29:140:29:17

Come here, buddy. Come on. Come on.

0:29:170:29:20

Two IEDs. Fucking unreal.

0:29:410:29:44

I was just very lucky, I guess.

0:29:560:29:57

Got someone looking over me, as my mum reckons.

0:29:570:29:59

I don't think I've ever been so thankful for rain in all my life,

0:30:070:30:10

because it rained a couple of days before and then the sun was hot.

0:30:100:30:13

It just compacted the ground really hard.

0:30:130:30:17

I think if it hadn't been for that, we wouldn't be still here now.

0:30:170:30:21

The plan to trap the Taliban had backfired.

0:30:270:30:29

Jimmy was lucky to have all his men still alive.

0:30:290:30:33

From my point of view, it's incredibly frustrating to be leading soldiers

0:30:340:30:39

out on patrol with a purpose of getting shot at.

0:30:390:30:44

There's a line between bravery and stupidity

0:30:460:30:50

and so far, we're pushing the limits of bravery.

0:30:500:30:52

I just wasn't entirely comfortable with the risks we were taking

0:30:540:30:57

and what we were achieving.

0:30:570:30:58

Erm, those foot patrols weren't securing the road.

0:30:580:31:02

Give me that, give me that.

0:31:050:31:07

Every time the two platoons of C Company went out on foot,

0:31:070:31:10

the Taliban were one step ahead of them.

0:31:100:31:13

Jimmy and Luke decided to change tactics

0:31:140:31:17

and focus on their main job, protecting route 611

0:31:170:31:22

which meant they'd now spend most of their time in vehicles.

0:31:220:31:25

The 611 is one of the few tarmac roads in Helmand

0:31:300:31:33

and connects two of its biggest towns.

0:31:330:31:35

Its security is seen as vital in bringing growth to the area.

0:31:350:31:40

If we keep this road secure, then people can travel from Gereshk to Sangin

0:31:440:31:48

and the country can get better and everything can get better,

0:31:480:31:51

then maybe the insurgencies will start lowering down.

0:31:510:31:53

You've got to think about the bigger picture and the knock-on it'll have.

0:31:530:31:57

I was a bit relieved that I'm a driver

0:32:050:32:09

and I'll be driving up and down, which will be a bit safer.

0:32:090:32:12

Those wagons are 30 tonnes of steel and specialist armour.

0:32:120:32:18

The stretch of road they had to secure was 18 kilometres long

0:32:180:32:21

and had nine Vulnerable Points or VPs

0:32:210:32:24

where the Taliban could easily plant bombs.

0:32:240:32:27

The new plan was check Vulnerable Points several times a day...

0:32:270:32:30

..every day.

0:32:300:32:32

Every day we did VP checks and we found nothing,

0:32:410:32:44

that was a victory. I considered it as such, and I treated it as such.

0:32:440:32:48

Some of the blokes, they might have said this is boring

0:32:520:32:55

but when you get used to winning, maybe winning does get boring, I don't know!

0:32:550:32:59

Some days we spend 15 or 16 hours in a vehicle.

0:33:050:33:07

You're just sat there, it was hot,

0:33:070:33:10

it was boring, there was nothing to do.

0:33:100:33:13

You can't start getting claustrophobic or anything like that, you'll just go mad.

0:33:160:33:20

I Spy, rock, paper, scissors, noughts and crosses.

0:33:200:33:24

Soldiers will complain about anything.

0:33:370:33:41

If you took them to heaven, they would say, "This is shit."

0:33:410:33:44

In the weeks following the IED blast, the 611 was kept secure

0:33:460:33:50

and C Company had taken no further casualties.

0:33:500:33:52

At the start of November, Luke and some of 7 Platoon

0:33:550:33:58

were making a routine check of VP 9.

0:33:580:34:01

In the vehicle that day was a new member of the platoon,

0:34:030:34:06

Matthew Hasilden.

0:34:060:34:08

He was a real good lad.

