Posted By: Sarah and Marla B. We are traveling throughout southern Lebanon right now. This photo was taken by our ‘fixer’ Salim in Bint J’Bail. This area was hit particularly hard in the 2006 war. We have had limited access to internet here but keep reading because we will send more photos and video blogs…
Posted By: Sarah and Marla B. We wanted to send you an update on our first day in Lebanon. After landing last night and spending a couple of hours finalizing a grant proposal, we arose bright and early this morning to a day packed full of meetings. As we prepare for our trip to Southern…
Posted By: Erica In some conflicts, PRT involvement in humanitarian aid is essential because the area is too dangerous for civilian aid workers. Especially in the immediate wake of combat operations, only the military may have access to a civilian community. This is where things get tricky in war. While it is always the right…
Posted By: Jon I spent March 3rd and 4th visiting and participating in training at the United States Army’s National Training Center at Fort Irwin, California. Located in the High Mojave Desert, Fort Irwin is the Army’s preeminent training center for soldiers. It provides realistic training for commanders and soldiers to prepare them for success…
Posted By: Erica While much of the humanitarian aid in Afghanistan is channeled through non-governmental organizations, government aid agencies, or development budgets of foreign missions here, many of the US and NATO military officers may also be involved in direct humanitarian aid and development in the areas that their Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRTs) control. PRTs…
Posted By: Erica Hayatullah Khan listens to English language radio every day, like clockwork. “He listens to the science program,” his brother told me. “That is his favorite thing because one day on the program, they talked about a treatment in the US for [restoring] eyesight and it gave him hope.” Hayatullah lost his eyesight…
Posted By: Erica Not far from Hazi Sharif’s construction materials shop, I met a shy young man who was finishing his apprenticeship to become a mechanic. “I was a student of [the senior mechanic]” Masood told me, “but now I am better than he is.” Masood was not always so beaming. In December 2006, Masood,…
Posted By: Erica [Read the First Part] When the dust settled, the southern half of Hazi Sharif’s home had collapsed. Four members of his family were dead as were another two women from his nephew’s family. Rokia, an elderly relative, was rushing to help other family members when the second bomb exploded nearby. When I…
Posted By: Erica In December 2001, US forces were engaged in heavy bombing in the Paktia province, one of the last refuges of the Taliban. Many innocent civilians also lost their lives, including several family members of a man named Hazi Sharif, who shared his story with me. A rocket that was intended for a…