Chapter 7 - A Visit to Obaidullah Klup, Helmand

It was October 01, 2011, at 3.00 o' clock in the morning when we were flown from Camp Hansen in Marjah to Obaidullah Klup, to support a mission. Obaidullah Klup is about 10 miles from the Marjah. The Osprey I was in landed in a cotton field and we were asked to disembark quickly. It was dark, only a very small light was on inside the Osprey which hardly helped us to see the floor.

Outside, cotton plants were shaking vigorously due to the winds produced by the helicopter rotors. The waving cotton plants were giving the impression of strong water waves. I thought that we had landed in the water. I was scared to go into the water and for a moment hesitated to get out of the Osprey. Someone yelled “hurry up, run" and at the same time someone pushed me from the back.

No option left; I had to move "Thank God we are not in water" I murmured as I touched the ground. We ran for about 100 yards away from the Osprey and ducked in the ditches around the field where we landed.

As soon as the bird left some Marines took their positions on the roofs of the compounds in front of us and EOD guys with bomb dogs started clearing the area. After about 30 minutes we were signaled to move forward. After crossing a few fields and jumping over irrigation channels and ditches, we were again ordered to crouch down in the ditches.

Again, Marines took positions on the roofs of the nearby houses and let other marines clear the area from any threat of mines. The process was repeated multiple times, and we kept on alternating running and ducking until we reached an empty compound, where we established a makeshift biometric station.

Now, daylight had already scattered, and villagers started emerging from their houses for their daily chores. They were looking at us with curiosity and suspicion. However, we greeted everyone who walked by us.

It was a weekly market (Meela) day in the area. Many farmers were taking their livestock for trading in the Meela. Marines established a checkpoint on the nearby dirt road and started directing adults to the biometric station. I was helping the station with collecting the information. It took us about three hours to use up all the available batteries of the biometric system (HIID).

We packed the equipment and started moving again. After walking for one more hour we reached a compound which was declared our post for the mission. Everybody was assigned some job to make the compound suitable for our safe and secure stay.

As usual, establishing watch towers, erecting communication antennas, making a toilet and digging a burn pit took priority.

The compound was littered with trash, the most dangerous was broken glass bottles. I tried to clean as much as possible from the area surrounding the spot where I was supposed to spread my sleeping bag.

Soon we received air deliveries of MREs and water bottles.

A few neighbors and the area elders visited us immediately after our arrival in the compound. They were curious and wanted to know what we would be doing and how long we were going to stay.

The owner of the compound also came to greet us. He first suggested and then insisted that we should move to the next compound which was abandoned but was more spacious and had sturdy walls and gates, but our commander politely refused to move. Afterward we learned that the compound he was suggesting for us to move was infected with mines and the owner wanted us to clear that compound.

It was hot during the daytime, but the weather became pleasant with the sunset. I was exhausted due to all this walking and talking. I spread my sleeping bag on a cardboard which I took from the water palette. We played cards for an hour then went to sleep. For the remaining four days we talked to the area elders, farmers and Afghan Local Police (ALP) commander of the area.

We also patrolled the village intensively, which gave us an opportunity to see the area. Apparently agricultural crops here were better than the Marjah, probably due to the availability of more irrigation water because Obaidullah Klup is in the middle of the irrigation canal, originating from the Kajaki Dam while Marjah is located at the end of the same canal. Due to the proximity of the area to the Lashkargah, provincial headquarters and the largest town of the province, farmers have easy access to the market.

We also saw many cotton and sunflower fields. Both crops are profitable and have processing units in Lashkargah. Like other parts of the province, the soil in the area was also saline and many fields were barren. A farmer, who was preparing his field for wheat crops, told us that he leased the land for cultivation. However, due to high salt content of the soil he was not expecting good production or profit for at least three years, a time considered enough by the local farmers to let the excessive salt in the soil leach away, when applied Flood Irrigation. Availability of fodder and market for milk and meat also encouraged the area farmers to raise quality livestock for higher production.

Children we met in the area were clean and well dressed as compared to many other parts of the province. There was no school in the area. However, some kids were attending schools in Lashkargah while others were attending a local mosque school (Madrassa). There used to be a school in the village, but it was destroyed during the war, depriving many generations of education. However, there was a plan to build a new school in the area. A shop with a small flour mill was also there. We bought some cookies and flat bread to supplement our MRE lunch which we ate while sitting on the side of a small passage leading to another village.

After four days, a new team of Marines and an ANA platoon came to relieve us. We went to Camp Hansen, enjoyed a shower and some hot meals. After four days we were again flown to the Obaidullah Klup. But this time we landed next to our post, far better than on the previous landing. We were relaxed and confident because everything looked familiar, and it was the last visit of the mission.