0:34:080:34:09

We'd take him out on patrol, in the wagons, on top cover, everything.

0:34:090:34:13

He loved it.

0:34:130:34:14

What was it like, his third patrol, second patrol?

0:34:140:34:17

Luke kept watch on top of one of the vehicles as his men set off.

0:34:210:34:25

They were just doing a loop around a VP

0:34:270:34:30

to make sure there were no IEDs anywhere.

0:34:300:34:34

This part of the road was vulnerable

0:34:340:34:36

because of how close the Taliban could get to it without being seen.

0:34:360:34:40

Leading the patrol was Joe Blakey.

0:34:400:34:42

They know our drills, they watch us.

0:34:440:34:45

As much as we try and change them, they know what we're doing,

0:34:450:34:49

so they have enough time to plan anything and set up.

0:34:490:34:52

Matthew Hasilden was in the middle of the patrol

0:34:550:34:58

as they disappeared from view.

0:34:580:35:00

The area we were in, there was a lot of high crops.

0:35:000:35:03

We were being watched by someone

0:35:030:35:06

and they decided to have a pop at us.

0:35:060:35:11

On the far side of the field, Matthew was shot by a Taliban sniper

0:35:170:35:21

lying in wait for them.

0:35:210:35:23

It was his first contact,

0:35:250:35:26

so we were like, as well, "Haz, Haz, come on, move, move."

0:35:260:35:29

He was just lying on the floor, and we thought, "He's nervous, he's flapping and a bit scared."

0:35:290:35:35

"Haz, come on get up, move your arse, what are you doing?"

0:35:350:35:38

At this point we were about 40 metres off the road.

0:35:400:35:43

I obviously tried to give him first aid and that,

0:35:430:35:46

but whatever I done didn't help him, because he was dead.

0:35:460:35:48

21-year-old Matthew Hasilden was C Company's first fatality of the tour

0:35:480:35:54

and the 384th British soldier to be killed in Afghanistan.

0:35:540:35:59

You always think this could happen and you can lose a guy,

0:35:590:36:04

but you never think about how it's going to feel.

0:36:040:36:09

It hit us hard.

0:36:090:36:11

We didn't know him that well but he was still one of the blokes,

0:36:110:36:14

still a mate.

0:36:140:36:16

Very angry towards the insurgents, but also to the country.

0:36:180:36:24

He died in this country. It's just not fair.

0:36:240:36:28

Haz died for a road,

0:36:310:36:34

it's just a road, it's not worth someone's life.

0:36:340:36:37

At their base, Jimmy's platoon received the news of Matthew's death.

0:36:490:36:54

They were angry and frustrated, but they couldn't hit back

0:36:540:36:57

against an enemy right on their doorstep.

0:36:570:36:59

This is shit!

0:37:020:37:05

Fucking shit!

0:37:050:37:06

The Taliban are just there.

0:37:060:37:08

-The Taliban are there?

-Yeah.

0:37:080:37:10

-We're fucking sandbagging here.

-The Taliban, 100 metres that way.

0:37:100:37:14

The biggest source of frustration were the strict rules

0:37:140:37:17

of engagement British soldiers in Afghanistan now operate under.

0:37:170:37:21

They can only fire their weapons if their lives are in immediate danger.

0:37:210:37:24

What do you think of it?

0:37:240:37:26

It's fucking tunk!

0:37:260:37:28

You see a person with a gun and you can't engage them.

0:37:280:37:32

To me, that is wrong.

0:37:330:37:34

It's hard to separate the civilians from the enemy.

0:37:340:37:39

You don't know, they all wear the fucking same thing.

0:37:390:37:42

You can't go around shooting everyone like everyone's an enemy

0:37:420:37:45

because they're not.

0:37:450:37:46

-If we get contacted by the Taliban what will you do?

-PID first...

0:37:460:37:49

..then fucking brass the cunts up.

