Afghanistan Wartime Architecture June 2010
Part 3
 

Commanding Officer of 1st Battalion the Royal Gurkha Rifles, Lieutenant Colonel Gerald Strickland (C) conducts a daily morning briefing at a Nahr-e Saraj patrol base in Helmand on June 20, 2010. Afghanistan has seen an 'alarming' near-doubling of incidents involving homemade bombs in a year, said a UN report on June 19, as the US asserted progress was being made in the war-torn country. Getty

British Gurkha officers and Afghan National Army officers meet with local village elders to discuss security, development projects and local governance during a Shura (local council meeting) at a Nahr-e Saraj patrol base in Helmand on June 20, 2010. Afghanistan has seen an 'alarming' near-doubling of incidents involving homemade bombs in a year, said a UN report on June 19, as the US asserted progress was being made in the war-torn country. Getty

A woman wearing a burqa walks down an alleyway in the old town area of Kabul on June 19, 2010. At least five civilians, including two young girls, were killed in an air strike by NATO forces in eastern Afghanistan, police and hospital officials said. Getty [Note cover-lifting rings for access to drainage/utilities trough.]

A woman wearing burqa carries a child through a street in the old town area of Kabul on June 19, 2010. At least five civilians, including two young girls, were killed in an air strike by NATO forces in eastern Afghanistan, police and hospital officials said. Getty

U.S. Army Sgt.First Class Jason Cho (L) and Sgt. Patrick Schultz of Charlie Co. Sixth Battalion, 101st Airborne Combat Aviation Brigade, Task Force Shadow play a game of ping pong as they wait for MEDEVAC calls June 19, 2010 in Kandahar, Afghanistan. As combat operations begin to escalate near Kandahar, the 101st Airborne MEDEVAC unit transports casualties of war as well as sick and injured local residents. Getty

U.S. Army soldiers carry a gun shot victim on a stretcher to a MEDEVAC helicopter June 19, 2010 near Kandahar, Afghanistan. As combat operations begin to escalate near Kandahar, the 101st Airborne MEDEVAC unit transports casualties of war as well as sick and injured local residents. Getty

Medics move a U.S. soldier, who was wounded on the battlefield, for advanced X-rays at the Kandahar Role 3 Hospital June 18, 2010 at Kandahar Air Field, Afghanistan. The hospital, one of the most advanced in the country, recently moved into a modern, custom-built fortified building on the sprawling airbase that serves as the nerve center for the NATO military effort in southwestern Afghanistan. Getty

Doctors and nurses examine an American soldier who had just arrived in the trauma ward after being wounded on the battlefield, at the Kandahar Role 3 Hospital June 18, 2010 at Kandahar Air Field, Afghanistan. The hospital, one of the most advanced in the country, recently moved into a modern, custom-built fortified building on the sprawling airbase that serves as the nerve center for the NATO military effort in southwestern Afghanistan. Getty

U.S. Air Force Airmen watch game seven of the NBA finals June 18, 2010 at Kandahar Air Field in Kandahar, Afghanistan. The Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Boston Celtics in game seven of the NBA finals. Getty

A man attends Friday prayers outside a mosque in Kabul on June 18, 2010. Afghanistan's mining minister said June 17 that mineral deposits in his country could be worth up to three trillion dollars, tripling a US estimate from earlier this week. Getty

An Afghan child and burqa-clad women beg following Friday prayers outside a mosque in Kabul on June 18, 2010. Afghanistan's mining minister said June 17 that mineral deposits in his country could be worth up to three trillion dollars, tripling a US estimate from earlier this week. Getty

US soldiers pass a signpost pointing to the various countries of NATO forces, on the 'boardwalk' at Kandahar airfield on June 17, 2010. A homemade bomb killed a NATO soldier in the south of Afghanistan, the alliance announced, the third death in one day as the toll for foreign forces in the country continues to mount. The solider, whose nationality has not been released, was killed on Wednesday by an improvised explosive device (IED), the weapon of choice for Taliban insurgents hoping to drive the US and its allies from the country. Getty

U.S. Army Chief Warrant Officer Everton Joseph of Charlie Co. Sixth Battalion, 101st Airborne Combat Aviation Brigade, Task Force Shadow, watches a World Cup match June 16, 2010 in Kandahar, Afghanistan. As combat operations begin to escalate near Kandahar, the 101st Airborne MEDEVAC unit is tasked with transporting casualties of war as well as sick and injured local residents. Getty

An Afghan girl carries plastic vessels as she sits beside a tent in Kabul on June 16, 2010. Afghanistan is one of the world's poorest countries where unemployment is at 40 percent and half the population is under the poverty line. Getty

An Afghan vendor arranges mangoes on a mobile stand on a roadside in Kabul on June 16, 2010. Afghanistan is one of the world's poorest countries where unemployment is at 40 percent and half the population is under the poverty line. Fruit production levels have increased in recent years but logistical difficulties with packaging and distribution are holding back the Central Asian nation's potential to reach markets beyond it's borders and create a stable industry which can attract foreign buyers. Getty

An Afghan girl carries a plastic vessel as she walks between tents in Kabul on June 16, 2010. Afghanistan is one of the world's poorest countries where unemployment is at 40 percent and half the population is under the poverty line. Getty

An Afghan street scene is seen through the window of a M-ATV vehicle, the heavily-armored successor to the Humvee, June 15, 2010 in Kandahar, Afghanistan. The M-ATV and other mine-resistant vehicles have almost completely replaced the venerable Humvee for transporting American forces around in Afghanistan, using innovations like thicker, irregularly-shaped windows to help protect troops from deadly roadside bombs and other explosions. Getty

