Yon reports ‘Death in the Corn II’ from Afghanistan

Michael Yon is back at war, this time in Afghanistan, and just like he did in Iraq, he’s not in the rear with the gear, he’s up front with the troops. Yon reported as an independent correspondent in Iraq as long as that war remained “hot” but with victory at hand there, he’s gone to “The Forgotten War.” He files the second in a 3-part series from a British base in a cornfield, called Death in the Corn.

The ambush was set, but “Terry” Taliban didn’t step into it. The most successful hunters are not the ones who bag something every time, but the ones who hunt all the time, and 2 Para has been hunting the most dangerous prey. The soldiers of C-co 2 Para are not sure how many they’ve killed in the past five months, but the estimates are around 200, and during the days I spent with them, their average daily kill would put them well over that number.

In part 2 of a series, Yon goes on a foot patrol with British Army troops deep in “Terry” Taliban country in Afghanistan and when they occupy an abandoned mud fort, the former Green Beret does what any good soldier does when has a chance. He takes a nap.

There was some heavy shooting far in front of us that abated within minutes, and I fell back asleep in the last slivers of shade. Then a very sharp firefight broke out at the forward positions. Again, Lima 1-1 was not involved, but intelligence came in that Taliban might be heading in our direction, although no one knew if they were aware of our position. Probably they did know, because two boys rode by on a donkey, and there were other compounds nearby where we could hear dogs barking and kids playing. Some of the dogs here are massive and look like Cujo.

I tried to fall back asleep, but the shade was evaporating as the sun rose, and every time sweet dreams started, they were interrupted by a firefight, so I climbed down the precarious ladder to sit with Dr. Lalani. Soldiers have great respect for medical doctors who can justifiably stay on base, but instead push into combat. If the doctor is there during those first minutes after a soldier is wounded, there is a far greater chance of survival.

At about 1106, the enemy initiated contact on one of the forward positions. It was so loud that I thought our guys were firing from the roof. Rockets were blasting away. About 40 seconds after contact, the 81mm mortars were firing straight over our heads and crashing down on enemy positions about a klick to our front. Thousands of rounds were being fired, though the guns all around me were silent.

The elements up front were fighting while I just listened to the gunfire and explosions while eating one of the MREs the Danes had given me. Up front in the fight, Lance Corporal Alex Fraenzel was hauling a Javelin missile. Fraenzel and Private Richard Lloyd ran forward. While Fraenzel set up for the shot, Lloyd began firing his SA-80 rifle into suspected enemy positions to provide cover.

Yon ends his second report in the series “Death in the Corn” with a promise of even more lively action to come in the third report.

The patrol returned to Gibraltar, not knowing how many Taliban they had killed, if any. But tomorrow they would go out hunting again. This time, they would bag their limit.