0:37:490:37:52

It's your inherent right to self-defence.

0:37:520:37:55

If you're being shot at and you can positively identify the enemy,

0:37:550:37:57

you can fire back.

0:37:570:37:59

GUNFIRE

0:37:590:38:00

A Taliban attack on their base gave the pioneers

0:38:020:38:06

a perfect opportunity.

0:38:060:38:07

The blokes would be happy about it. It was worth all the boring shit.

0:38:100:38:13

Every man just smashes it.

0:38:130:38:15

It's like being a little kid, you get dead giddy.

0:38:190:38:21

Everyone chucks their body armour on and like, "Where?"

0:38:210:38:23

Run into the room and are dead excited.

0:38:230:38:25

On that day it was very real and Hadley was nearly shot in the head

0:38:270:38:30

and Sergeant Keets and I were nearly decapitated.

0:38:300:38:32

Now, with their lives in imminent danger, Jimmy called in an airstrike from an Apache helicopter.

0:38:350:38:40

Although it's never nice to have to kill people,

0:38:410:38:44

it was a good feeling for the platoon

0:38:440:38:46

because we felt like we'd been under attack in a static location.

0:38:460:38:50

It was a good way of showing them we could fight back. We killed two insurgents and wounded one.

0:38:500:38:54

They're the enemy.

0:39:040:39:05

They're trying to kill us and we're trying to kill them.

0:39:050:39:08

It's not something I sit and think about.

0:39:080:39:11

We've been trying to kill people. It's fucking, it's really fucked up when you think about it.

0:39:160:39:20

It's just the norm, nothing really special about it.

0:39:200:39:24

With that Apache, that was like,

0:39:240:39:28

"Yes, that man there, I want you to kill him now."

0:39:280:39:31

The Apache went, "OK."

0:39:310:39:33

Like that, and that was it, he was dead.

0:39:340:39:36

-Are you emotionally damaged?

-Not in the slightest, no.

0:39:360:39:39

Isn't that strange? Shouldn't I be? Here you are. It can't all be me.

0:39:390:39:44

How do you feel?

0:39:440:39:45

How do I feel?

0:39:450:39:47

I've not really thought about it, to be honest.

0:39:480:39:51

Is that part of that...?

0:39:510:39:52

I don't think it bothers me in the slightest.

0:39:520:39:56

Not being able to speak to Luke was probably one of the hardest things that happened on tour

0:39:560:40:00

because I was sat there and there's no-one to talk to.

0:40:000:40:03

-Keets...

-Fuck off.

0:40:030:40:04

-Come on.

-I don't want to be interviewed.

0:40:040:40:06

-I want you to be interviewed.

-How's the tour going?

0:40:060:40:08

How are the blokes going?

0:40:080:40:10

Everything's fine.

0:40:100:40:11

It's actually going quite well.

0:40:110:40:13

As the tour wore on, you do get...

0:40:150:40:20

..affected and you do get worn down.

0:40:200:40:22

It's raining!

0:40:260:40:29

Jimmy, Luke and their platoons were more than halfway through their tour

0:40:290:40:32

as the Afghan winter started to bite.

0:40:320:40:35

Winter was a survival against the elements

0:40:430:40:46

as much as it was against the Taliban.

0:40:460:40:49

Good morning, Afghanistan.

0:40:490:40:51

Man! It's fucking wet.

0:40:540:40:55

It's knee deep in there.

0:40:550:40:57

My things are floating away.

0:40:570:40:59

As the weather deteriorated, the two officers noticed the mood dropping in both their camps.

0:41:010:41:07

The toughest part about leading guys on tour,

0:41:100:41:13

and in barracks, is maintaining their morale.

0:41:130:41:15

It's just like England here now.

0:41:170:41:19

Morale was the biggest thing, in my personal view.

0:41:250:41:28

If you haven't got morale, you haven't got nothing.

0:41:280:41:30

Certainly my morale has dipped, definitely dipped.