An A line of small motorized taxis are seen through the window of a M-ATV vehicle, the heavily-armored successor to the Humvee, June 15, 2010 in Kandahar, Afghanistan. The M-ATV and other mine-resistant vehicles have almost completely replaced the venerable Humvee for transporting American forces around in Afghanistan, using innovations like thicker, irregularly-shaped windows to help protect troops from deadly roadside bombs and other explosions. Getty

A guard towers and earthen wall of a military base is seen through the window of a M-ATV vehicle, the heavily-armored successor to the Humvee, June 15, 2010 in Kandahar, Afghanistan. The M-ATV and other mine-resistant vehicles have almost completely replaced the venerable Humvee for transporting American forces around in Afghanistan, using innovations like thicker, irregularly-shaped windows to help protect troops from deadly roadside bombs and other explosions. Getty

A butchers shop is seen through the window of a M-ATV vehicle, the heavily-armored successor to the Humvee, June 15, 2010 in Kandahar, Afghanistan. The M-ATV and other mine-resistant vehicles have almost completely replaced the venerable Humvee for transporting American forces around in Afghanistan, using innovations like thicker, irregularly-shaped windows to help protect troops from deadly roadside bombs and other explosions. Getty

An Afghan street scene is seen through the window of a M-ATV vehicle, the heavily-armored successor to the Humvee, June 15, 2010 in Kandahar, Afghanistan. The M-ATV and other mine-resistant vehicles have almost completely replaced the venerable Humvee for transporting American forces around in Afghanistan, using innovations like thicker, irregularly-shaped windows to help protect troops from deadly roadside bombs and other explosions. Getty

Afghans stand outside a small restaurant as seen through the window of a M-ATV vehicle, the heavily-armored successor to the Humvee, June 15, 2010 in Kandahar, Afghanistan. The M-ATV and other mine-resistant vehicles have almost completely replaced the venerable Humvee for transporting American forces around in Afghanistan, using innovations like thicker, irregularly-shaped windows to help protect troops from deadly roadside bombs and other explosions. Getty

Patients learn embroidery at Sanga Amaj, a clinic that treats Afghan women and children for addiction to opiates, in Kabul June 15, 2010. The clinic is one of three set up with U.S. funding to treat the most vulnerable of Afghanistan's many drug users. Reuters

Afghan policemen man at a police check point following an attack by militants in Ghazni, Afghanistan, Tuesday, June 15, 2010. Militants attacked a police checkpoint in eastern Ghazni province before dawn Tuesday, killing five officers and wounding one, said Ghazni Deputy Police Chief Nawroz Ali Nawroz. He said the attackers overran the checkpoint north of Ghazni city and made off with weapons. AP

Sergeant 1st Class Charles Smith (C) of the US Army 293rd MP Battalion watches over a usually busy street during an operation by a US Army Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) team to recover a weapons cache discovered in Kandahar City on June 14, 2010. A district chief, his son and a bodyguard were killed by a car bomb in southern Afghanistan's Taliban heartland of Kandahar city on June 15, police said. Getty

Military personnel of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) play hockey as their Slovak colleagues support them at Kandahar Air Field (KAF), southern Afghanistan, June 15, 2010. Reuters

Sgt. David Guthrie of Grimes, Iowa serving with the U.S. Army's 1-17 Cavalry opens a package that had just arrived from his family at Strongpoint Tarnak on June 14, 2010 in rural Dand District, just south of Kandahar, Afghanistan. U.S. soldiers of the 1st Squadron, 71st Cavalry Regiment of the 10th Mountain Division along with Canadian forces have fanned out in the vast area south of Kandahar. They are part of a counterinsurgency strategy aimed at protecting Afghan civilians and legitimizing the government of Afghanistan in the minds of the rural local populace. Getty

A soldier in the U.S. Army's 1-17 Cavalry ducks through a small door inside of Strongpoint Tarnak on June 14, 2010 in rural Dand District, just south of Kandahar, Afghanistan. The small Army outpost is built on the ruins of an Afghan mujahadeen base from the anti-Soviet struggle in the 1980's. U.S. soldiers of the 1st Squadron, 71st Cavalry Regiment of the 10th Mountain Division along with Canadian forces have fanned out in the vast area south of Kandahar. They are part of a counterinsurgency strategy aimed at protecting Afghan civilians and legitimizing the government of Afghanistan in the minds of the rural local populace. Getty

An Afghan National Policeman (R) mans a checkpoint as civilians are ordered away from a usually busy street during an operation by a US Army Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) team to recover a weapons cache in Kandahar City on June 14, 2010. A district chief, his son and a bodyguard were killed by a car bomb in southern Afghanistan's Taliban heartland of Kandahar city on June 15, police said. Getty

A US Army soldier of the 293rd Battalion (L) patrols a side street during an operation by a US Army Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) team to recover a weapons cache in Kandahar City on June 14, 2010. A district chief, his son and a bodyguard were killed by a car bomb in southern Afghanistan's Taliban heartland of Kandahar city on June 15, police said. Getty

Afghan National Police members, recently graduated from a local police academy, stand outside a small police outpost June 14, 2010 in rural Dand District, just south of Kandahar, Afghanistan. President Obama's Afghanistan plan relies heavily on training local Afghans to take over policing duties. Getty

A view showing part of Kabul Afghanistan, during sunset at the close of the day, Monday, June 14, 2010. AP