0:41:350:41:39

Fuck off!

0:41:390:41:41

"Fuck off, I'm trying to have some personal time."

0:41:410:41:44

If blokes come up and say, "You look a bit down, what's up?"

0:41:440:41:47

I'll say, "I feel lonely, I feel a real weight of responsibility."

0:41:470:41:53

And, "It's tough at the moment."

0:41:530:41:55

And they'll say, "OK." No-one really cares how you're feeling.

0:41:550:41:58

It's difficult really to "fight" an enemy

0:42:050:42:07

that we're not allowed to fight under our rules of engagement.

0:42:070:42:11

We can only really return fire, and sometimes it's very frustrating.

0:42:110:42:15

It's just dispiriting

0:42:160:42:17

and it's difficult to always be...

0:42:170:42:19

..in command.

0:42:210:42:23

To always be responsible for everything everybody does.

0:42:230:42:26

Our monthly planner.

0:42:280:42:29

What do you think of the new monthly planner?

0:42:290:42:31

-It's excellent.

-It's excellent.

0:42:310:42:33

-Looked at it?

-Er, now and then, yeah.

-Now and then.

0:42:330:42:39

One of the problems, especially with the IEDs on the route 611,

0:42:390:42:42

is insurgents aren't trying to blow up the civilians,

0:42:420:42:45

they're just trying to blow up us.

0:42:450:42:46

We're actually in a position where we're protecting a route

0:42:460:42:49

which only needs protecting because we use it.

0:42:490:42:51

Just some stuff that's been on my mind recently.

0:42:570:43:00

How's it smelling, Taffy?

0:43:080:43:11

-Peng.

-Peng! HE LAUGHS

0:43:110:43:13

Fantastic. Merry Christmas.

0:43:130:43:16

Merry Christmas.

0:43:160:43:17

MUSIC: "Stop The Cavalry" by Jona Lewie

0:43:170:43:20

-I planned it a week ago.

-That's pretty good.

0:43:230:43:27

# Oh, I say it's tough I have had enough

0:43:270:43:29

# Can you stop the cavalry? #

0:43:290:43:32

Have you had some more, Tim? How did it taste? Merry Christmas.

0:43:340:43:40

Christmas Day provided a rare opportunity

0:43:400:43:43

for Jimmy, Luke and their two platoons to spend time together.

0:43:430:43:46

'It's nice to see his blokes mixing with my blokes.'

0:43:490:43:52

It didn't even have to be Christmas, it was just any excuse for a party.

0:43:520:43:56

Everybody went around seeing each other.

0:43:560:43:58

It proper brought morale high, like.

0:43:580:44:01

Look at that. Look at all those happy little faces munching away.

0:44:010:44:04

-Combat Christmas.

-Combat Christmas.

0:44:040:44:07

I think you kind of forget you're in Afghan for, like, an hour or two.

0:44:100:44:15

You're just sat round having dinner.

0:44:150:44:17

Everything's just good. Merry Christmas.

0:44:170:44:21

'That certainly was one of the most special Christmases

0:44:230:44:26

'we've probably ever had in our lives.

0:44:260:44:28

'Just a chance to get together and forget for a second'

0:44:280:44:31

that there is guys 300 or 400 metres away

0:44:310:44:34

that are probably watching us thinking, "What the...?

0:44:340:44:37

"What are they doing?" You know? Um...

0:44:370:44:40

..that wanted to kill us.

0:44:410:44:43

THEY SING

0:44:430:44:45

THEY CHEER

0:44:510:44:53

The two platoons continued to work separately on Route 611.

0:45:010:45:05

One morning in December, Jimmy was in his vehicle

0:45:110:45:15

carrying a journalist there to find out how the tour was going.

0:45:150:45:18

He decided to drive past where Luke and his men were working that day.

0:45:200:45:24

We were driving north and I knew that Luke was involved in an operation near a vulnerable point.

0:45:250:45:31

Luke and his platoon were searching an area just off the road

0:45:430:45:47

and had set up a cordon to stop traffic.

0:45:470:45:49

'We were controlling traffic and telling them to turn around, go back.

0:45:510:45:55

This one vehicle just ignored what we were saying -

0:45:550:45:58

we were doing our best efforts -

0:45:580:46:00

went round the eastern side of the road and triggered a device.

0:46:000:46:04

The camera captured the moment

0:46:060:46:08

the minibus that had ignored the roadblock

0:46:080:46:10

drove off the road and headed straight towards

0:46:100:46:13

a pressure plate IED buried in the ground.

0:46:130:46:15

EXPLOSIVE BANG

0:46:200:46:22

There was a very loud explosion.

0:46:220:46:25

Floored it for 200 metres and then stopped dead

0:46:250:46:29

to assess what was going on.

0:46:290:46:31

I said to Luke on the net, "Right, do you need any assistance?"

0:46:330:46:37

And he said, "No, we'll handle it. You take them away."

0:46:370:46:40

'We heard it. We felt the dust.'

0:46:430:46:46

I couldn't control that vehicle.

0:46:460:46:49

We tried. They drove...

0:46:490:46:52

They drove on the IED.

0:46:520:46:53

19 people died in the explosion.

0:46:560:46:59

We was there to try and stop anything like that happening.

0:47:010:47:04

They were innocent civilians

0:47:040:47:07

that got hit by a device that was meant for soldiers.

0:47:070:47:13

What we was doing was pretty much running round with stretchers,

0:47:140:47:17

picking up bits and bobs. What you could find.

0:47:170:47:21

We could see the main torsos of a lot of the casualties,

0:47:210:47:26

which is what we counted.

0:47:260:47:28

There was limbs, there was debris around.

0:47:280:47:33

A lot of it. You couldn't really tell whether some parts were part vehicle or part of a person.

0:47:330:47:38

-It was hard.

-It was horrible.

0:47:390:47:42

Only when Jimmy got back to base did he discover the full extent

0:47:470:47:51

of the scene that Luke and his men had had to deal with.

0:47:510:47:54

I can't believe I left him with that.

0:47:540:47:56

You know, I can't believe I didn't get out and help him

0:47:560:48:00

pick up the pieces of dead people.

0:48:000:48:02

The minibus had contained three generations of one family

0:48:030:48:07

on their way to a wedding.

0:48:070:48:10

Luke and his men managed to save the lives of five passengers,

0:48:100:48:14

but five men and 14 women and children

0:48:140:48:18

died in the explosion that day.

0:48:180:48:21

News of the civilian deaths soon spread among the local villages.

0:48:260:48:31

The civilians could have looked on it

0:48:340:48:36

as we'd brought this trouble to this area...

0:48:360:48:39

But it didn't.

0:48:410:48:43

It completely went the opposite and the villages,

0:48:430:48:46

they hated the Taliban for this.

0:48:460:48:48

The locals' anger towards the Taliban meant both Luke and Jimmy

0:48:480:48:53

could lead their men into villages that had previously been hostile.

0:48:530:48:58

TRANSLATION:

0:48:580:49:00

Are you related? Are you family?

0:49:030:49:06

'We built up some really good relationships.

0:49:060:49:08

It was really nice when people would greet us by name on the street

0:49:080:49:11

and we could greet them back by name on the street.

0:49:110:49:13

It's nice to come somewhere and be welcomed.

0:49:130:49:16

-Yeah, a good reception by the kids.

-'The kids were great.'

0:49:160:49:20

They were all so full of life and hope and, you know,

0:49:200:49:22

you really need it. You really appreciate it out there,

0:49:220:49:25

-so, you know, that's important.

-Always tried to rob things off you, though.

0:49:250:49:28

You walk around and you put your hand in your pocket

0:49:280:49:32

to get a bag of sweets out and as you're pulling it out, you're like,

0:49:320:49:35

"Oh. I've got no sweets now, have I?"

0:49:350:49:37

-February.

-Dad.

0:49:370:49:39

'They're always coming up to you and pestering you for things.'

0:49:390:49:43

-They ask for pens.

-"Bean. Bean. Mr, Mr Bean."

-"Mr Bean."

0:49:430:49:46

"The CM over there has got pens. Go and bother him."

0:49:460:49:49

No, no, no, no, no.

0:49:490:49:51

CHILDREN LAUGH AND MIMIC

0:49:510:49:53

Pen for chicken.

0:49:540:49:56

As spring approached, the improved relationships with the locals

0:49:580:50:02

was making a real difference.

0:50:020:50:05

They would put on chai and food for us. We came up with agreements.

0:50:050:50:09

They were going to come and tell us if the Taliban had come in.

0:50:090:50:13

And it worked.

0:50:130:50:15

Not only were they gathering intelligence on the Taliban,

0:50:150:50:18

Jimmy's platoon had started taking fingerprints and iris scans

0:50:180:50:21

of fighting-age men.

0:50:210:50:24

They hoped to track down known Taliban fighters.

0:50:260:50:29

Just in this place here.

0:50:310:50:33

The more people they enrolled, the better the chance of finding a match.

0:50:340:50:38

For two hours a day, they went out and biometrically enrolled people.

0:50:400:50:43

-'That was a victory.'

-How many did you do?

-Four.

0:50:430:50:46

Fucking hell, you're a ninja on that, aren't you?

0:50:460:50:49

Even when we got five, that was five more than just about anyone else,

0:50:490:50:52

so when we're getting 30 a day, that was a big deal.

0:50:520:50:54

The assault pioneers managed to collect more data than any other platoon in Helmand.

0:50:570:51:02

And they started to get results.

0:51:020:51:04

I think by the end of the tour, I think we got three people

0:51:150:51:19

taken back to Bastion for further questioning

0:51:190:51:21

because they were on the wanted levels.

0:51:210:51:23

Seven platoon were also having some success.

0:51:260:51:28

They arrested two men suspected of planting an IED on the route 611.

0:51:280:51:33

-Have you been searched properly?

-What?

0:51:340:51:36

Have you been searched properly?

0:51:360:51:38

-When are we handing these over?

-22nd.

-22nd?

0:51:440:51:50

These have to be done by the 22nd.

0:51:500:51:51

With just a few weeks of the tour left,

0:51:510:51:55

Jimmy gave his men news of when they'd be leaving.

0:51:550:51:57

And now what you've really all been waiting for,

0:51:570:52:00

which is when you, personally,

0:52:000:52:02

are going to get the fuck out of this place.

0:52:020:52:04

Go and see the padre.

0:52:040:52:06

When you find out your dates, it's like, "We're all counting down to this now.

0:52:060:52:10

"I can finally look forward to something,"

0:52:100:52:12

so it is an amazing feeling.

0:52:120:52:14

Granger, Crowder and Gale, you are going, leaving on the 21st.

0:52:140:52:20

LAUGHTER

0:52:200:52:23

But their recent success in finding the enemy was a warning

0:52:230:52:27

that while they were going home, the Taliban were going nowhere.

0:52:270:52:30

But, guys, like I said - they're not ripping out, we are,

0:52:320:52:34

so they're going to keep fighting until the day we leave and beyond,

0:52:340:52:38

all right? So be aware of that and don't get too lax.

0:52:380:52:41

Everyone just wants to go home and it's that simple.

0:52:410:52:46

-How's kit etc going?

-Fine.

0:52:460:52:50

Just done the last bit now, which is signals and ECM.

0:52:500:52:52

I'm down one battery at the minute. However, we do know where it is.

0:52:520:52:55

Just got to locate it, if that makes sense.

0:52:550:52:58

-First and last?

-First and last.

0:53:010:53:04

Jimmy was handing over to a new platoon of soldiers from the Royal Welsh.

0:53:040:53:07

-Sign there, sir.

-Thank you very much.

0:53:070:53:11

But as they were preparing to leave, he received news

0:53:110:53:15

that showed how deadly the Taliban threat continued to be.

0:53:150:53:18

We've just found out that Captain Bowers is dead.

0:53:220:53:27

He got blown up in an IED about two and a half hours ago.

0:53:270:53:31

Obviously I felt sick to my stomach. I felt a chill go down my spine.

0:53:320:53:36

I know he's got a wife and a brand-new baby and...

0:53:360:53:42

and...

0:53:420:53:44

I'm fucking gutted.

0:53:440:53:46

Captain Rupert Bowers was Jimmy's friend and fellow officer.

0:53:470:53:51

He was three days away from flying home.

0:53:530:53:55

He's one of those guys you just fucking need on your side.

0:54:000:54:03

I'm fucking glad he's not on their side.

0:54:030:54:04

He's dead.

0:54:080:54:10

On 24th March 2012,

0:54:140:54:17

C company started to pull out of Helmand province.

0:54:170:54:21

All British combat troops will leave Afghanistan by the end of 2014.

0:54:260:54:31

Come back! Come back!

0:54:310:54:33

-Take care, mate.

-By which time, the upper Gereshk Valley

0:54:380:54:42

will have to be ready to be handed over to Afghan forces.

0:54:420:54:46

Let's do this. Take care.

0:54:470:54:50

That's it. Goodbye. Can't see shit with this. Job done.

0:55:000:55:04

Back in the UK, the men have time to reflect on a tour

0:55:230:55:27

far tougher than any of them expected.

0:55:270:55:30

I'm like the cardboard man.

0:55:320:55:34

Obviously myself was involved in quite a lot, yeah.

0:55:370:55:40

But everyone had a different kind of tour.

0:55:400:55:44

-The whole experience of it...

-It's a life experience, isn't it?

0:55:440:55:47

It's something you can say, if you do have kids in the future,

0:55:470:55:50

you can say, "Yeah, I've done that. I was there."

0:55:500:55:52

Move over to your right a little.

0:55:520:55:55

This is my first tour, so I don't know how long it will take me

0:55:580:56:01

to settle back down properly and whatnot, so...

0:56:010:56:04

I've come back alive. I'm happy.

0:56:040:56:08

Everyone was very proud of what we achieved out there.

0:56:140:56:17

It's something that will stay with me for life.

0:56:190:56:22

You, your guys, your mission, that's it.

0:56:230:56:29

OK. Here we go.

0:56:290:56:32

I don't even feel like I've been to Afghan.

0:56:320:56:34

It's flown. I just feel like I've been here the whole time.

0:56:340:56:37

The minute we're pulling out, and what have we really achieved?

0:56:370:56:41

But as long as you know it's not in vain.

0:56:420:56:45

Take every day as it comes.

0:56:470:56:49

Sit up, please, and that's three, two...

0:56:490:56:52

I just can't wait for the next one, to be honest.

0:56:520:56:55

Come on!

0:57:040:57:06

During one of the most violent periods of the war,

0:57:060:57:09

a young officer led his platoon to a remote and dangerous part of Helmand.

0:57:090:57:13

He recorded the experience in a diary.

0:57:130:57:16

'We are walking a tightrope and deaths could occur,

0:57:160:57:20

-'which could have been stopped.'

-Medic!

0:57:200:57:23

I heard Corporal Evans screaming, "The boss is down, the boss is down!"

0:57:230:57:26

Man down. That's when it's time for you to man up.

0:57:260:57:28

With their leader injured in a Taliban ambush and communications severed,

0:57:280:57:33

the platoon had no choice but to fight their way out alone.

0:57:330:57:36

I've never felt as lonely as I did in that ditch.

0:57:360:57:39

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0:57:500:57:54

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